One problem I have is connecting the people to their names... I can't connect their faces with their names and histories...
I don't want to be travelling around different websites, so I used "Behind the Name"most. If i didn't find it there, I used Google. Names have many alternate meanings, so I'm just throwing things out there.
People we know about:
Corleone: Most likely after the city in Italy.
Bonasera: "Good evening" in Italian?
Santino(Sonny)....:kind of ironic, huh...
Michael: I'm guessing this name has a lot of meanings.
Connie: (there are tons of redirections from this link). Basically it boils down to being "constant/unchanging"
Carlo: not sure if this has any bearing to the plot, but a "man"....I suppose he is. with the whores, and all...
Paulie: alternate name for "paul" meaning "small" or "humble" in Latin.
Sandra: alternate for Alessandra which is an alternate for Alexandra which is an alternate for Alexander, meaning "defender of mankind".
Tom Hagen: one definition says it is a alternate for "thomas", meaning "twin". it's greek. In Hebrew, "Tom" means "honest".
As for hagen...well, he does seem very much in control.
Nazorine:....I don't even remember who this person is anymore. the link is the closest name I could find.
Enzo: look and see for yourself. if you go with "heinz" and follow all the redirects, you get "home ruler" (home & ruler). If you follow "Lorenzo", then you get "from Laurentum", an ancient Italian city. if you follow "Vincenzo", you get "to conquer".
Luca Brazi: ...not sure. didn't get very good results.
Kay Adams: for "kay" I'd go with the first link, since Kay is American. I think "Adams" is a generic American last name, though if you were to go with the definition for "Adam"...wait a second, adam and eve? and...the scarlet woman? could there be a connection? (temptation?)
and... wait a second! the meaning of "adam" could also mean "to be red"...is there something going on here?
-EDIT-
Looked up "Catherine" like Mr. McGuigan suggested. There are many meanings, but if you refer the name to "Hecate" then the meaning refers to a goddess involved with demons, tombs, the underworld...
Senator Cauly: A minor character—I didn't find anything.
Johnny Fontane: ....not sure...apparently fontane is a alternate for "fountain" in either french or italian.
Fredo: frederico->frederick-> peaceful ruler, alfredo-> alfred-> "elf" and "counsel" combined.
...I don't know if these meanings are important or not...
Woltz: well, I looked up walter: "ruler of army". [and...correction...he was the one who got his horse killed.]
Virtigio Sollatzo (Solvatzo): I'm going to guess and say virtigio means "virtuous" or something. as for sollatzo (not sure about sp), i didn't find anything, but a similar derivative is salvatore->salvador-> "savior".
Khartoum: (I just got something about how it's a city in Sudan)
Tattaglia: I just got a bunch of godfather stuff on google.
Clemenza: I know he should've been higher up on this list as we met him earlier, but I couldn't find anything at the time. Anyway, it's a derivative for Clement, apparently, meaning "merciful, gentle". I suppose this fits as his place as Michael's potential mentor.
Vitelli: possibly an alternate for Vitale, meaning "of life/vital". Can also be an alternate for vitello->vito->vitus->life [so, basically the same meaning].
Apolonia (or was it Appolonia? or Apollonia?): Remember how we discussed how she might be "the goddess" in Michael's hero's journey? well, "Apollo" is the god of light/the sun in Greek mythology.
Finally finished! These are all the characters so far. There are two or three characters I left out- they were either really minor or I couldn't find anything.
Please add your input if anything's wrong or whatnot.
This counts for something like 2 posts…seriously.
I think Khartoum was the name of the horse...??? but I'm not sure.
ReplyDeleteooh, yeah. I just wrote "$6000 horse" in my notes, so I guess i interpreted it wrong. I'll review the entry there.
ReplyDeleteWow! Good work! I like the part about Hagen being kinked to "high son". That worked really nicely.
ReplyDeleteFor Kay, try looking up Catherine, which links to Hecate.
This is very interesting. This allows people to interpret that the names of the characters are not made at random.
ReplyDeleteI did some research into the city of Corleone. It is a city known for being the birthplace for many mafia bosses so it makes perfect sense to have Corleone as the family name in "The Godfather".
As for Bonasera, I am pretty sure it is not the undertaker's name. The meaning, "Good Evening or night", gives me the idea that it was chosen for the undertaker because he is someone that will put the dead person to final sleep.
I do not really know what to say for Connie but I believe the meaning, "unchanging", is accurate in the movie. She loves or is at least protective of her husband Carlo. When Santino first found out Carlo had beat Connie, she said that she hit Carlo first. This shows some loyalty or protectiveness because she knows Santino is very aggressive and forceful. Later on, near the end of the movie, Connie lashes out at Michael yelling at him about how he killed he killed Carlo. Connie had been beaten by Carlo twice in the movie, but she still shows some loyalty to Carlo.
Now Tom is very interesting. Both the meaning "honest" and "twin" come into effect in "The Godfather". The character himself is very calm and truthful in everything he does. He never lies and is very logical in his actions. The definition "twin" makes it clear that Tom is indeed a foil for Santino. Santino is hot-headed while Tom is always cool and collected. It was not a coincidence to have the character named Tom and create him into a foil for Santino.
This is all I have for now. I will add on it once I get more ideas.
Oh and a short comment on Fredo.
ReplyDeleteThe meaning "elf" and "council" both have a part in Fredo's character. He is a very minor character in the movie. He only has a couple of scenes (3 or so I think) and after the meeting between Michael and Moe Greene, Fredo tries to lecture or chastise Michael about how he cannot speak to Greene in a rude manner. During his speech, however, Michael cuts Fredo off coldly and warns him not to take sides with anyone other than family. I get the idea that he is "useless" and no one cares for his opinions.