Diction: The Godfather

Diction

Diction in The Godfather varies greatly, from the loving and warm diction used in regards to family and interpersonal relationships between lovers, friends, and brothers alike; to the harsh, violent, and cruel diction used when Puzo describes the brutals murders, beatings, and strangulations of various characters throughout the book. 

While still a brutally viscious crime family, the Corleones are a particularly loving bunch when it comes to the people the trust most, principally their family. In the scene in which Don takes in Tom Hagen, a stray boy on the street, to be his adopted son, the diction he uses, such as, “embrace, fatherly effection, understanding, loyalty, and divinity,” (53) creates a loving tone. In a smilar instance of heartfelt compassion when dealing with the death of his Genco, Don Corleone uses many words which evoke a compassionate tone. “We will take up the burden. We will comfort him. We will close his eyes. We will bury him and weep at his funeral and afterwards we will watch over his wife and daughters” (45).

Speaking of the “family business” and its adversites, Michael tells Tom Hagen that despite the “strictly business” attitude of much of the Corleone family, “It's all personal, every bit of business. Every piece of shit every man has to eat every day of his life is personal. They call it business. OK. But it's personal as hell (146). The profanity used by Michael is consistent with many of the verbal exchanges throughout the book. This sort of low level, colloquial diction is used to show the roughness of the life inside of a Sicilian crime syndicate, as it reflects the harsh, often violent tone present throughout the novel. In addition to this, there are many brutal exchanges throughout the novel that depict scenes of immense violence in full detail using a vivid pallate of hate filled diction, that at times is disturbing to the reader.