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Essay / Research Paper Abstract
In three pages this paper defines concepts of culture/subculture, norms, values, and sanctions within the context of the film by analyzing certain key scenes. One source is listed in the bibliography.
Page Count:
3 pages (~225 words per page)
File: TG61_TGgoodfellas.rtf
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Unformatted sample text from the term paper:
Culture is perpetuated by the family unit, with traditions passing from one generation to another. Within a culture, there exists a subculture, which is "a segment of society
which shares distinctive mores, folkways, and values which differs from the pattern of the larger society" (Schaefer & Lamm, 1995, p. 611). The most significant trait within the subculture,
values, represent "collective conceptions of what is considered good, desirable, and proper - or bad, undesirable, and improper - in a culture" (Schaefer & Lamm, 1995, p. 612). Finally,
sanctions are "penalties and rewards for conduct concerning a social norm" (Schaefer & Lamm, 1995, p. 610). Director Martin Scorseses 1990 film Goodfellas is a compelling examination of mobsters
(known in Sicilian as La Cosa Nostra), who have created within their Mafia family a subculture that is distinct from the American mainstream subculture. The film clarifies for the
sociology student the unique set of values and sanctions that characterizes the mob subculture. Early in the film, there is a scene that is developed from the perspective of
the main character Henry Hill as a teenager that is designed to depict the differences visually between the prevailing American culture of the time period and the Mafia subculture into
which the boy is being indoctrinated. Another scene that contrasts Henrys family life with his growing acceptance within the mob family is designed to emphasize the distinction between traditional
American cultural values and those of the mob subculture. Subsequently, a scene featuring an adult Henry further illustrates the values within his Mafia subculture that are diametrically opposed to
those within the dominant culture. Finally, a graphically violent scene depicts the sanctions that are necessary to reward service and to punish disservice. In American culture, children are taught
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