Why Did Perry Kill The Clutter's Life Essay

Perry admitted to killing the clutters, so why should anyone question that it wasn't his fault. People heard Perry’s story of his childhood and began to feel bad for him. the didn't think that he was a victim of his circumstances, they just wanted a happy ending to his messed up life. They were blinded by the fact that he brutally murdered a entire family with the help of Dick Hickock. Perry also admitted to thinking about killing Dick also, just because he didn't want any “witnesses”. If Smith was truly a victim of his circumstances, wouldn’t you think that he would want to keep the only person actually helped him do

Perry Smith and Dick Hickock are two remarkably different characters. In the beginning of the novel, they’re known only as the murders of the Clutter family, but Truman Capote tells their life stories in such a way that they become more than that. Even though these two men are basically introduced as murderers, they quickly become relatable and interesting characters. So much is learned about their feelings and lives that one can not help but almost look past their reckless ways. Both of these men have unique character traits that amalgamate in an intriguing way. Throughout In Cold Blood, Capote includes many instances that show how Dick and Perry, when combined, make the perfect murderer.

These emotions could go one of two ways- the first would be to feel pity for his parents, while seeing Dick in a slightly more pitiful light, rather than not even seeing him as human. Or it go go the second way, you feel pity for his parents, and begin to hate Dick even more for, not only what he did to the Clutter family, but also what he did to his parents. He not only ruined the Clutter family’s lives, he also ruined his life, his parents’ life, and even Perry’s life, even though he willingly participated in the murder. Capote’s use of pathos really humanizes the Clutter family murders, but also makes them more pitiful. They had a chance at a good life, Dick’s father even said that he used to be a good kid, but they threw it all away, robbing and killing an innocent family. Capote does a very good job of depicting Dick and Perry, creating a good balance between despicable and pitiful, while sharing their side of the story in a very accurate, yet interesting, way.

We see two heartless, cold blooded killers that slain the innocent family of the Clutters with the intent to leave no witnesses and to rob them of their hard earned money but Capote deceives the reader's emotions throughout the entirety of the book to humanize straight killers and make them likable. We often see a murderer as a psychopath without any emotion but it is hard to label Smith and Hickock one because Capote brings the reader into their lives in a way that we would feel sorry and have pity for them. Capote makes the reader relate to Smith and Hickock by describing their families and showing insight into the killers’ dreams and aspirations so we could perceive them as people and forget that they ended the future of the Clutters. Perry was a lonely child growing up and had a drunkard mother that forced him into foster care where he was abused and bullied

The book In Cold Blood, by Truman Capote was about the murder of the entire Clutter family. Dick and Perry both worked together to murder Mr. Clutter, his wife, and his two children Nancy and Kenyon. The author’s purpose for writing In Cold Blood was he felt an emotional connection to Perry Smith, which is why he portrayed him with sympathy. The author might have been trying to argue that Perry’s sentence should have been lighter than Dick’s.

when she is being interviewed her voice shows signs of both affection for her brother and fear for him. Meanwhile Perry is waiting for Dick return, Perry encounters his violence toward the Clutters family. DIck and Perry are interrogated by police, both believing that they are being arrested for parole violations and Dick’s bad check schemes. Harold Nye and Roy Church interviewed Dick, who is proud to confess that he cons people by writing back checks. Dickc becomes even more lax when teh questioning turns to his personal life and history. Dick realizes that the witness is his ex-cellmate,and both men begin to unravel. Finally. Dick tells the police that it was Perry who killed the family and that he was unable to stop Perry from killing them all. The toll the investigation has taken in the Dewy family is evidenced by Dewey's wife reaction. He is not happy that the killers have been captured as he is about her family returning to back to “normal”. The killers have become larger than life monsters in the eyes of a child. Al Dewy comforts his son by assuring him that Perry and Dick will never hurt anyone anymore. The two men are waiting for the opportunity to kill again and to relive the Clutter murders in some real ways as a method of defining themselves as capable of the

Dick Hickock had an excellent family, but they did struggle with finances. He was an outstanding athlete and a good student. Dick was “An outstanding athlete-always on the first team at school. Basketball! Baseball! Football! Dick was always the star player. A pretty good student, too, with A marks in several subjects…” (Capote 166).“I think the main reason I went there (the Clutter home) was not to rob them but to rape the girl” (Capote 278).

He opened a savings account for himself and deposited all of the money he had, except for the correct amount to pay change to Mr. Greyson, whom he owed from a shine the prior day. In paying his debt to Mr. Greyson, he earned his trust and bought himself an invitation to Sunday school and eventually lunch with the gentleman and his family. This was the start to Dick’s better life of saving his money, renting his own room, and meeting Fosdick, his new friend and private tutor. One day he ran an errand with Fosdick for his employer and the two rode the ferry when they witnessed a young boy, the age of 6, fall of the edge of the boat and into the water. Dick, not hearing the father’s offer of a reward for anyone who would save his son, dove in to save the boy anyhow. Once the boy had been returned safely to his father, the father was so grateful to Dick that he took him to have his wet suit dried and provided him with a suit nicer than his original suit from Frank. Dick then went in to speak with the man, as per his request, and was offered a position in his counting room with a wage of ten dollars per week, considerably higher than his wage would be at any other store or counting room. Dick gleefully accepted his offer and lived content knowing how hard he had worked for this day.

The Clutter family never harms Perry in any way, unlike other people throughout his life, however the Clutters are the ones who have to pay for it.

