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Mental Illness In Truman Capote's In Cold Blood

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In Cold Blood by Truman Capote was a crime novel that shock many people in the world because of how a small town family is kill out of nowhere by deformed murders and also how a community would be affected by this conflict. Also, Capote is successful of bringing the murders Dick and Perry back to live. Capote makes them too sympathetic because of how he expresses their mental health, their harsh backstories and the trial that take place in part 4. These three reasons make Capote successful of bringing the murders back to life. Capote is successful of describing the mental illnesses of the murders before they were evaluated by Dr, Jones. For example, dick’s mental illness is depression because he meet some of the symptoms. One of the requirements
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Capote’s Style in In Cold Blood Truman Capote, notorious for his fiction works, employed a series of complex literary techniques to further enhance his novels. He is often praised as a literary genius, as his writings are compelling with deep inner workings. This is especially true for one of his most praised novels, In Cold Blood, a narrative nonfiction about a murder-robbery in 1959. In this novel, Capote implements many narrative devices that build suspense and strike fear into its readers.

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In Cold Blood, written by Truman Capote in 1966 tells the story of the murder of a prominent family in 60’s Kansas. Capote traveled to the small town of Holcomb, and befriended many of the townsfolk and the detectives involved in the trial to tell the story of a violent event that shaped this community for the decade until the eventual conviction and execution of the killers. Because of information being told, Capote makes the choice of writing his novel as if it were a news report. This journalistic structure and word choice helps to establish the serious and dark tone of the novel.

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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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In the novel, In Cold Blood author Truman Capote utilizes dark imagery and depressing diction to set the novel’s tone. Capote shows the reader a desolate town with scarce residents. Holcomb, Kansas features flat land, cattle, and grain, making a feeling of barren emptiness. Capote’s choice of words and descriptions loom over the main characters and create an uneasiness for the reader. Capote describes Holcomb as, “A lonesome area the other Kansans call ‘out there.’”

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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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514 Words | 3 Pages

In Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood, there is no hero. The protagonist is not a hero, nor the law enforcement. Heroism becomes irrelevant when searching for justice following a tragedy such as the one seen on November 15th, 1959 in Holcomb, Kansas. Complexity, next to justice, is primary to put into account during the aftershocks . Perry Smith is the protagonist in the novel, not only due to author’s bias but also due to his sheer dynamic, a man disconnected from word to action.

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No matter how we try to change our situation or better ourselves in society, variables will obstruct the path we choose. One cannot take control of everything that surrounds us as fate decides what happens to us. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote explains the murder of the Clutter family in the quiet town of Holcomb, Kansas. The murderers, Richard (Dick) Hickock and Perry Smith, try to escape the consequences of their actions, believing that they can get away with what they did. The story tells what the murderers were thinking after and before they committed the crime and their various interactions.

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Capote’s purpose in writing In Cold Blood changes as the story progresses. It starts with how someone’s carelessness can ruin an entire family and the whole village can be influenced by it. Earlier in the book, the Clutter family is, except two older sisters, killed by two murderers, Dick and Perry. Later, the motive of the murder is found as it is carelessness from Floyd who was Dick’s cellmate years ago. Floyd used to work at the Clutter’s farm and as he was telling Dick what kind of jobs he had, he told Dick how wealthy the Clutters are.

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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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Growing up a Sociopath; Born a Psychopath In Cold Blood by Truman Capote is a true story of a quadruple homicide in the small town of Holcomb, Kansas that greatly impacted the community in 1959. Capote begins his novel by introducing a prominent, well respected family in the community, the Clutters. The Clutters lived average everyday lives until they were abruptly ended at the mercy of a 12 gauge shotgun. The killers were two men unknown to the Clutters, who had two completely different backgrounds and personalities. By choosing to include details about each of the killers, Capote delineates the differences between psychopaths and sociopaths and suggests that the combination of the two personality disorders creates the environment for horrific

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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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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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In Cold Blood written by Truman Capote is a nonfictional story based, on a actual murder of the clutter family. In the story the author 's doesn 't really take a stand on for or against capitol punishment, however it does provide some reason or fact on why the judge at the time sentenced them to death. first we need understand that story take place in a 1960 's and at the time they didn 't have the type of criminal justice that we have now where you get sentence to life and can receive parole for good behavior while being in prison. In that time, they didn 't have parole or probation. you was practically hang or sentence to prison and release in the general population. Furthermore only the rich had the chance to buy their way out of the

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In his book, In Cold Blood, Truman Capote utilizes several rhetorical devices and strategies in pages 246-248 in order to establish a theme for the fourth section of the book, The Corner, and in order to properly end the third section, The Answer. Capote uses metaphor, diction, and tone shift in order to provide a comparison for Dick and Perry, to most effectively transition into the last section of the book, and to establish a grim and dismal mood. Capote uses an extended and extremely detailed metaphor in the first paragraph of page 246 with his reference to the tomcats. “Among Garden City’s Animals are two gray tomcats who are always together ―thin, dirty strays with strange and clever habits(246). This perfects relates to the personalities of Dick and Perry in

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908 Words | 4 Pages

Truman Capote uses variety of language devices to vividly develop Perry Smith in his novel In Cold Blood. These language devices include, diction, similes and symbolism. Throughout the novel diction is used to develop Perry Smith’s character, and suggest reasons for the murder. When Smith explains what happened that night at the Clutter’s family home, he tells agent Alvin Dewey about his moment with Nancy Clutter.

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