David Chao Writing 1 Synthesis Essay Ms. Ford 4/4/08 Looking at <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> through a new lens <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> runs deep in the messages it provides to society, and consequently sparks varying opinions about the effectiveness of specific messages. In a particular scholarly article, &quot;Ressurrecting <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> &quot; by James Chiampi, he writes a critique not just on <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> alone, but on other critics analysis of the story as well. Chiampi adds his own take on various cultural messages he thinks take importance in the movie. Chiampis major points in his article are characterizing the differences between American and Sicilian societies and identifying the Sicilian values that must be kept separate with the stereotypical American characteristics. Although the article &quot;Ressurecting <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> &quot; contains useful information for my researched analysis project, it falls short of providing all the information I need to conduct research for the project. Chiampis scholarly article provides support for one of the cultural messages I have noticed in <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> , and gives my claim authority. I have noticed a pattern of clash between Sicilian and American values which leads to my claim that the leaders of the Corrleone family are trying to cut themselves off from stereotypical American values, and to strengthen their own cultural identity as Sicilians. <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> shows examples of the particular pattern when characters experience injustice after they put their trust in the American justice system. The court system is an epitome of the stereotypical American values that the Corrleone family wishes to distance themselves from. Chiampi explains some of these values and writes, &quot;Americans are dishonest, bestial, and untrustworthy, vices they regularly reveal in their business dealings&quot; (30). These stereotypical values can be found in the American court system and in business dealings. An acquaintance of the Corrleone family, Amerigo Bonasera, is betrayed by the American justice system that he had put so much trust in. Having full confidence in America after making a fortune shortly after he moved to the country from Italy, Bonasera believes he will receive justice for a felony committed against his daughter. After he loses the court case, he is forced to reconsider his trust in America. He represents allegorically &quot;the end of the American dream of justice&quot; and &quot;will lay to rest any lingering belief that the courts dispense justice evenhandedly [...] to the ethnic native born&quot; (22). Bonasera loses trust in the American justice system after he sees the stereotypical American value of untrustworthiness in the court, which was not able to decide on the correct verdict. Chiampis analysis of Bonaseras loss in confidence of America, provides a perfect example why the leaders of the Corrleone family try to distance themselves from stereotypical American values. However, not all members of the Corrleone family abide the Sicilian values of having calmness, &quot;inhibition, and cunning&quot; (30). Chiampi adds a new ,,lens to the argument and makes a clever contrast of two of Don Corrleones sons in <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> that I had not previously noticed while analyzing the movie for examples to support my claim of the cultural message. Don Corrleones two sons hold two different set of values, Michael holding typical Sicilian values, and Sonny holding typical American values. Michael, the younger son, represents the typical Sicilian identity by possessing thoughtfulness and inhibition in his actions. For example, Michael realizes that integrating into American society will not bring him justice, so instead of relying on the American court system, like Bonasera did, he tries to bring justice about by himself. To avenge an attempted murder of his father by a corrupt cop, Michael does not once think about trusting the untrustworthy American justice system to put the men behind bars, but uses his Sicilian characteristic of inhibition to kill the cop on his own accord. Michael did not simply shoot the cop in blood rage, but calculated his murder with stealth. After killing the cop, Michael flees to Sicily, which illustrates his transformation away from stereotypical American values and his attempt to distance himself away from the culture. &quot;Michael has [...] achieved the correlative insight that there is no justice for the powerless or for the meek&quot; (27). Instead of being powerless by giving his trust to an American justice system that is not honorable, Michael uses his Sicilian value of inhibition and cunning to gain justice. However, the eldest son Sonny possesses almost the opposite set of characteristics that represent a stereotypical American such as acting solely on emotion and being spontaneous without thinking. In contrast, Sonny upholds several stereotypical American characteristics that get him killed when he rushes to his sisters defense in blood rage. &quot;Sense destroys: the butchering of Sonny is emblematic of the loss of the integreity of the self that occurs when appetite overcomes reason/calculation&quot; (28). Instead of planning ahead with inhibition like Michael does, Sonnys act of spontaneity, a stereotypical American characteristic, get him killed. Chiampis clever example of contrast provides me with another dimension of analysis. Instead of contrasting the Corrleone family with an outsider who has stereotypical American values, I am able to use a contrast between two characters within the Corrleone family, which is perceived as the example of Sicilian values. It has been seen that Chiampi makes several points that support my view on <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> s cultural message and provides a new ,,lens by providing a clever contrast between two characters. However, I find that there are limitations to some of his article in applying it to my research analysis project. Chiampi also presents the opinions of other critics and then argues why their views are short-sighted. The views of the other critics do not directly correlate to the claims I have made regarding the message that is presented in <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> regarding several characters assertion of their Sicilian identity. For example, many of the claims that the other critics make are that <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> is filled with immoral values and should be denounced as a gruesome commercial work. As one critic writes, &quot;,,there is brutality in abundance, but there is also a sickening justification and glorification of a detestable regime. Everything is brutal. Sex is abundant; it is not love, just animality, except in a few instances&quot; (18). The opinions of these critics complicate my analysis of the movie, because they offer another view of the movie that I have not considered at all. Chiampi does not dwell on the critics, because he is biased towards his own opinion of the movie and the cultural message it sends. However, after reading some of the other views besides Chiampis it offers a whole new debate to what cultural message <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> presents, and makes my researched analysis project more complicated. &quot;Resurrecting <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> &quot; will not provide enough material to cover my project alone, as it does not provide much detail about what moral values actually constitute a Sicilian identity versus an American identity. While Chiampi briefly lists the values and give examples of them in the movie, he does not explain to as why or how these values are associated with each cultural identity. Another source that provides more detail on the distinction between the values of Sicilians and Americans is needed for my research project. Chiampis article has supported my original claim that the cultural message presented in <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> is the want for independence of a Sicilian identity in an American society by leaders of the Corrleone family. Also supporting my claim, but providing me with a new ,,lens in the way that I analyze the movie, the article provides further depth to support my claims in contrasting two characters, Michael and Sonny, to illustrate why Michaels Sicilian identity does not bind well with Sonnys stereotypical American values. &quot;Ressurecting <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> &quot; also complicates my research analysis project by providing a secondary view from other critics about the story behind the movie, presenting it as a gruesome commercial work that makes immoral values seem acceptable. Although Chiampis article does not provide adequate material alone to cover my research analysis project, it has given me a new outlook in the way that I have analyzed <a href="/keyword/the-godfather/" >the godfather</a> .