Although the relationship between Dick and Perry is an awful combination, the two have the ability to complete each other, though they do not realize it.

However Dick may present his respect for Perry and Perry may present his respect for Dick; the two ultimately go well together. Perry, with his artistic abilities, and Dick, with his dreams of being part of modern society, both in a weird way have the same wants. Perry and Dick both want companionship, but in different ways. Dick wants, “a regular life" (pg 55). Dick and Pery want the same exact thing, but in a different way. A normal life to Perry is Mexico and together they can make each other dreams come true.

The Depiction of the Criminals

Neither Perry nor Dick are the heros or anti-heros of this story (due to its journalistic writing style), but Perry seems to be cast in a better light than Dick. Capote describes Dick's tattoos as "self-designed, self-executed," (30). He goes on to describe each tattoo, though the style in which they are described is as if they are helter-skelter, and unorganized. It seems that Capote is trying to make Dick seem less sophisticated, and more barbaric. It is even clearer that Capote has an affection for Perry more when he describes, "While he had fewer tattoos than his companion, they were more elaborate-not the self-inflicted work of an amateur but epics of the art contrived by Honolulu and Yokohama masters," (31). Not only does this previous quote, demonstrate Capote's liking for Perry, it also better describes his distaste for Dick. His description makes Perry look more like an artist, more thoughtful, and more sophisticated. Perry's good light is cast even deeper when Capote describes the accidents that they have both been in. Dick is said to have been in a car crash, "It was as though his head had been halved like an apple, then put together a fraction off center. Something of the kind had happened; the imperfectly aligned features were the outcome of a car collision in 1950-an accident that left his long-jawed and narrow face tilted..." (31). While Capote tells this brief story, the style seems impersonate and neutral. Such a tone is appropriate according to Capote's preference in Perry. Capote also tells the tale of a motor accident that Perry has experienced, "Perry, too had been maimed, and his injuries, received in a motorcycle wreck, were severer than Dick's; he had spent half a year in a State of Washington hospital and another six months on crutches, and though the accident had occurred in 1952, his chunky, dwarfish legs, broken in five places and pitifully scarred, still pained him so severely that he had become an aspirin addict," (31). This latter description is much more passionate and attached to the subject then with former. The former is more report like, while the latter tries to be more affecting. It is clear that Capote had grown closer to Perry than Dick in his research for this book.*

*see comment for this entry.

Though the Clutter family was viewed by many in Holcomb, Kansas as the all around perfect family, they did not see themselves as such being unhappy and uncertain with their lives, yet hiding such insecurities with smiles.

As the reader is taken deeper into the Clutter family’s life style and home atmosphere, it is obvious that the environment is a tense and unhappy place. However the Clutter’s were viewed around the Holcomb area, this image appeared to be presented differently behind closed doors. In Cold Blood presents Mrs. Bonnie Clutter as the first Clutter to become insecure and unhappy with her life style, which ultimately causes her to lose her sanity. Mrs. Clutter had dreams, but appears to have lost her identity underneath her husband’s success. Mrs. Clutter, thinking upon this, becomes sadden of the thought of not originally going through with her dreams, “Yet to this day she had regretted not having completed the course and received her diploma—“just to prove”……”that I once succeeded at something”…Instead, she had met and married Herb, a college classmate of her oldest brother...” (pg 26) She believed that she need to complete her courses to become a nurse as she wished, therefore she wouldn’t have to live under her husband’s shadow of success. She stated that she was not, “a born leader” (pg 27), like her husband thus making her insecurities worse. On top of her insecurities, Mrs. Clutter had four very bad cases of postnatal depression causing her to go insane along with her stir craziness. (pg 27) Though all this was very true and well known, the other members of the Clutter family hide Mrs. Clutter and never mentioned when she was home, having her hidden in her room or out of town, “The second floor was dark, and I figured Mrs. Clutter must be asleep—if she was home. You never knew when she was home or not…” (pg 50) Though Mrs. Clutter was described and viewed this way, Nancy and Kenyon Clutter had covered up issues as well. Her and her brother, Kenyon, both showed signs of insecurities. They both shared some of these experiences together and hide them together as well, “That quieted him, for Kenyon, as he knew she knew, did once in a while sneak a puff—but, then, so did Nancy.” (pg 19) They also shared their unhappiness through their basement, the place that together they made as playroom. On Nancy’s pillows it tells what she truly thinks about her life at home, with the pillows saying, “Happy?” and “You don’t have to be crazy to live here but it helps” (pg 38). With these sayings Nancy reveals that her home life is unhappy. Kenyon who spent all of his time in that area as a get away place revealed this as well by choosing to spend his time there instead of with his family. Mr. Clutter showed signs of uneasiness as well, but not as evident. Nancy, the day before their death, states, “Well—Daddy. He’s been in an awful mood the last three weeks. Awful.” (pg 20) All the Clutters were unhappy with their life before their death, giving the reader an image of an imperfect family.

Irony

Capote capitalizes on irony, making In Cold Blood unique because he tells the readers specifically that the Clutters are going to die, making it irresistible to put down. For example, Capote spends a significant amount of time describing how Mr. Clutter is putting down money for a large life insurance plan only hours before the Clutter family is going to get murdered. For example, Capote says, “The Garden City representative of New York Life Insurance smiled as he watched Mr. Clutter uncap a Parker pen and open a checkbook” (46). Capote has already claimed previously that the Clutter family is going to die, but he heightens the reader’s interest in the irony of it all with Capote’s clear and evident choices in describing the final hours of the family’s life. Capote creates a scary-movie type setting in which the hero of the film is unknowingly about to set foot in the scary house where the blood thirsty murderer is waiting for him, and all of the audience in the crowded theatre is screaming, “Don’t go in there, don’t do it”. The readers of In Cold Blood are watching the irony unfold, and with every unfortunate event that happens, the readers are gasping in disbelief as to how this murder is about to happen. Furthermore, Capote describes that the murderers go out to eat before they kill. He states, “They ordered two steaks medium rare” (53). It is quite ironic that the killer would be eating literally blood and flesh before they are about to murder a family.

Towards the end of part one in In Cold Blood, Truman Capote starts to talk about other people and their story of when the Clutter Family was murdered. The paragraphs switch between Perry and Dick and a new character that he introduces that has something to do with the murder of the Clutter family. This character could have the tiniest role in the murder of the Clutter family and he would describe them so you would think that the story is about them, for example Mrs. Truit didn't witness anything she just heard about the murder and Capote spends two pages describing her and her family. Even though the new character that he is talking about isn't as important, he describes them and sometimes their occupation very well which then makes the character seem more important to the story. After reading the paragraphs on Mrs. Truit and her daughter, I felt that they were pretty important in the story but i knew that all they had done was call Mrs. Helm and find out details.

