Conclusion: Resilient Social Violence

This concluding chapter summarises some of the key insights from the chapters of the book. It argues that the mafia transcends being just an organisation of criminals, but might be read as a particular form of paralegal power, founded on resilient expressions of social violence. Drawing on empirical examples from the texts gathered in the anthology, two themes are identified are being distinctive to mafia power throughout its history: political entrepreneurship and social poverty. The chapter traces several details of these dimensions and suggests that it could be beneficial to explore them in a comparative manner, that is, by inserting them in a broader and more global conversation on persistent forms of paralegal power.