I always wondered why Sonny was so rambunctious and ruly and what caused him to acquire that sort of mindset. Was it because of the way he was raised, some tragedy?
Not to ruin the book for you, but since you asked...
(I have not read the passage in a while so settle for this temporary effort to paraphrase, I will expand later if you like when I re-read the passage)
Sonny is compared to Luca b/c neither feared death. Sonny's death is described as a relief for him, something that he had searched for, something that would finally ease all of the tension and emotions that he himself could not ease. In order for him to be so brave and not afraid to look death in the eye he had to have a certain disdain for life. It was this search for death as a relief to his high emotional state that allowed him to be so brave in dire situations when normal people would have backed off.
