Analysis Of Truman 's ' Cold Blood '

Despite this claim of Mrs. Clutter, Capote gave the readers glimpses into the Clutter’s home their daily life and their last day alive; the book shows scenes of Mr. Clutter at the breakfast table, Kenyon working in the basement on his sister’s hope chest, and Nancy laying out her clothes for Sunday morning- the clothes she will be buried in. Simultaneously, Capote effortlessly weaves in illustrated scenes of the murders, Perry Smith and Dick Hickok, on their ominous journey to the Clutter’s family farm.

Truman Capote wrote In Cold Blood after the murder of the Clutter family, a tragic event which shook the Holcomb community. In his book, he uses syntax, imagery, tone, and more devices to convey his perspective on Holcomb and the Clutter Family.

Wells provided a lot of vital information that lead Dick plot to “kill” the Clutter family (Capote, 99). Even though the act on the Clutter family was bad, but the part that truly shocked me was the unholy attraction Dick had to the one of the Clutter children named, Nancy Clutter, and many other young children. “And that was that after the Clutter family was tied up, Hickock said to him how well built the though Nancy Clutter was, and that he was going to rape her.” (Capote,181). Dick, when he first noticed Nancy and her shape, couldn’t control himself.

The tragic murder of a family in Kansas causes an author and a murderer to form a deep connection. The Clutter family were the last people expected to be murdered. As of result, the small town of Holcomb feared for their lives. Capote is a journalist who attempts to write about the impact the murders of the Clutter family had on the town of Holcomb. Yet, he fails and instead focuses on the murderer Perry.

During which time I’m sure they developed a different relationship than I am familiar with. All the time that they had spent together and learning each other’s secrets. It seems that they both have indifferent sexual tendencies towards others. Dick tells Perry several times “how about it honey?” He was sorry he felt as he did about her, for his sexual interest in female children was a failing of which he was sincerely ashamed (Capote 201). I can’t remember Perry mentioning much about his sexual interests in the book except for maybe what he says about Willie-Jay. The only other thing is when Perry mentions that he is disgusted with people who cannot control their own sexual desires.

Although Perry is the one who killed the family, Dick plans the crime with ease due to his evil characteristics and guilt free conscious, therefore vulnerability can easily be molded by manipulation.

The dynamic between Dick and Perry was always fragile and dominated by a need to determine who was more masculine, who was in charge. This is made easier by simply blaming the other one for any negative consequences. Dick and Perry weren't particularly fond of one another; they had differing hopes, long-term goals, and motives. A dynamic as fragile as this was easily shattered after their arrests, leading to quick confessions and a solution to the puzzling quadruple

Capote purposefully detaches himself from this section of the story, allowing the only sense of sympathy come from those who personally knew the Clutters. Because Capote is not able to form a personal relationship with any members of the Clutter family, he simply chooses to briefly explain the family’s murder and shift his attention to the murderers instead. The Clutters all-American image could not rescue them from tragedy and instead of portraying the family as victims, Capote focuses on attempting to encourage the audience to remain optimistic on their views regarding the family’s murderers.

Capote starts his novel describing the small town of Holcomb, setting the stage for how the murders will change the town. Capote wants to make the readers understand that the small town

Capote begins his novel with a conventional narrative structure choice: describing the setting. He spends several pages familiarizing the reader with the town of Holcomb, Kansas. This move is crucial, especially when contrasted with his unconventional choices for the traditional narrative timeline as the book progresses. As Capote introduces the reader to the Clutter family, with a particular focus on Herb, he sets the groundwork for the conflict. With necessary background information in mind, the reader first confronts the conflict with the words, “...he headed for home and the day’s work, unaware that it would be his last” (13). It is this moment, that the reader experiences the first sense of satisfaction. This is the

It was Capote's use of stylistic devices that the novel memorable to Swanson. Capote not only vividly recreated the events leading up to the murders, but he also described in "meticulous detail and diamondlike prose" the "dozens of lives destroyed or altered" in the process (33). Capote carefully chose each word he recorded, enabling his readers to encounter the same feelings of despair, grief, and fear the characters experience. But Capote's greatest gift was his "ability to listen" and then composing what he heard into a symphony of voices, sounds, and silences (33). Swanson heard the voices of the Clutter family pleading for their lives, the sounds from the "roar of a twelve-gauge shotgun", and the subsequent silence of "an upright, accomplished, and much-admired" family's removal "from a quiet community" (33).

He verbally demands to be removed from the conversation. He also subtly bullies Perry by calling him a baby for mentioning his worries. Dick finds Perry’s confusion and commentary rather irritating because it is a reminder of the murder.

Although Dick and Perry may both be killers, Capote uses language to portray Perry as a victim of Dick;therefore, Perry is seen through the eyes of the reader as an innocent man who was simply taken advantage of and molded into a killer by Dick.

The dynamic partnership between Dick and Perry stems from their egos, or lack thereof. Perry is especially self-conscious, and his behavior as presented in the book is due to his sense of lacking and

The Clutter family is written in a fashion to show they were the normal American family and by fate were entangled with killers (Hollowell 83). Hollowell states, Capote creates a "mythic dimension" through this portrayal (83). The dimension shows the reader how this crime completely disturbs the community of Holcomb and an