Sociological Theories of Organized Crime

628 Words3 Pages
In 1990 the movie Goodfellas hit the market and it was one of the movies that you had to see. When I was the ripe old age of twenty I went and saw the movie. The movie became an instant classic. Over the next several years I have viewed the movie and always said it was one of the greatest I have ever watched. As I watched the movie again this week it was funny that I actually understood a little more about the various sociological theories that are portrayed throughout the movie. There were two theories that stood out in my mind as the film progressed. The first theory I observed was the theory of subculture. A subculture “implies that there are value judgments or a social value system which is apart from a larger or central value system. From the viewpoint of this larger dominant culture, the values of the subculture set the latter apart and prevent total integration, occasionally causing open or covert conflicts. Subcultures are patterns of values, norms, and behavior which have become traditional among certain groups” (Abadinsky 2013:83). In the movie a young Henry Hill lives across the street from the meeting place of gangsters sees the gangster life in certain aspects and wants to become part of it. He becomes infatuated to it over time as he is exposed to it as a culture with its own rules and rewards. As Henry grows up and joins the family he starts to learn that he can accepts the benefits as part of a lifestyle but fails to value the consequences that come with his decisions. Those costs are born by the various members of the gang essentially as a part of the cost of doing business. When punishment was handed out you did the time no questions asked. Punishment was an element of the subculture, it was something someone lived with as result of his choice to be a criminal. The subculture itself operates to alleviate and even reward the process of
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