Perry Over Dick; A Clear Author's Choice

In the movie, “capote”, it is clear that Truman favor Perry over Dick. There were faint signs of why he chose to pay close attention to Perry, but in In Cold Blood, the reasons for his choice are described clearly in Capote’s writing. Capote believes that there is more than just an absent minded killer in Perry. In contrast, Truman Capote convinces the readers that Dick’s actions are closely linked with his name. Capote shows wants the readers to comprehend that Dick is actions have know thought behind them, and he kills for pleasure. Capote wants readers to draw the conclusion that Perry has rich layers of feelings, thoughts, and emotions, not just blood thirsty. To represent Perry’s complexity, Capote writes, “Nevertheless, if he had not missed Willie-Jay, if they could have been together for even an hour, Perry was quite convinced- just ‘knew’- that he would not be loitering outside a hospital waiting for Dick to emerge with a pair of black stockings” (46). Capote shows that Perry in fact doesn’t want to kill, however is lost, in need of a friend; lonely. This represents a thoughtful man, instead of a sloppy pig, who doesn’t want to even wear black stockings over his head when killing, shown in Dick. Capote want the readers to realize that Perry doesn’t really want to go on with this murdering plan, but is so lost that he will do anything out of sadness. Capote uses the words, “black stockings”; this suggests that Perry covers up his sadness in the stockings with killing, in black. Furthermore, how Capote describes both Perry and Dick’s tattoos show the readers the complexity of Perry. While Dick has a random, and sloppy assortment of tattoos, Capote writes about Perry’s, “While he had fewer tattoos than his companion, they were more elaborate-not the self-inflicted work of an amateur but epics of art contrived by Honolulu and Yokohama masters” (31). This express’s that Dick is very elementary when it comes to thought; he doesn’t think why he is killing, or putting “dragon with a human skull” tattoos, but just likes to do it for the sake of doing it. Capote once again describes to the readers that Perry is thoughtful of every action, whether good or bad he does.

Over the first part of In Cold Blood, Truman Capote uses the time to give the reader an understanding of the characters and the characters attributes. This is especially true for Nancy. He mentions her being a straight-A student, class president, winner of numerous pie contests, having shiny hair, and also practically running the house (180. Capote is trying to imply her innocence upon the reader, making the reader become attached to her before she is brutally murdered. Capote also does a phenomenal job of making the characters seem perfect, then, after showing their perfection, he undermines the characters to show their flaws. Later in the first part Capote talks about how Nancy takes a few puffs on a cigarette every once in a while and that she also flirts with boys even though she is happily involved with Bobby Rupp (19-20). Also when looking at her journal Truman notices that Nancy tinkers with her handwriting (57). This is something that a teenager often does trying to figure out what style fits them the best. The change in styles can also show Nancy’s immaturity, when everyone finds her so mature. This shows that she really isn’t the perfect girl that everyone believes her to be. Capote uses this technique to show the reader the characters flaws, as well as make them seem more human. Less perfect and more like the everyday non-perfect humans reading the non-fiction novel.

The Imperfect All-American Family

At first, Capote depicts the Clutter Family as the perfect all-American family, but he smoothly and subtly adds their faults and imperfections, thus helping to bring the reader closer to the story. For example, Nancy Clutter seems like the All-American girl, top of her class, leader of 4-H, excellent musician, etc (18). She is not, however, without vice, "'But I keep smelling cigarette smoke.'//'On your breath?' inquired Kenyon.//'No, funny one. Yours.'//That quieted him, for Kenyon, as he knew she knew, did once in a while sneak a puff-But, then, so did Nancy." (19) Capote here demonstrates that the perfect Nancy is not as perfect as shown before. This, nonetheless, does not hurt the plot, in fact it makes the character seem more real. Readers of this story likely have vices of their own, thus making it easier for the reader to connect to the characters. Nancy is not the only character flawed. Her mother Bonnie also has some weaknesses. Capote describes some medical issues, "The second year of the marriage, Eveanna was born, and three years later, Beverly; after each confinement the young mother had experienced an inexplicable despondency-seizures of grief that sent her wandering from room to room in a hand-wringing daze.... But with Nancy and then with Kenyon, the pattern of postnatal depression repeated itself, and following the birth of her son, the mood of misery that descended never altogether lifted,"(27). Again, Capote inserts these imperfections to add to the sense of realism, and further connects the reader to the story. Many more characters have imperfections, including the killers, Perry and Dick. Each one of these imperfections brings the reader closer to the story, making them feel more empathetic for the characters.

Truman Capote uses foreshadowing in section 1 of In Cold Blood, The Last to See Them Alive, to subtly convey events that happen or may happen further along in the book. On page 13, Capote writes that, "Then, touching the brim of his cap, he headed for home and the day's work, unaware that it would be his last" (13). This is foreshadowing because it tells the reader that the person will be dead or unable to work before the next day of work.

Allusions to Narcissus

In the first section on In Cold Blood we get detailed descriptions of all the characters. An interesting description is given when Perry is described. I find this a direct comparison with a character from Greek mythology Narcissus. Whereas Narcissus loves only himself, Capote’s Perry—who Capote presents as a darker version of Narcissus—is in lust with himself. “‘Every time you see a mirror you go into a trance, like. Like you was looking at some gorgeous piece of butt’” (15). The way Perry looks at himself suggests that he loves to look at himself and will continue to do at every mirror he looks into. The overall failure of Narcissus is that he looks into a pool of water and falls in love with the reflection and ends up diving in and drowning in order to reach his reflection. Perry shoves away from his family, similar to Narcissus because in the original myth he disdains those who love him and Perry, even though he has a sister he doesn’t want anything to do with her. This allusion might go as deep to say that in the future of the book his downfall is due to his own fascination in himself, only time can tell.

In Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood" foreshadowing is used to hint the reader that the death of the Clutters is soon to come. Capote mostly uses a great amount of his foreshadowing at the end of his small chapters. When Capote describes Hebrert Clutter's day he says "Then touching the brim of his cap, he headed for home and the day's work, unaware that it would be his last"(Capote 13) Capote is telling the reader that this is the last day of work when Herbert Clutter would have to come home exhusted. Other then only using words to tell the reader that a bad action is about to take place, he also switches between talking about the Clutters then to Dick and Perry back and forth back and forth. Capote does not actually state what Dick and Perry are about to do, but he does say "between today and tomorrow the aged Chevrolet was expected to perform punishing feats"(23). This quote explains that Dick and Perry are about to take a long ride in which the performance of the car is cruical to the execution of the master plan. Also Perry and Dick must buy nylong rope and in the back of the car was "a twelve guage pump-action shotgun, brand new"(22) Here again Capote is infering that the two friends were about to perform in illegal actions which involves a gun. When a gun is refered to it usually death, foreshadowing the Clutter's death. Before the end of the first section of the book ends the police does find the four bodies and Dick and Perry are 800 miles away from holcomb.

