Antonio Nicaso, is an award-winning journalist, a bestselling author and an internationally recognized expert on organized crime. He is a regular consultant to governments and law-enforcement agencies around the world and a lecturer at several universities. Nicaso teaches in the postgraduate courses on history of organized crime at Middlebury College (Vermont) and he is the co-director of the Centre of Forensic Semiotics at Victoria College (University of Toronto). He sits on International Advisory Council of The Italian Institute of Stategic Studies “Nicolò Machiavelli.Marcel Danesi is professor of anthropology at the University of Toronto. He is known for his work in language, communications, and semiotics; being Director of the Program in semiotics and communication theory. He has also held positions at Rutgers University, University of Rome "La Sapienza", the Catholic University of Milan, and the University of Lugano. Among his most significant books are Cool: The Signs and Meanings of Adolescence and Popular Culture: An Introduction (2011).

• Introduction1 Origins and OrganizationThe Origins of the MafiaReinvention: Cosa NostraThe Display of PowerOrganization2 HonorOmertàEnacting the CodeMafia WomenThe Yakuza3 Rituals and SymbolsRituals and RitesReligious SymbolismInitiation and Passage RitesThe Power of Symbols4 Appearance The Made ManTattoosGangster ChicEnter the Movies5 Names The GangThe Wise GuyThe TalkTerms of Distinction6 MythFoundation MythsAn American Myth: Cosa NostraStreet MythsTechnologyConclusion

Journalist Nicaso (Middlebury College) and anthropologist Danesi (Toronto) demystify the Mafia. Instead of perpetuating the cinematic image of Mafia members as misunderstood patriarchs, the authors spotlight the discrepancies between popular culture and reality. More importantly, they shatter the myth that all Italian mob families operate alike, as well as the myth that organized street gangs, in general, are one-dimensional entities, making this book a valuable addition to the scholarship on organized crime. Nicaso and Danesi clearly show that what keeps these organizations' "thugness" disguised as honorable criminality are the cultural markers and rituals that become the social glue for members. Included in these markers and rituals are distinct clothing, vocabulary, nicknames, and initiations intended to provide a veneer of exclusivity to members. Nicaso and Danesi drive home the point that no gangs, including the Mafia, can be classified together in a homogenous lump. Both anthropological and sociological, the book is exhaustively researched yet lightly written, assumedly to reach a wider audience, particularly at the less initiated undergraduate level. Summing Up: Recommended. All levels/libraries.

Antonio Nicaso, is an award-winning journalist, a bestselling author and an internationally recognized expert on organized crime. He is a regular consultant to governments and law-enforcement agencies around the world and a lecturer at several universities. Nicaso teaches in the postgraduate courses on history of organized crime at Middlebury College (Vermont) and he is the co-director of the Centre of Forensic Semiotics at Victoria College (University of Toronto). He sits on International Advisory Council of The Italian Institute of Stategic Studies “Nicolò Machiavelli.Marcel Danesi is professor of anthropology at the University of Toronto. He is known for his work in language, communications, and semiotics; being Director of the Program in semiotics and communication theory. He has also held positions at Rutgers University, University of Rome "La Sapienza", the Catholic University of Milan, and the University of Lugano. Among his most significant books are Cool: The Signs and Meanings of Adolescence and Popular Culture: An Introduction (2011).

• Introduction1 Origins and OrganizationThe Origins of the MafiaReinvention: Cosa NostraThe Display of PowerOrganization2 HonorOmertàEnacting the CodeMafia WomenThe Yakuza3 Rituals and SymbolsRituals and RitesReligious SymbolismInitiation and Passage RitesThe Power of Symbols4 Appearance The Made ManTattoosGangster ChicEnter the Movies5 Names The GangThe Wise GuyThe TalkTerms of Distinction6 MythFoundation MythsAn American Myth: Cosa NostraStreet MythsTechnologyConclusion

Journalist Nicaso (Middlebury College) and anthropologist Danesi (Toronto) demystify the Mafia. Instead of perpetuating the cinematic image of Mafia members as misunderstood patriarchs, the authors spotlight the discrepancies between popular culture and reality. More importantly, they shatter the myth that all Italian mob families operate alike, as well as the myth that organized street gangs, in general, are one-dimensional entities, making this book a valuable addition to the scholarship on organized crime. Nicaso and Danesi clearly show that what keeps these organizations' "thugness" disguised as honorable criminality are the cultural markers and rituals that become the social glue for members. Included in these markers and rituals are distinct clothing, vocabulary, nicknames, and initiations intended to provide a veneer of exclusivity to members. Nicaso and Danesi drive home the point that no gangs, including the Mafia, can be classified together in a homogenous lump. Both anthropological and sociological, the book is exhaustively researched yet lightly written, assumedly to reach a wider audience, particularly at the less initiated undergraduate level. Summing Up: Recommended. All levels/libraries.

Antonio Nicaso, is an award-winning journalist, a bestselling author and an internationally recognized expert on organized crime. He is a regular consultant to governments and law-enforcement agencies around the world and a lecturer at several universities. Nicaso teaches in the postgraduate courses on history of organized crime at Middlebury College (Vermont) and he is the co-director of the Centre of Forensic Semiotics at Victoria College (University of Toronto). He sits on International Advisory Council of The Italian Institute of Stategic Studies “Nicolò Machiavelli.Marcel Danesi is professor of anthropology at the University of Toronto. He is known for his work in language, communications, and semiotics; being Director of the Program in semiotics and communication theory. He has also held positions at Rutgers University, University of Rome "La Sapienza", the Catholic University of Milan, and the University of Lugano. Among his most significant books are Cool: The Signs and Meanings of Adolescence and Popular Culture: An Introduction (2011).

• Introduction1 Origins and OrganizationThe Origins of the MafiaReinvention: Cosa NostraThe Display of PowerOrganization2 HonorOmertàEnacting the CodeMafia WomenThe Yakuza3 Rituals and SymbolsRituals and RitesReligious SymbolismInitiation and Passage RitesThe Power of Symbols4 Appearance The Made ManTattoosGangster ChicEnter the Movies5 Names The GangThe Wise GuyThe TalkTerms of Distinction6 MythFoundation MythsAn American Myth: Cosa NostraStreet MythsTechnologyConclusion

Journalist Nicaso (Middlebury College) and anthropologist Danesi (Toronto) demystify the Mafia. Instead of perpetuating the cinematic image of Mafia members as misunderstood patriarchs, the authors spotlight the discrepancies between popular culture and reality. More importantly, they shatter the myth that all Italian mob families operate alike, as well as the myth that organized street gangs, in general, are one-dimensional entities, making this book a valuable addition to the scholarship on organized crime. Nicaso and Danesi clearly show that what keeps these organizations' "thugness" disguised as honorable criminality are the cultural markers and rituals that become the social glue for members. Included in these markers and rituals are distinct clothing, vocabulary, nicknames, and initiations intended to provide a veneer of exclusivity to members. Nicaso and Danesi drive home the point that no gangs, including the Mafia, can be classified together in a homogenous lump. Both anthropological and sociological, the book is exhaustively researched yet lightly written, assumedly to reach a wider audience, particularly at the less initiated undergraduate level. Summing Up: Recommended. All levels/libraries.