...you know the part where vito is berating young sonny for being involved in a robbery and suddenly sonny springs the news on his father that he witnessed the killing of fanucci and his dad's disposal of the gun he used? quite a revelation. i wonder, was sonny actually threatening his his dad in some tacit way with his knowledge of the information? you'll notice how as soon as sonny tells his father he knows he killed fanucci, vito immediately backs down from reprimanding him and commences to bring him under his wing in the family business. was vito threatened by his son's knowledge, that he could possibly use it against him? is that why he retreated from scolding sonny?

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I doubt a man such as Vito Corleone would feel threatened in any way by one of his own children.

The most likely reason he backed off...was that as a father he could not seriously reprimand for robbery a son who he now knows watched him kill a man in cold blood.

Kind've difficult to lay down the law under such circumstances.

Apple

Agreed, Apple. But I felt that Vito, given his personal force, gave up a bit too early on Sonny with that line, "Well, I can't tell you how to behave" or somesuch. One possibility is that Puzo needed an opening for his famous line, "Don't you want to be a lawyer? A lawyer with his briefcase can steal more than a thousand men with guns." Another is that he had plenty of opportunity to witness Sonny's development, and had already concluded that he wasn't exactly college material.

True...but I feel that the realization that his son knew he was a murder was somehow humbling to Vito. Once that was out in the open, he really had nowhere to go with Sonny. You can't exactly preach 'Well, just because I killed somebody doesn't mean you should go out & commit robbery. Anyway son, you shouldn't have followed me around...'

Apple

...yes, vito seemed to back down from sonny very quickly leading me to believe vito feared sonny and decided to pay off his silence by involving him in the family operations...

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Vito Corleone did not fear Santino...nor did he fear being 'ratted on' by Santino.

And even if Sonny were capable of turning over his father...which he was not...how exactly would he do this? Run to police headquarters and explain how a few years back when he was just a kid he followed his pop around and watched him kill a guy?

Due to among other things his father's connections with the police, judges and local politicians...the likely reaction would be a pat on the head and a suggestion to run along home to the mall.

Vito had no such fear; that is NOT the reason he backed down.

Apple

They were opposites (at that moment). But I never doubt Sonny's love for Vito.

Despite what Vito wanted for Michael, he had no illusions about he or his sons pursuing a legitimate way of life. Even for Michael, he wanted a legitimate life that would aid and abet his criminal way of life. Like he told him, "you would be the one to pull the strings."