Ineffable is an adjective that means incapable of being expressed in words. In the story, In Cold Blood, many characters are ineffable or portray ineffable actions. One character stands out as particularly incomprehensible, Dick Hickock. After the crime, the reader finds out that Dick has a family, money, a house, food, children, he has had wives and he has some friends. Already possessing everything he needs, Dick’s motive behind killing the Clutters is completely unclear. The reader is not able to conclude what Dick is after or what he feels he obtains by killing this innocent family. This ineffable feeling towards Dick contributes to the very important question of why. Why did he (and Perry) do it? The reader is forced to try and understand why Dick was motivated to commit this crime when he already had money. What did he really gain out of killing them? Capote ponders these questions throughout the first part of the story. Unlike Perry, who is driven by shame, loneliness and abandonment, Dick’s only plausible motivation is money. No matter, money or craziness, in the end killing is always wrong.

Foreshadowing

In the first part of In Cold Blood, Truman Capote uses the literary device of foreshadowing by describing the tales of two seemingly unrelated stories in an alternating sequence. Capote describes the scenes with the Clutters and then interrupts the Clutter’s story to tell a brief account of Dick and Perry. Back and forth, Capote gives accounts of the two stories one would think had nothing to do with each other, but the reader is sure they must connect eventually. In the scenes after Bobby Rupp leaves the Clutter’s house, Capote segues into a new Dick and Perry section as he writes, “Dick doused the headlights, slowed down, and stopped until his eyes were adjusted to the moon-illuminated night. Presently, the car crept forward” (57). Only sentences after reading about Dick and Perry, Capote cuts back to the Clutter’s story by saying, “She was a classmate of Nancy Clutter’s, and her name was also Nancy—Nancy Ewalt. She was the only child of the man who was driving the car, Mr. Clarence Ewalt, a middle-aged sugar beet farmer”(58). At this point, Dick and Perry are roaming closer to Holcomb so the reader knows it is only a matter of time until the two stories intertwine. The part where Dick and Perry are driving the car at night, is the last time the reader hears of them until after the murder. At the point of being in the middle of page fifty-eight, the reader is still reading the stories as separate tales but what they do not know is that Nancy Ewalt is about to find Nancy Clutter dead in her bed. The way that the completely different stories that appear to be unassociated with each other are told in an interchanging order foreshadows the fact that the two stories would somehow come together.

In the beginning of In Cold Blood, Capote’s descriptions make a parallel between the crimes effect on Holcomb and Eve’s downfall in the Garden of Eden. Holcomb, before the murders, is described as a utopia. Innocent and problem free, Holcomb begins as a place where people are trusting and content. After the four Clutters are killed, the aura and innocence of the town changes as well as the way the people of Holcomb treat each other. “…those somber explosions that stimulated fires of mistrust in the glare of which many old neighbors viewed each other strangely, and as strangers” (5). Holcomb’s change after the crime is similar to the biblical story of the Garden of Eden. God builds a utopia for Adam and Eve. This utopia is innocent, shielding its inhabitants from misfortune or hardships. But eventually Eve eats the apple of knowledge and is exposed to the harsh realities of life. Similarly, Perry and Dick kill the Clutters, forcing Holcomb to experience tragedy and mistrust. Both of these events change the respective places in which the events take place as well as the people who live in those places. The innocence is lost.

The Murder Process

In the first part of In Cold Blood Capote retells how Perry and Dick prepare for their crime. He does this in an in depth manner in which he starts from when they first plot the robbery to afterwards when Dick drives home to see his parents. Capote adds these details of the plotting to show how the mind of criminals works. He shows how they seem to be everyday normal citizens in society, yet underneath the facade of their regular appearance they are cold blooded criminals. Capote also puts these details in his book to further get the message across to the reader that this very thing could happen to them. Seemingly ordinary individuals could not be who one thinks they are. This concept is evident in the book when it is said in part 1 by Dick about Perry that, " conscienceless, and capable of dealing, with or without motive, the coldest-blooded deathblows"(55). This quotation shows how Perry is depicted as a heartless individual at times, and cannot control himself when it comes to violent acts. Capote depicts this point in his book to show that the mind of a killer is without remorse. That killing is like second nature to them.

Foreshadowing

Capote points out many clues for the family to realize that something dreadful is about to happen to them. It begins when Mr. Clutter takes out a forty-thousand-dollar life insurance policy, which ends up paying double the indemnity in the case of murder. This happens the day before he is murdered in his home. Also, Mr. Clutter doesn’t carry cash and always seems to pay with check which should give the killers a reason to realize that there isn’t going to be money in the house. Then Mrs. Clutter also has a foreshadowing when Capote explains, “A bookmark lay between its pages (the bible)… ‘Take ye heed, watch and pray, for ye know not when the time is,’”. The verse explains to cherish the days you have because you never know when you could never see another day. Obviously this is giving a point that the family is going to be killed. Throughout the chapters Capote continually mentions how the family won’t see another day soon. Even the murders, Dick and Perry, are forewarned when Perry rips the glove he is about to murder the family with. The role of foreshadowing seems to play a major role in the first part of Capote’s story. 

Foreshadowing

One of Truman Capote’s favorite literary devices in this book is foreshadowing. Particularly towards the end of the section, Capote adds some significant suspicion to what the reader believes will happen next. One of the key moments towards the end of the section is when Capote throws in a sentence about Bobby finding out he is a suspect soon. Rupp is described, “For Bobby, as he was to learn before nightfall, was their principal suspect” (72). This statement hints to the reader that the police will soon go after Bobby and the focus of the book may switch to him. Foreshadowing in this way almost gives away the general direction of the book, but the future still remains a mystery because we don’t know if it will come true or how it will happen. The second foreshadow Capote makes is about Dick’s immediate future with his family. Capote describes, “did not know that his dozing son had, among other things, driven over eight hundred miles in the past twenty-four hours” (74). This quote is referring to Dick’s father and what he doesn’t know. However, the tone of the section seems to shift to the face that Dick’s family soon will know what he had been doing. All of this relates back to my deciphering the titles of the book. This next section appears to be about the police trying to find the killers and if the foreshadowing holds true, it will. First, Bobby will be interrogated but it won’t really help. Near the end of the section, Dick and Perry will be caught, therefore alerting Dick’s family to what he has done.

