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Criminality In Truman Capote's In Cold Blood

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Merging journalistic and literary storytelling with its unparalleled insight into the nature of criminality in twentieth century American culture, In Cold Blood, Truman Capote’s nonfiction masterpiece epitomizes the loss of naiveté of a small Kansas town, while it undermines the principle ideals of the American Dream——safety, security, and opportunity for prosperity and individualism——through the victimization of the achievers of this mythical, yet idealized belief, such as the Clutter family. Through the portrayal of the tragic ends of three different families (the Clutters, the Hickocks, and the Smiths) regardless of their position on the path to the American Dream, Capote shatters the popular image of perfection that most Americans strove …show more content…

The Clutter family’s relationship with the American Dream seems more manifest than the families of the two killers. Through their murder, Capote hints at the destruction of the ultimate American Dream, an idea unfathomable to most. As so aptly put by a schoolteacher “…That family represented everything people hereabouts really value and respect, and that such a thing could happen to them- well, it’s like being told there is no God” (Capote 55). Through their violent end, Capote demonstrates the impossibility and naiveté of the American Dream; becoming society’s interpretation of the perfect family remains merely an illusion, rather than a protection from all the evil things that can occur in life. Capote exemplifies the Clutters as the concept of the American Dream, conveying social and personal virtues along with financial stability. Herb Clutter was a standing member of the community, who “was known for his equanimity, his charitableness, and the fact that he paid good wages” (Capote 6). But as Andy Erhart inquires “how was it possible that such effort, such plain virtue, could overnight be reduced to this-smoke…received by the big, annihilating sky? (Capote

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In Cold Blood Rhetorical Analysis Typically upon hearing about a murder, especially a brutal and unwarranted one, we find ourselves feeling a great sense of disgust for the murderer or murderers who committed these crimes; however, in Truman Capote’s novel In Cold Blood, the lives and experiences of the murderers, particularly Perry Smith, are displayed in a way the makes you feel pity for him as well as the victims. When comparing Capote’s Novel to a typical news article on a similar topic it is easy to see the that Capote's style varies from typical journalism. An article written by Frances Robles and Nikita Stewart titled “Dylan Roof’s Past Reveals Trouble at Home and School,” discusses the childhood and background of Dylann Roof, a twenty-one

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Truman capote was an American writer best known for his true crime novel, “In Cold Blood.” In this novel Capote talks about the crime Truman Capote taught his self how to read and write. By the time he was age 11, he was already writing his first short stories. The author uses imagery, selection of detail, and diction to characterize Capote’s view of Holcomb, Kansas. Capote sees the town as small, flat land and old.

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Herbert, Bonnie, Nancy, and Kenyon Clutter used to have a nice place in the middle class of America before being murdered in their home. In the book In Cold Blood, Truman depicts the Clutter’s as an ideal and respected family in the rising middle-class of 1950 with descriptions of the family, community, and family hobbie the family; Bonnie(the wife) and four children; Beverly, eveanna, Nancy, and the only son Kenyon. Beverly and Eveanna have grown and moved out of the house in the time that the book takes place, leaving just four people living in the house. From the first part of In Cold Blood, we can conclude that Nancy is an extraverted star in her town who loves socializing and Kenyon was an introverted boy that preferred a more sheltered

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969 Words | 4 Pages

The novel, In Cold Blood, is an anomaly in the literary paradigm. The author, Truman Capote, designed his novel in a way that made it unique when compared to others. His fundamental purpose was to present the problem of American violence and the fragility of the American Dream and how it can be so easily shattered. In order to portray his purpose, he used many rhetorical devices including syntax, diction, tone, ethos, logos and pathos. These devices allowed Capote’s novel to be different from the spectrum of other non-fiction novels and to support his purpose.

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838 Words | 4 Pages

Truman Capote’s novel, In Cold Blood epitomizes the shifting sentiments related to the murder of the Clutter family which range from terror, to sorrow, to pride, and all mixed emotions in between. Yet through Capote’s particular descriptions about each character, the connection between their feelings and their actions become further clarified. In effect, the readers experience feelings of sympathy for the victims, their friends and family, the investigators, and even the brutal murders of the innocent family. In order to craft this association, Capote employs a pathos appeal to amplify the audience’s ability to sympathize with each and every character.

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687 Words | 3 Pages

In the novel “In Cold Blood” , Truman Capote uses the Clutter family to represent the rising middle class in the nineteen fifties. The book is about a homicide murder in Holcomb Kansas on November fifteen nineteen fifty nine. This was the last day anyone would see the Clutter family alive. The Clutter’s were an average middle class American family in the nineteen fifties, nearly perfect. The Clutter family owned their own land in Holcomb with a big house away from mostly everything and everyone.

