Al "Scarface" Capone
America's best known gangster, Alphonse Capone was the overlord of a vast criminal empire responsible for the rampant lawlessness and massive corruption plaguing Chicago during the 1920's Prohibition Era. At the same time Al Capone's fame and colorful personality captured the hearts and minds of the public and press transforming himself into a mythic folk hero. He was admired for his defiance of the law, his 'rags to riches' climb to fame, his wealth, his power, and his generosity. But this immaculate image many bought into was not the true reality. Al Capone was brutal and violent in nature and did not hesitate to commit murder and mayhem whenever he thought necessary. Upon close examination of his life, especially the time before he was born up to and including his teenage years, one can only ponder why more Al Capones had not evolved. Al Capone was born on January 17, 1899 in Brooklyn, New York. His Italian heritage formed, molded, and influenced every aspect of his life and career, even before he was born. Al Capone's family was from Naples, Italy, a capital which changed power many times over the past two thousand years. During the eighteenth century alone, Naples was controlled by the Greeks, Romans, Austrians, Sp
severally beat him. At this Al Capone never returned to school. Being out on the streets gave Al Capone the opportunity to find work. He was soon employed by John Torrio, a successful numbers racketeer "...responsible for the development of modern cooperate crime...making its vices to all...beyond the streets of Brooklyn to the entire nation" (Bergreen 37). At first Al Capone was employed as a runner, but he was soon given more responsibilities and furthered his career. John Torrio soon became his mentor and "...his Fagin, his link to the world beyond Brooklyn, the vast and glittering world of the rackets" (Bergreen 37). If any man could be said to have invented Al Capone, to have been responsible for making him into what he eventually became, that man was John Torrio (Bergreen 38). ...overwhelmed, submerged, and almost drowned out by a great flood-tide of European riff-raff, the refuse of almost every nation on the continent, paupers, criminals, beggars and the muddy residuum of foreign civilizations (Bergreen 21). http://www.fbi.gov/yourfbi/history/famcases/capone/capone.htm est social disorganization and value conflict" (Siegel 216). Although he was born and raised in the United States, Al Capone lived by the values and way of life of organized crime originated in Naples and brought to the United States through immigration and campanilismo. In the late 1800's and early 1900's many immigrants entered the United States and resided in the same neighborhood as others of their background. This grouping of the same ethnicity was known as campanilismo. In Naples, the Neapolitans were born, lived their life, and then died all within the same general area. In the United States campanilismo reiterated the Italian immigrant's alienation from American life. When Al Capone's parents immigrated to the United States in 1894 they resided in Brooklyn, a borough home to thousands upon thousands of Neapolitans immigrants. "No mere appendage to New York City, Brooklyn was a world unto itself" (Bergreen 28). Al Capone was surrounded with fellow immigrants who were accustomed to the organized crime of the Camorra in Naples. It is evident that Shaw and McKay's concentric zone theory under the Social Disorganization theory played a role in the development of Al Capone. He was "...a product of transitional neighborhoods that manif! Al Capone looked to him as a father figure because of his wealth, success, and leadership. John Torrio's influence only intensified whe
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Approximate Word count = 1677
Approximate Pages = 7 (250 words per page double spaced)
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