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Plural Cultures Of Sicily: The Sicilian Mafia And Culture

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Sicily is described to be a beautiful place filled with amazing culture, however the Sicilian mafia automatically gives Sicily a negative image that represents violence, death, and ordered criminality. Authors Jane Schneider and Peter Schneider of Mafia, Antimafia, and the Plural Cultures of Sicily discusses the social and cultural features of the Sicilian mafia by stating, “Sicilian mafiosi represent themselves as “men of honor” who solve problems (their own and others) without resorting to state-established law” (Schneider, 502). Although the mafia are viewed as violent criminals around the world, the Sicilian mafia view themselves as their own government that deals with their issues and other people's issues in their own way, without getting the police or law involved. The Sicilian mafia represents a criminal society filled with loyalty of the members, secrecy, violence, and death; and they are also known for wanting access and control over public goods and popular businesses. …show more content…

Many Sicilian males are automatically born into the mafia and are expected to withhold the family legacy because their fathers, uncles, grandfathers, or cousins were part of the Sicilian mafia before them. Although some Sicilian citizens do not want join the mafia but are forced into, others actually want to be a part of it due to the social status and privileges it offers the,, which is further explained when Jane Schneider and Peter Schneider stated, “The mafia offers its members the privilege of exclusivity and belongings. A symbolically laden rite of entry and effort at lifelong socialization situates them “outside” normal society and, in their view, “above” it” (Schneider,

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