Smart. Yes, you had to hand it to him. Christ, it was incredible how he could ‘con a guy’” (Capote, In Cold Blood 97). He was a pathological liar and could easily manipulate others. He lacked regard for others, including his family, and the law and society. He did not learn from past mistakes and made no effort to change his behavior. He lacked remorse and engaged in theft and adulterous marriages. He shows all the signs of antisocial personality disorder. An antisocial personality disorder may be caused by genes which make you more vulnerable to developing it and life situations trigger it. It can also be caused by the changes in brain function during brain development (Mayo Clinic).In the cross-examination of Dick Hickock''s father, Harrison Smith elaborates on how Dick Hickock had been arrested in 1949 a year before his head injury. He states "Now you tell us your son had a change in his attitude and conduct after 1950? You mean that after 1950 he became a good boy? “(Capote, In Cold Blood 293). Richard Hickock had displayed some antisocial behavior prior to his car accident. He had either been born with antisocial personality disorder or had acquired it from his head

Richard’s behavior and attitude was altered and messed with many times growing up as a teen, but one thing that could have had the greatest effects on him was one mesmerizing event that happened to him in his early teenage years. The event that occurred happened on May 4, 1973 was a traumatizing one that happened to Richard. Richard’s uncle Miguel got angry during a domestic argument between him and his wife, Jessie. Their already heated argument resulted in Miguel to shoot his wife in the head with a .38 caliber. Richard being present during this incident must have changed him drastically, because after this event he began to become cultivated in lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD, Acid, etc.) and Satanism. This resulted in one aspect of Richard’s teenage years that were very important were his religious beliefs. Richard’s beliefs were strongly oriented towards a satanic faith towards the devil and many other related topics. His religious beliefs could have had one of the biggest effects on him since he began practicing Satanism at a seemingly young age. Ever since Richard came in contact into Satanism he never let go of his religion and became a stronger believer partaking in satanic rituals and many other satanic related activities. This type of behavior at such a young teenage year could have altered the way he thought and effect the way that he behaved. The last thing event that helped mold Richard’s behavior and decision making skills were drugs. The drugs that Richard mainly abused were LSD and marijuana, these two drugs only had minor effects on the human body, but could have possibly opened his eyes to more seeing the evil in people and the bad that they were capable of. All of these events that occurred in his life lead up to his first major criminal offense. Richard got a job while still in school at an old Holiday Inn, where he used his passkey to

motor company, "when I [Dick] had an automobile wreck with a company car. I was in the hospital several days with extensive head injuries" (Capote 278). The car accident caused his face to be slightly maligned, and, as concluded by Dr. Jones, caused residual brain damage and instability in his personality (Capote 286). Dick's father also confirmed that Dick had changed after the crash, expressing that "He just wasn't the same boy" (Capote 255). After experiencing the crash, many parts of Dick's life began to go downhill. His marital life twisted woefully, and when all was said and done, he had gone through 2 marriages. He did not have a steady job anymore, and he began to commit petty crimes, such as writing bad checks and stealing. The latter resulted in him being in jail, where he had met Perry, who was behind bars for burglary as well, among other charges. Dick and Perry had both agreed to kill the Clutters, however when the time came, Dick showed signs of doubt and lingered, while Perry had almost no hesitation. This seems to point back to each man's past, where Perry, who had a rougher childhood, did not seem to think twice about killing the family. His scarred adolescence points to a more cold-hearted, bitter, and lonely person, while Dick's more favorable youth showed signs of mercy and conscience.

Everyone at some point wish they could go back to a time where they felt they were in control of some aspect of their life, which is exactly what Dick wishes for when he realizes that he is losing Rosemary and his wife. “ While he once held promise as a young psychology for psychiatrists” (Galioto). Dick reminisces about the past when he was not married to anyone and was a free young man who had a dream and was very passionate about his job. He also thinks about how he was a man who could do as he pleased without having to be held responsible of someone like his wife who was

Parents are supposed to shelter their children from the fraudulent outside world and keep their purity intact. Perry Smith, murderer of the Clutter family, had an upbringing that “was marked by brutality and lack of concern on the part of both parents.” Due to his childhood he “seems to have grown up without direction, and without ever having absorbed any fixed sense of moral values.” He felt no regret for murdering the family, only that he felt sorry that they were the ones “ that … had to pay for it.” While Dick considered Perry as innocent, “he had never been with a woman”, he believed Perry was a “natural born killer” who “attaches little real value to human life”. Perry’s tragic upbringing had turned him into a cold-blooded killer unaware of the beauty of innocence, which he so easily stole from the Clutter family the moment he killed them. Innocent people cannot be protected from the individual whose innocence is not present.

What the readers know of Dick’s past is very little, as Capote works to characterize him through flashbacks the readers know it was his plan to kill the Clutters and he does have some family “there were those Dick claimed to love: three sons, a mother, a father, a brother—persons he hadn’t dare confide his plan to(Capote 106).” But Capote characterizes Dick more so through descriptions of his habits than through his memories. “Inez was a prostitute…she was eighteen and Dick had promised to marry her. But he had also promised to marry Maria, a women of fifty who was a widow of a very rich banker(Capote 118-119)” Dick is shown throughout the book as someone who uses people to get what he wants, he calls on Perry to help him with his plan, he uses women for sex and money while making promises he never intends to keep. “If he knew Dick, and he did—now he did—would spend the money right away on vodka and women(Capote 119). Capote does not draw any sympathy from the readers, Dick is perceived as an emotionless man who pretends to believe in people and want the same