The first section of In Cold Blood by Truman Capote is entitled The Last to See Them Alive. This title literally refers to the people who saw them alive last: Dick Hickock and Perry Smith, not the reader. Dick and Perry decide to murder and rob the Clutter family, under the assumption that there is at least ten thousand dollars hidden away inside of their house. Early in the morning, Dick and Perry broke into the Clutter house and tied the family up in separate rooms, then proceeded to shoot them point blank with a shotgun after finding about 40 dollars in the house. The last to see the Clutter family alive was Dick Hickock and Perry Smith.

Dick and Perry vs. The Clutter Family

The first part of In Cold Blood gives a sense of who the characters are. The Clutters are the ideal family who spend a majority of their time focused around helping others. While shifting from chapter to chapter, Dick and Perry are these grungy men with tattoos, who drive a black cadillac. It’s like hot against cold each time the chapter is switched. Capote explains how the men are plotting to kill and how this is the last day the Clutter family will witness. In a way Capote’s way of switching characters from chapter to chapter relates the criminals with the “innocent” family. I feel like the Clutter family was the ideal family that everyone looked up to in the story, but cracks under pressure and has underlying problems. Nancy sneaks cigarette puffs, just like her father does when he is stressed. Like Reed posted, she’s under an overwhelming amount of pressure in life to be the perfect girl. Also, her father is supposedly one of the most suburb business man who only writes checks and lives off in this wonderful house thats differentiated from the rest of the town’s houses. The family also has a reputation to have the mother who has “episodes”. Maybe Capote is trying to say that the family isn’t as perfect as it seems and that there were underlying problems that he isn’t able to discover. When the criminals are talked about, they to have many tasks to accomplish in an orderly fashion just like Nancy, but crack under the pressure and end up making many detours in their journey to kill the ideal family. Ultimately the first section of the story is finished with the Clutters being found dead and the killers no where to be found. It appears that the murders did a surprisingly well done job organizing and preparing for the murder just like how Nancy was such a perfect child at keeping her schedule on task. Through it all, the Clutter family doesn’t seem to be a random killing for the murders but the killing had a reason behind it. At the end of the section Capote shows how the killers went on living their fraudulent life, he says, “He arrived home at noon, kissed his mother…” (84) Dick and Perry lived a normal life just like the Clutter family but both had secret lives behind them that none knew of. 

As the book moves on and you read through the story, every paragraph gives more and more information on what is coming next. As Truman Capote describes each character more and more, the paragraphs which he uses to describe them get more specific and not to mention longer. At the beginning of the book Truman Capote described the basic things about them, their age and what they looked like and what their interests were, but now a little later in the book he uses whole pages to describe one subject about them for example like how Kenyon and Bob aren't friends anymore and what Perry thinks about nuns. Truman Capote also gives hints about what is going to happen next. After Mr. Helm turns to walk home Truman Capote adds, "And that, he was to testify the next day, was the last i seen them. Nancy leading old Babe off to the barn. Like i said, nothing out of the ordinary" (41). He added what Mr. Helm said the day after the murder to before the murder in the book to give us a hint of what is going to happen. Truman Capote adds suspense with the placement of this quote to an earlier place in the book.

Non-Fiction Novel

Throughout the first part of In Cold Blood, Capote introduces numerous characters into the story with great detail. The thoroughness in which he goes into regarding every main or insignificant character gives the reader the impression that the story is fictional coming from Capote’s intricate imagination. Prior to the murder, Nancy is described as the perfect girl, a role model for all younger girls, and always exceeding the expectations set for her. Nancy is described as, “she felt it her duty to be available when younger girls came to her wanting help with their cooking, their sewing, or their music lessons—or, as often happened, to confide. Where she found the time, and still managed to ‘practically run the big house’ and be a straight-A student, the president of her class, a leader in the ₄-H program and the Young Methodists League, a skilled rider, an excellent musician (piano, clarinet), an annual winner at the county fair (pastry, preserves, needlework, flower arrangement)—how a girl not yet seventeen could haul such a wagonload, and do so without ‘brag,’ with, rather, merely a radiant jauntiness” (18). After reading this passage, one has absolute picture in their mind as to what Nancy Clutter was really like due to the specific details mentioned about her. Since the character of Nancy is so developed, one would think that Truman Capote himself created her. They way in which Capote explains Nancy does not sound like a simple report preparing the reader for the murder that is about to occur. Due to the extensive descriptions given on Nancy, Capote’s writing reads as if it were a fictional novel rather than a journalistic account.

Part one of In Cold Blood ends with the description of Perry and Dicks activities after the killings. The description of them mimics the halcyon, uneventful tone Capote used for Holcumb before the incident occurred. Scenes of Perry sleeping and Dick eating are presented as if those were the common activities one did after committing murder. And when mention of the killing comes up it is shown in an almost sarcastic way. When Dick falls asleep watching T.V the narrator projects a false sense of sympathy for Dick, "But, of course, he did not understand how very tired Dick was, did not know that his dozing son had, among other things, driven over eight hundred miles in the past twenty-four hours." (74). As obviously sarcastic as this passage is, showing any signs of sympathy toward the killers only makes the reader dislike them all the more. Perry's slumber is described as, "He had a merely fallen face down across the bed, as though sleep were a weapon that had struck him from behind" (73). The metaphor of sleep being a weapon reminds the reader of how the Clutter's were killed, shot from behind, in their beds. This melding of peaceful descriptions and mentions of the killing represents how the murders interrupted the calm and loving attitude of Holcumb and the people in it. The killers try to keep going on with their regular lives, but even before they are arrested the murder is still with them. Just as the people of Holcumb with undoubtedly want to, after grieving for Clutter's, move on with their happy lives. But the end of part one leaves us with the idea that they will not be able to do this.

