Son of the Mob

Use these questions or activities to help gauge students’ familiarity with and spark their interest in the context of the work, giving them an entry point into the text itself.

Short Answer

What are some reasons, historically, that Italians immigrated to the United States? What is meant generally by the term Mafia? Why might Mafia members have immigrated from Italy?

Teaching Suggestion: Vince, the protagonist in the novel, is the son of a mob boss. It may be beneficial for students to explore reliable resources that discuss the rise of the Mafia, how it made most of its money, and where the Mafia is today.

• This article describes the rise and decline of the Mafia in American history.
• This 16-minute animated video describes the Mafia’s role in the United States today. (Content Warning: As you might expect, this video includes mentions of violence, assault, threats, weapons, and murder; animations and language are somewhat irreverent in tone; may not be appropriate for all classes and may work better as a teacher-facing resource.)

Short Activity

Create a mind map based on the questions below. To create a mind map, take the central question “What is the Mafia?” and place it in a circle in the center of the page. Reflect on the question and write your initial thoughts in the space around the circle. Then place the additional thoughts as bubbles around the sides of the mind map. For each additional thought, record your ideas or experiences that relate to the question. Be prepared to share with peers.

Central Question: What is the Mafia?

Additional Thoughts:

Movies and books

• Money and business dealings
• Violence and influence
• Organized crime

Teaching Suggestion: One way to introduce students to the novel is through a discussion of background knowledge on the Mafia and the connections they can make. The “additional thoughts” can spur student thinking and help them make connections to complete the mind map. For additional information on creating mind maps, consider watching this video.

Personal Connection Prompt

This prompt can be used for in-class discussion, exploratory free-writing, or reflection homework before reading the novel.

Most people have felt, at one time or another, that their family was odd, atypical, or uncommon. What makes your family different from those of your peers? Have you ever felt embarrassed about this? What kinds of information about our families do we tend to keep secret, and why?

Teaching Suggestion: Vince’s life is often interrupted by his Mafia family’s dealings. He finds a person in his trunk while on a date, and students refuse to play a fair game of football with him. After students explore this prompt’s topic in writing or discussion, you might ask them to speculate as to what life might be like as the son of a Mafia boss. Would he feel embarrassed of his family? How might keeping secrets affect his friendships?

Differentiation Suggestion: For students who require an additional challenge, consider permitting them to research how keeping secrets affects people. The Scientific American article “Why the Secrets You Keep Are Hurting You” is one possible source.