I’ve been talking to a friend of mind about the Mafia and trying to explain the “made-man” concept, but am realizing that I’m not quite sure myself exactly what it entails. From “Goodfellas”(and it’s source book), I get the idea that a made man can’t be killed without getting permission from his family, has to be completely sicilian/italian and presumably enjoys certain special special privledges.
Unfortunatly, that’s all I can remember. I can’t seem to find any good net resources about it through causual searching.
Could anyone help point me in the right direction on this?
Some Eye-Talyun might be along later to correct me later, but with that said:
I’ve always thought of it as becoming “sponsored”. Imagine being an amateur skater. You do all right. You make some money at local, and maybe some regional competitions, but nothing big. You’re pretty much on your own and you’re not really part of any league.
Then you get “Made”. Coke comes and sponsors you. Now you have clout and money. You get set up in some National Tours and competitions and you start making lots of money. You’re well known and kicking ass. Coke helped you get big, but in return, you’re actually making them a lot of money too.
So it’s kind of like that. If you’re not “made”, you’re just small time. And you’re not part of the “family”. No matter how big of a badass you are, you’re not “IN”. Once you’re made, you can really start expanding. You’re part of the family, so you have more protection, which gives you more power and you can get even bigger. But you also have to listen to the big boss. It’s his empire, so you listen to him. Also, you’re a company man now. So you’re not just in it to make money for yourself. You’re concerned about making the “family” money. You’re not a loner anymore.
My understanding, based on movies and The Sopranos, is that one of the big things is that while being made means you can really start earning and being a trusted member of the organization, it also means the only way out is death or Witness Protection. You’re in it for life once you’re made. That and loyalty is what the silly ritual means. Of course, it’s from movies and I don’t live where we have real Mafia.