Descriptions of Perry and Dick

In "In Cold Blood" Truman Capote switches from talking about the Clutter family to talking about Dick and Perry. He does this by first describing the Clutter family first and then the next chapter he would switch to Dick and Perry. However, the way that Dick is described is different then the way Perry is. Truman describes Dick as " very literal-minded, he had no understanding of music, poetry"(Capote 16). In this quote Truman is describing Dick as being "literal minded" which means that he is not sophisticated and does not understand the deeper meaning of things. Also since he had no understanding of poetry and music, it also says he does not read much, or listens to classical music. The second way Truman differentiates the two close friends is by describing their tattoos. Dick has many tattoos such as a cat, a skull, a gremlin, a dragon, a flower and another flower. These tattoos were scattered around Dick's body, however, Perry's tattoos are " not the self-inflicted work of an amateur but epics of the art" (31). This quote describes Perry's tattoos as being more complicated, and actually done carefully by a professional, not like Dick's amateur works. This again shows that Capote describes Perry as much more complicated and sophisticated then Dick.

Throughout the first part of the book Truman Capote describes the town of Holcomb and all of the people who inhibit this small Kansas farming town. He talks about the tranquil setting of the town in rural Kansas and also the normalcy throughout the day to day lives of the people involved. This tactic is used to show that anyone is vulnerable to a merciless attack like the one that the book is based one. Capote also uses the descriptions of the characters to show the trust that all of the citizens had towards each other. Capote mentions that often times, the citizens would leave their doors unlocked and houses “open” knowing that they could trust everyone in their village. The Clutter family was shown as popular, prominent, and well liked by all in the community. This description of the well off Clutters shows that even the most perfect families in the world are not invincible to the everyday dangers that exist in the outside world.

Dick and Perry's Tattoos

Dick and Perry both have been in prision. A lot of prisioners including Dick and Perry have tatoos that they acquire in jail that tell where they served time and what they served time for. There tattoos are very different, but these tattoos tell more that just when they did time and for what they did time for. These tattoos tell the reader the differences and can be related to other differences told about Perry and Dick. For example, On page 31 of In Cold Blood the reader is told that both Perry and Dick were involved in car accidents 2 years apart from eachother. It is also said that Dick's substained injuries to his face and there were many of them. His face became tilted, his nose became askew, his eyes became uneven, and his lips were slightly crooked. Perry's injuries to to the car accident was a broken leg in 5 places which left him in the hospital for six months and on crutches for six months. Obviously Dick had more injuries but they were less severe. This is similiar to the tattoos that they both had. The book states, "While he (Perry) had fewer tattoos than his companion, they were more elaborate-not the self inflicted work of an ameateur but epics of the art contrived by Honolulu and Yokohama masters. The tattoos and the injuries are exactly the same to each character because Dick had more injuries but they were less severe. He also had more tattoos but they were not as elaborate as Perry's. Perry did not have as many injuries but they were more severe. And he also does not have as many tattoos but they are more elaborate. The way that Perry and Dick are injured pertain to their tattos by having the same general idea.

Nancy

Nancy is described as being very responsible and containing integrity. Although, she is the "perfect being" in In Cold Blood, the pressure to be this "perfect being" causes her to have many flaws. Nancy helps many people. She helps young girls with their cooking, sewing, and music lessons. She is a straight-A student along with being a fabulous musician and president of both her class, and the 4-H program. Not only does she do all of this, but she competes and wins at the county fair at things like, flower arrangement, and needlework. Along with all the things she does, comes many flaws. The book says, "That quieted him, for Kenyon, as he knew she knew, did once in a while sneak a puff-but, then again, so did nancy." This shows that from all of these responsibilities comes an enormous amount of pressure and to release some of this pressure, Nancy, on occasion smokes. Another flaw that Nancy acquired due to her responsibilities is the flaw of over-scheduling. Nancy will schedule two things at the same time because if one gets cancelled then she will not have nothing to do. But the downside is, if nothing is cancelled she has to let somebody down by cancelling on her own. This is an inconveinance to the people around her and therefore a flaw. Due to the hectic and overloaded life of nancy she is looked at as the "perfect being", yet it is obvious the pressure that comes with these responsibilities comes pressure and to deal with this pressure comes many flaws.

Part 1 of ICB

In part one of In Cold Blood we hear a lot about the family and an overall description of Holcolm, the city in which this story takes place in. You hear about the Clutters, and the other family friends and farmers around. An interesting part however is when Copote describes Bonnie Clutter he gives her an identity that seems to be a peculiar portrayel of a supposedly nice women. "Jolene had never been alone with Nancy's strange mother"(25). This suggests that Copote might be giving us a chance to look more deeply into the character and, even though not mentioned, the motives of Capote and how he obtained such obscure inner knowledge of the family. Even if the whole town knows of the mother's "issues" this is written as if these are Jolene's own feelings and almost have a tinge of fear. The way Copote writes and how intimately he is engaged in the workings of the family is a sign of his manipulation.

Perry's Problems and Motives

In Capote's In Cold Blood one of the killers Perry is shown to be a messed up individual. Perry addicted to aspirin for the pain in his legs was a intelligent individual, yet he chose to do the wrong things with his life and in essence thrown it away. Perry just wanted someone to care about him. Capote puts this in better term when in his book he states, "He did give a damn--but who had ever given a damn about him? His father? Yes, up to a point. A girl or two--but that was "a long story"(45). This quotation depicts how Perry all his life has never been cared and the hurt and anguish he felt all those years is what he wants to bestow upon the Clutter family. It’s like Perry can’t stand to see plain, barren, untouched almost pure settings like Holcomb County. Capote puts it in his book as “He hated it,”(49). Perry finds his peace in crowded cities and seaports. This is where Perry feels accepted in chaos Perry find his comfort, but in barren orderly Kansas Perry feels exposed and the only way he can feel at peace is if he brings chaos to Holcomb which is in the act of killing the Clutters.

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.

Paranoia

In Cold Blood, as a psychological thriller, must constantly provide a sense of fear, of paranoia. The setting, in particular, is an important factor. Had this story been placed in the city, the more appropriate genre would simply be a crime thriller. This particular location adds to the fear it strikes in the reader. From the very beginning, "The village of Holcomb stands on the high wheat plains of western Kansas, a lonesome area that other Kansans call "out there," (3). This specific setting is unexpected, and it adds to the paranoia as it hints that the events about to unfurl could and do happen to anybody, even the reader. Capote also includes a description of the average Holcomb type "The local accent is barbed with a prairie twang, a ranch-hand nasalness, and the men, many of them, wear narrow frontier trousers, Stensons, and high-heeled boots with pointed toes," (3). Once again, Capote inflicts a paranoid feeling in the reader, as he describes the average man, and many readers would consider themselves average. This sense of paranoia is held throughout the story, telling the average life of the victims, and so on. Both the setting and the people present a suggestion that the reader should fear that the upcoming events may happen to them in the future.