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1021 Words | 5 Pages

Normality in Capote’s Text ‘In Cold Blood’ Truman Capote, in his non-fiction journalistic narrative, gives readers the opportunity to reconsider the dichotomy of ‘normal’ and ‘abnormal’. Capote also suggests true normality differs from society’s concept of normality. The concept of normality is challenged throughout the entirety of ‘In Cold Blood’, first in the Clutter family, then in Dick and Perry and in sexuality throughout the text. The Clutters, a seemingly ‘normal’ family who have obtained a wealthy and successful life, are polite and hardworking, community-driven and respected.

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1142 Words | 5 Pages

Everybody has desires that constantly weigh over their heads, pushing them to be diligent in all their endeavors, but what would you do if you knew that one day you would no longer have the opportunity to fulfill these desires? Everybody lives their lives so focused on the end goal that they are oblivious to the world around them, and the sad part is that in some cases the end goal is unattainable or never reached because the person dies. In In Cold Blood, Truman Capote utilizes symbolism and descriptive diction to tell his readers Perry’s wants and wishes. Throughout this subchapter the reader is able to learn more about how Perry feels in the moments after the Clutter family murder. The reader learns that Perry wishes he was loved by others

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Both men grew up in poverty and believed that the American Dream was their ticket out of their difficult circumstances. However, as they struggled to make a living and faced setbacks in their lives, they became increasingly disillusioned with the idea of the American Dream. As Capote writes, “Their dreams were as tattered as the motley clothes they wore; their aspirations were as threadbare as the money in their pockets” (Capote 50). The American Dream also plays a role in the way the Clutter family is portrayed in the book.

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573 Words | 3 Pages

Truman Capote, the author of In Cold Blood, creates sympathy for almost every character the reader comes across. Through the use of manipulating the reader's emotions and connecting them to each character, Capote successfully pulls it off. There are four main groups that Capote chooses to create sympathy for the murder victims, the murderers, the law officials involved, and the ordinary citizens of Holcomb, Kansas. Truman Capote created the most sympathy for two characters, Perry Smith and Detective Dewey. From the beginning of the novel, Capote showcases Perry Smith a likable character.

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432 Words | 2 Pages

Throughout In Cold Blood, Truman Capote hints at his own opinion of the death penalty, yet lets the readers decide for themselves what they believe Hickock and Smith's punishment should have been. When the murderers are being hanged, a conversation occurs between a reporter and an investigator about what it might feel like to be hanged: "'They don't feel nothing. Drop, snap, and that's it. They don't feel nothing.' ' Are you sure?

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539 Words | 3 Pages

How crazy would it be to interview criminals who murdered 4 people in cold blood? Well that’s exactly what Truman Capote did in this chilling book. In the novel In Cold Blood, Truman Capote used different rhetorical strategies to create sympathy and influence the idea that there are always two sides to every story. Some of the mainly used rhetorical strategies throughout the novel were imagery, diction, tone, and pathos. Furthermore, Capote also illustrated sympathetical emotion towards both types of characters, the protagonists and antagonists.

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596 Words | 3 Pages

In In Cold Blood, the issue over the death penalty is prominent. Did Perry and Dick deserve to die? Should the severity of one’s crime determine one’s fate? Although Truman Capote writes the novel in a straightforward, “from a distance” way, he conveys, through his characters, theme, and plot development, that the death penalty is an issue that should be looked at from all sides and that the legal system itself is the real issue at hand, and that the death penalty is used as a means to suppress the distress and indignation of the citizens surrounding the case, instead of suppressing the victim himself.

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1053 Words | 5 Pages

In the book, “In Cold Blood,” Truman Capote takes us through the lives of the murderers and the murdered in the 1959 Clutter family homicide, which transpires in the small town of Holcomb, Kansas. The first chapter, “The Last to See Them Alive,” vividly illustrates the daily activities of the Clutter family—Herbert, Bonnie, Nancy, and Kenyon—and the scheming plot of Dick Hickock and Perry Smith up to point where the family is found tied up, and brutally murdered. In doing so, he depicts the picture-perfect town of Holcomb with “blue skies and desert clear air”(3) whose safety is threatened when “four shotgun blasts that, all told, ended six human lives”(5). Through the eyes of a picture perfect family and criminals with social aspirations, Capote describes the American Dream and introduces his audience to the idea that this ideal was no more than an illusion. Herbert Clutter: the character Capote describes as the epitome of the American Dream.

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1177 Words | 5 Pages

Facts and Fiction: A Manipulation of Language in Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood English is a fascinating and riveting language. Subtle nuances and adjustments can easily change the understanding of a literary work—a technique many authors employ in order to evoke a desired response from their readers. This method is used especially in In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, a literary work which details a true event about the murders of four members of the Clutter family in the small community of Holcomb, Kansas, in 1959. Although Capote’s 1966 book was a bestseller nonfiction and had successfully garnered acclaim for its author, there is still a great deal of confusion about the distinction between the factual and fictional aspects in the book.

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