When one thinks of the Italian Mafia, the common thought is fear and power. The mafia or the mob, used to have a lot more control in the cities and over the unions, but recently that power has decreased. Despite the decrease in power, the mafia still partakes in illegal activities such as murder, extortion, illegal gambling, racketeering, fraud, money laundering, and many many more. And in spite of all these horrible things, many people look up to mobsters. Mobsters are almost seen in a positive way in movies or shows such as Goodfellas, The Godfather, and The Sopranos. Media plays a huge role in the way the mafia is viewed through social media, the news, cinema, and other aspects such as articles and websites. The article, “Why Do We Admire …show more content…
Hunter seems to find the use of cinema as a huge influence for the admiration of these characters. The use of mafia movies and shows makes mobsters feel like good guys or Goodfellas. The Sopranos is a huge mafia show, and many people found comfort in the character Tony Soprano. The reasoning for this confort could be because he is a family man, seems like a good guy, or even just because he sees a therapist. None of these reasons are exactly rational, which is what Hunter general wants readers to understand. Hunter’s main idea is similar to Konnikova’s which is the omertà that really leads to admiration of the mafia. Hunter provides a lot of background on the general topic of the Italian mafia, which creates credibility and informs readers which gets Hunter’s point across better. An interesting way Hunter structures her article, is by asking a question, then providing an answer. This is an important tool because it shows Hunter’s stance on the questions which helps readers understand the situation better. Throughout the article, the author doesn’t use much pathos, though the whole idea that Americans aren’t as sophisticated as Europeans could bring emotions for some. The use of logos was seen a bit as Hunter provided her stance on many different topics and also provides many interesting statements and facts such as, “There is even an adjective in Italian, americanata. It means something that tries to be European or sophisticated but doesn’t succeed”. These interesting facts keeps the reader interested and learning more about the mafia. Overall, Hunter did a okay job showing their stance on the topic of idolizing mobsters, though it feels she got too caught up in the cinema