Signs of Fate

For both the victims and their killers, signs of fate attempt to warn them of their upcoming doom.
Although knowing what the next day has in store is uncommon for many, the Clutters, Perry and Dick receive signs of warning to stop the next day’s disaster. Signals appear in stories in order to inform the reader, but these signals are very faint, with common signals being meaningful colors and the significance of light and dark. Signals for characters are not as common in stories, with the characters being oblivious, but In Cold Blood gives its characters strong warning signs. The first character to receive an apparent sign of warning of their destiny is Mrs. Clutter. Mrs. Clutter, a character who lives under her husband’s shadow, received her sign through her last action before her misfortunate future. In Cold Blood portrays the Clutter family as a highly religious family and Mrs. Clutter, before going to bed the night of November 14, 1959, opens her Bible to a bookmarked scripture, which reads, “ Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is.” (pg 30) Mrs. Clutter, being very depressed and ready for sleep, reads the scripture and doesn’t take the script as a signal of her death. Mr. Clutter receives a signal as well that day, but the signal itself, like Mrs. Clutter’s Bible reading, was an everyday task. Mr. Clutter signs his will, in case of his death, for his family to take over his business and money. (pg 48) The character that receives the most warning is Perry, one of the two killers of the Clutters. Perry, a self-doubting character, attaches himself to the people he believes truly cares. Perry’s first signal comes in the form of Willie Jay, a friend he has believed to have built a strong relationship with. After arriving in Kansas he hopes to see Willie Jay, “Perry’s bus reached Kansas City…, Willie-Jay… had already left town—left, in fact, only five hours earlier, from the same terminal at which Perry arrived. That much he had learned by telephoning the Reverend Mr. Post, who further discouraged him by declining to reveal his former clerk’s exact destination.”(pg 45) If Perry had reunited with the friend he had so much wanted to see, the Clutters being still alive today is a great possibility. Perry had himself stated, “…if things didn’t ‘work out with Willie-Jay,’ then he might ‘consider Dick’s proposition.’” (pg 45) Perry’s original plan was soiled, causing the Clutters to end up dead on November 15, 1959, three days after Perry’s arrival. Another sign that Perry receives happens right before committing the murders. Perry and Dick reach a gas station and after walking into the bathroom to freshen up, another sign comes to Perry, “…inside it were the recently purchased rubber gloves. They were glue-covered, sticky and thin, and as he inched them on, one tore—not a dangerous tear, just a split between the fingers, but seemed to him an omen.” (pg 53) Perry’s multiple signals surpassed him and the death of the Clutters was discovered the next day.

Biblical References in "In Cold Blood"

In the novel, "In Cold Blood" Capote uses biblical references to make known that something horrible is going to happen early on in the book. Mr. Clutter says, " 'an inch more of rain and this country would be paradise, Eden on Earth' "(12). We all know what happens in the Garden of Eden; Eve eats the apple, killing her innocence. In Holcomb, Capote shows that someone is going to "eat the apple", killing Holcomb's innocence. Holcomb is described by Capote as clean and innocent, and so was Eve. Capote is trying to show that even to the cleanest or most innocent towns or people, something bad can strike. In this case, Capote uses this biblical reference to show that something bad is about to happen, killing Holcomb's innocence. Furthermore, Capote states, "Though he was a good sentry, alert, ever ready to raise Cain, his valor had one flaw: let glimpse of a gun, as he did now-for the intruders were armed..."(13). Cain, in the bible, is known as the evil brother that kills his brother Abel. Capote is showing the readers that murder is about to happen, and the killer will be from the same small town, Holcomb. Capote uses biblical references to show that like the Garden of eden and Holcomb, something that sounds so innocent and sweet, can turn into evil, killing innocence and people of the same town, or "brothers".




Perry: Fated Represented by Religion
Capote shows that Perry is fated, and a complex man with many different sides to him, represented by religion. For example, Perry shows his life philosophy. He says, “Because one thing is set to happen, all you can do is hope it won’t…As long as you live, there’s always something waiting, and even its bad, and you know its bad, what can you do? You can’t stop living” (92). This is extremely upsetting because his philosophy is that one knows that something bad is coming, but all one can do is hope that it won’t happen. One can come to the conclusion that he is fated, and the sad thing is that he knows it. He truly believes that he was put on this earth to suffer, and all he can do is pray that it won’t happen. This lifestyle is unhealthy, and is purely self-destructive. He proves that he is fated by his dream that has a crucial amount of religious references. In this dream, Perry describes,
“…A jungle. I’m moving through the trees toward a tree standing all alone. Jesus, it smells bad, that tree; it kind of makes me sick, the way it stinks. Only, its beautiful to look at-it had blue leaves and diamonds everywhere. ..That’s why I’m there-to pick myself a bushel of diamonds. But I know the minute I try to, the minute I reach up, a snake is gonna fall on me. A snake guards the tree. This fat son-of-a-bitch living in the branches. I know this beforehand, see? And Jesus, I don’t know how to fight a snake. But I figure, well I’ll take my chances. What it comes down to is I want the diamonds more than I am afraid of the snake. So I go to pick one…when the snake lands on top of me…we wrestle around but he is a slippery son of a bitch and I can’t get a hold, he’s crushing me, you can hear my legs cracking…See, he starts to swallow me. Feet first” (92).
This is a clear religious reference to prove that Perry is fated, and in essence doesn’t really care that he is until the aftermath. The tree standing alone, the diamonds, and the snake all represent the story in Genesis about the Garden of Eden. His description of the tree proves he is torn between accepting the fact that he lives a terrible and fated life, and give in to temptation to do wrong out of anger, or he can try to get his life around and get back up on his feet and try to live a good life, because he both says its so awful smelling, but it amazing to look out; he is clearly torn. The diamonds represent the temptation to do wrong, such as the apple served this exact purpose in the Garden. Notice that even though he knows he is only looking at this tree because he is provoked by temptation, he knows that something bad is going to happen if he does it, represented in the snake. The snake is playing the exact same role in both In Cold Blood and the Garden Of Eden; the snake creates the consequences and punishment for Eve’s and Perry’s actions. He knows that he can get potentially in trouble if he acts on emotions, but, as he mentioned, he knew this before; he is simply fated to do so. Furthermore, Perry doesn’t know how to fight temptation in the snake, he openly says so. That is his biggest problem he faces in the novel, he doesn’t know how to control temptation or the urge to do something potentially criminal. Notice how he states, “I don’t know how to fight a snake…well, I’ll take my chances” (line 6). This proves that Perry doesn’t carefully think through his actions, but he will take the chance if he gets in trouble or not, because he believes that one can’t stop something bad from happening. Also, this proves that he impulsively acts on emotions, in that he says that he wants the diamonds even with the consequences. Sometimes, it seems as though Perry doesn’t think clearly, this being one of them; sometimes in the moment he doesn’t care about the consequences, it is in the aftermath when he realizes what he has actually done. When he acts on temptation, such as the murders, he describes that he can’t control himself, it literally takes over his body, and he is helpless; the snake breaks his legs, the only thing that is holding Perry up, holding his mental sanity from collapsing. Therefore, one can make the argument that Perry’s life fell apart in the motorcycle accident, his legs get crushed, making his mental stamina collapse.

