A Mafia Family's Use of Violence
             Violence can either be used as mean of attaining power or as means of revenge. It is a highly known fact that the main focus of a stereotypical Mafia family should centre around the use of violence. "The Godfather" as well as "The Last Don" are two novels which hold true to this focus and are interestingly enough both written by the same author: the late Mario Puzo. Although being written more than twenty-five years apart, the two novels almost mirror each other throughout. For instance, near the beginning of each book the only daughter of each family gets married. Aside from that we also see one son die in each novel as well as the husband of the family's only daughter to be killed by the family. Throughout all these instances the only thing dissimilar regarding the two Mafia families is their reasons for violence. A family's use of violence is determined by how much power they hold. In "The Godfather", the main purpose behind all killing and violence can be directly related to attaining power. On the other hand, "The Last Don" is a novel in which all cases of violence are used for the sole purpose of revenge.
             The killing of one of the sons in both novels by Puzo appears to be the most prominent deaths. The unfortunate son in "The Last Don", Sylvio, is a very caring and nurturing individual who wishes to have his younger sister, Rose, marry the man of her choice. Her first choice is the son of a rival Mafia boss. He is a part of the Santadio clan. For obvious business reasons Don Clericuzio does not wish his daughter to become involved with the rival son let alone have him become a part of his family. Therefore Don Clericuzio strictly forbids Rose's marriage to him. As a means of reconciling this difference Petie meets Rose's lover to seek the solution to their marriage. On the way home after making...