Perry

All the chapters of In Cold Blood that focused on the killers were either from Perry's point of view or focused on Perry. Because of this the reader gets to know Perry much better than his accomplice, Dick. In the first chapter that talks about the killers we see that Perry's main focus in life in not crime or murder but rather exploration. We are told that Perry has always wanted to live in Las Vegas because it resurfaced his dream of, "Drifting downward through strange waters, of plunging toward a green sea dusk, sliding past the scaly, savage eyed protectors of a ship's hulk that loomed ahead, a Spanish galleon- a drowned cargo of diamonds and pearls, heaping caskets of gold" (17). Seeing Perry's aspirations helps the reader view him not just as a murderer, but as a human being. As the book goes on and more windows into Perry's thoughts are given, we start to see a more sensitive side of him. In viewing Perry in this new light one starts to doubt how Perry could kill at all. This question is answered by a person whom we are told know Perry very well, Willie- Jay. Willie- Jay spells out Perry's fatal flaw, "The flaw? Explosive emotional reaction out of all proportion to the occasion... All right you think they're fools, you despise them because their morals, their happiness is the source of your frustration and resentment" (44). Although mostly stable, Perry becomes overly violent when he sees happy people, living their life. This flaw the Willie- Jay has pinpointed come out later when Perry, after attempting to keep Dick from killing them, ends up murdering all the Clutters himself. Having the split personality of a sensitive guy and an angry killer makes Perry and interesting character follow. The complexity of his thoughts allows the reader to fell sympathy for him and dislike at the same time. It is no wonder that Capote found Perry much more interesting that Dick and we will have to continue reading to find out exactly what made Perry snap and murder the Clutters.