At the start of In Cold Blood, Capote portrays each character with a great amount of detail so that the reader my feel sympathy towards the characters when they die. The reader is able to relate to each character as well as understand their role in the story. In the first fifteen pages Capote thoroughly describes Herbert William Clutter, the murdered father. Capote devotes nearly ten pages to help the reader understand and clearly picture Herb Clutter. The reader learns of Herb Clutters physical appearance as well as his place in society, his life aspirations, the jobs he fulfils throughout his life, the way he treats other men, the way he treats his children, his contributions to Holcomb, and many other intricate details. “…he was known for his equanimity, his charitableness, and the fact that he paid good wages and distributed frequent bonuses; the men who worked with him-and there were sometimes as many as eighteen- had small reason to complain” (10). With descriptions such as those, Capote humanizes the characters, making the reader feel as though they know them. This connection to the characters helps the reader feel emotions towards the characters when they are killed as well as understand the emotions of the townspeople as they watch the murders unfold.

Part 1 of In Cold Blood, The Last to See Them Alive, describes Holcomb, Kansas. Holcomb is a small town of mostly farmers. Holcomb is a quiet community, described as, "...a lonesome area that other Kansans call 'out there'" (3). Readers are also introduced to the Clutter family, who are later the victims of a brutal murder. Herb Clutter, Bonnie Clutter, Nancy Clutter, and Kenyon Clutter live on a large farm known as River Valley Farm in Holcomb. As they go about their daily routines, they have no idea that two criminals are heading their way. The murderers are Dick Hickock and Perry Smith, two petty criminals. Most of this first section of the book is focused on the Clutter family and the ordinariness of their lives. The reader is aware that something bad is headed their way, but does not know exactly what will happen or when. Capote writes that Herb Clutter, "...headed for home and the day's work, unaware that it would be his last" (13).

I believe one of the more significant things in the book are the titles, both the titles of each section and the whole book. The thing that was puzzling me is why the first section is titled The Last to See Them Alive, because the whole chapter appears to be just the reader learning about and being close to the characters. Then it dawned on me:

The first section is titled The Last to See Them Alive, because we as the readers are the last to ‘see’ the Clutter family alive. Capote’s purpose in writing this book was to make it a novel that is based on a true story, what better way than to encourage its novel persona then bringing the reader into the story? As the reader, we see the Clutter family’s final actions before Perry and Dick break in to their house. Even after Bobby leaves we still see what the Clutters do, specifically, Nancy’s ‘midnight routine.’ Because of the way the characters are described, they can be imagined that night, and since we don’t know what they are thinking it is almost as if we are sitting in the room with them, just observing. I think Truman Capote writes the novel this way in order to bring the readers closer to the people in the story. That way it is more than just the ‘reportage’ he always reads, but also a novel. In the end, I think the titles speak to what is going on in the story. The main title In Cold Blood refers to Perry and Dick and why they murdered the Clutters. The second title we have experienced is The Last to See Them Alive and I believe that it refers to the readers, not any actual person from the event. The upcoming three titles will confirm or deny this theory.

The beginning of In cold Blood describe the setting of the story. The author describes the setting as a very lonely place by saying, "a lonesome area that other Kansans call out there". This quote helps tell the reader that the town of Holcomb is a city in "the middle of nowhere" and there's not a of of traffic that runs through it. The setting is also described as being isolated and a trustful city. The book then describes the master of River Valley farm, William Clutter. He is described as very strong as well as being an intelligent person, therefore he is told to be a good character. After the author describes Mr. Clutter, he describes Dick and Perry, also known as the two killers. Perry is a very short man, no taller than a twelve year old. Although he is short, he is very strong from lifting weights. This makes him look awkward in many ways. Dick is a full- blooded Cherokee. This gave him jet-black hair and the dark eyes. Because Dick never had a real childhood, due to sending off for literature, made him act like a child in many ways and all he really wants to do is to be normal.

The first couple pages of In Cold Blood depict a society where not much happens. It starts out with Capote saying, “The village of Holcomb stands on the high wheat plains of western Kansas, a lonesome area that other Kansans call ‘out there’.” (15). Capote uses the sense of the setting as a way to show that a mass murder would never have been suspected in such a small town. He also says, “the majority of Holcomb’s homes are one-story frame affairs, with front porches.” (Capote 15). The difference between the family that was murdered, the Clutters, was they didn’t live in the ordinary house of the small Kansas town. Their house is described as something to be looked at when Capote says, “the handsome white house, standing on an ample lawn of groomed Bermuda grass, impressed Holcomb; it was a place people pointed out.” (21) In a way the setting showed how the Clutters stood out from society making them a target because of their wealth which separated them from others in Holcomb. If the Clutter family would have lived in the average house, in the average town, it really would have been shocking to have the family murdered. Like mentioned in the recent posts about Nancy being the ideal girl, the family was looked upon with respect. Mr. Clutter was a prestigious farmer who dealt with a great deal of land. The land in which he harvested all of his crops represents who he was. The crops he harvested and the animals he cared for on his property showed the wealth he prospered in not only his town but in himself too. 

At the beginning of In Cold Blood, Capote talks about each member of the Clutter family. He talks mostly about Nancy Clutter who is supposedly who every girl wants to be and not much about Kenyon Clutter. He even talks about the sisters who aren’t involved in the murder more than Kenyon. Capote makes it seem that Ms. Katz telephone call is important in the story and it will be very significant to what is about to happen to the clutter family. Capote also mentions Mr. Clutter’s love for peach trees which doesn’t seem relevant at all to the plot of the story. He goes very much out of his way to tell us these things about them.
Capote talks a lot about the Clutter family rather than the killers who will be in most of the book after the terrible event takes place. He mentions the Clutter family’s likes and dislikes and talks quite a bit about their personal lives. On the other hand, he only describes Perry, he doesn’t even take the time to describe Dick. He tells us a little bit about their goals and moves on. Capote doesn’t introduce them as important characters, you just kind of assume since they have their own paragraph that they are important.

In the first twenty-five pages of In Cold Blood, Truman Capote gives detailed descriptions of each character so that the reader can witness the story unfold as an informed bystander. Although the characterization Capote gives of Nancy Clutter paints a picture of perfection, Capote also gives the murderers, Dick and Perry a description that makes them seem more mysterious rather than ruthless. As far as the reader is concerned, Dick and Perry are merciless killers who took the lives of an innocent farming family, but Capote changes that perspective. He describes how Perry is a poetic musician dreaming to play his guitar in front of a crowd, which makes it hard to believe this man would take part in a murder. As Dick and Perry get in the car, Perry checks the backseat to make sure his belongings are still there. Perry describes his possessions as, “It was an old Gibson guitar, sandpapered and waxed to a honey-yellow finish. Another sort of instrument lay beside it-a twelve-gauge pump-action shotgun, brand-new, blue-barreled, and with a sportsman’s scene of pheasants in flight etched along the stock. A flashlight, a fishing knife, a pair of leather gloves, and a hunting vest fully packed with shells contributed further atmosphere to this curious still life” (22). At first, the reader thinks that Perry’s initial priority is his music, however he then describes his gun as if it were a work of art. By page twenty-two of the story, one would think that Perry is a poetic murderer and the reader would anxiously be waiting to see what Perry does next as he is completely unpredictable. Another instance where Capote characterizes the murderers as mysterious is before they speed down the street in their car after discussing their times in prison and parole. Dick talks about the blue tattoo under his eye. He says how it is his fraternity pin, or a, “visible password by which certain former prison inmates could identify him” (24). In response to having to live with his family, Perry says, “’I sympathize with that. They’re good people. She’s a real sweet person, your mother.’ Dick nodded; he thought so, too” (24). After hearing the men causally talk about jail and then respectfully mention how sweet Dick’s mother is, its difficult to categorize them as ruthless killers.

Throughout the beginning of In Cold Blood, Capote keeps the reader captivated by continuously foreshadowing the tragedy that will inevitably occur. The killings are foreshadowed in, the description of Kenyon’s dog Teddy, “His valor had one flaw: let him glimpse a gun, as he did now… and his head dropped, his tail turned in” (13), again when Mrs. Clutter leaves the bible open to a page that reads, “Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is” (30), when Mrs. Ashida compliments Mr. Clutter, “I can’t imagine you afraid. No matter what happened, you’d talk your way out of it” (36), and in more places throughout the first part of In Cold Blood. Most readers know that the killing is going to happen before they start the book, and if they don’t it says it within the first chapter, “At the time not a soul in sleeping Holcumb heard them- four shotgun blasts that, all told, ended six human lives” (5). It then becomes a question of why Capote would continue to foreshadow if the reader already knows what is going to happen. This knowledge of the future combined with the many hints that the killings are soon to happen produces a tone of anxiety. The reader knows that the killings will happen, but not when. However this anxiety does not last long. Capote foreshadows the killings in some way in almost every chapter so the more one reads the less one expects the actually killings to happen. By making the reader forget about the killings Capote focuses ones attention on the things he find more important, the lives and thoughts of the killers and towns people of Holcumb.

Capote uses this tactic to draw the reader into the lives of the victims of this crime. He does this in order to get the reader attached and give them a sense of the innocence of the characters and landscape. It shows the tranquil atmosphere of the setting and gives one the feeling that disaster is close at hand. Capote also uses the first 20 or so pages of the book to show the virtuousness of the citizens and that they were a trusting community. At night the residents of Holcomb would leave their front doors unlocked showing how these people trusted their neighbors. The Clutters were a trusting and popluar family in the community and Capote wanted to portray their influential image in his book and to show why anyone would want to murder this upright household. Nancy a member of the Clutter family is a character that is focused on a great deal in hte beginning of the book. Capote uses Nancy so much at this time in the book to show that even the sweetest and most innocent members of society can be murdered and that no one is safe from fate regardless of their social class or morals.

Judging from the first 20 or so pages of In Cold Blood, it is apparent that Truman Capote spends a lot of time describing the characters to give one a better picture of the story later on. However, he spends a great deal of time on the Clutter family and not much on Dick and Perry. This is peculiar because the Clutter family won’t be alive for much longer in the story, while Dick and Perry make much of it.

I believe Capote does this in order to make the reader feel closer to the Clutters, and feel bad for them. By doing this, he also depicts Dick and Perry as monsters. The person focused on the most in the story is Nancy Clutter. She is shown to be a great person. Her father respects and loves her, other people in the town look up to her and Mrs. Katz even wants Nancy to be a role model for her daughter. This is clear when Mrs. Katz asks Nancy to show her daughter to make cherry pie. Nancy also seems to be very popular around school, seeing as she is dating Bobby Rupp, the school basketball star. All of these things show that Nancy is beloved person around the town and is very likable from the reader’s standpoint. By spending so much time on Nancy, Truman Capote also depicts Perry and Dick to be monsters simply because we don’t know anything about them. The first time we meet Perry in the story, he is eating breakfast; it consists of aspirin and root beer. As a human, we judge people based on this and there is clearly something wrong with a person who starts their day off only with soda and medicine. Capote goes on to show that he doesn’t have much of a conscience because what he and Dick strive to do is go to a remote island where there is gold and lots of women. These two descriptions, coupled with Perry’s brutish build already give the reader a negative view on Dick and Perry even when we don’t really know much about them.

In the first thirty pages of In Cold Blood, Truman Capote discuses the characteristics of the main characters. He devotes a few pages to each character, speaking about their qualities and what exactly the characters did on November 14, 1959, the night that they prominent, farming Clutter family was ruthlessly murdered. Although Capote mentions all of the characters he focus’ most of his attention on Nancy, the youngest Clutter daughter. Nancy is introduced as, “The darling of the town, straight A student, the president of her class, a leader in the 4-H program and the Methodists league, and an excellent musician” (18). The people in the town all adore Nancy and the young women in the town all look up to and strongly admire Nancy. They are always asking Nancy for help, whether it be cooking, helping teach them a new song on the piano, or tutoring them for class, and no matter what is on her plate Nancy always has time to help the young women. Nancy’s mother, Mrs. Bonnie Clutter was experiencing some problems at the time and Nancy was accustomed to also cooking dinner, cleaning the house, etc as well as helping all of the young ladies while still making time to do things for herself. While Capote spent a lot of time talking about all the characters, he spent a significant amount of time discussing Nancy Clutter, the 16-year-old young lady that all the little girls in Holcomb County want to be.