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Should In Cold Blood Be Banned

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Censorship is inhibition of public communication which is considered sensitive, politically harmful and incorrect, which is determined by the government. “In Cold Blood” written very well by Truman Capote. The book was written, to express the true facts on a murder of the Clutter family, late 1959 in Holcomb, Kansas. The nonfiction was banned based off of the explicit use of sexual content, profanity, and violence. In cold blood should not be in the libraries of middle schools or should be read by any other age below the high school level. The book reveals excessive use of profanity, has sexual content and violence, children aren’t mature enough to read this book. And for that reason In Cold Blood, should not be banned because, many may consider …show more content…

In cold blood, have countless occasions where foreshadowing, symbolism, irony and other devices are used. In the beginning of the book, Capote draws the readers into the unimaginable life-style Herb Clutter created. Truman Capote sets up symbolism by presenting the American dream. The image created, where he’s eating an apple in the early day light, cultivated by capote. The journalist use of irony weighs heavy through tout the book. That does a lot to extract empathy for the Clutters from the reader. Where Ashida, Mr. Clutters friend tells how she can't see him unable or afraid to talk himself out of any tense situation. Truman uses foreshadowing the death of the Clutter family was soon to come. Which also was used mostly at the of his last chapter. When Truman describes Mr. Clutters last days, he says “Then touching the brim of his cap, he headed for home and the days’ work, unaware that it would be his last”(Capote13). Stating, after a hard day at work, Mr. Clutter would be extremely tired. Instead of telling the reader that Dick and Perry was about to take place. Truman also moves back and forth between Dick, Perry and the Clutters. The Tone used throughout the book in a very dark way. A relentless disturbing feeling as we get closer to the murder situation and murderers. Truman Capote isn't pleased to portray the killers as purely evil. What's fascinating is the how Truman Capote conversed multiple themes, while the delicateness of the ideal American dream family quickly brought to an

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In Truman Capote’s “In Cold Blood,” Dick and Perry have murdered the Clutter family and are on their way to Mexico. In this passage, Dick makes an astounding statement. In the passage, Dick claims that he’s “a normal” but that is far from the truth. He is a conniving, manipulative son of a bitch who thinks he’s normal in comparison to Perry.

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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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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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1612 Words | 7 Pages

“You don’t have to burn books to destroy a culture. Just get people to stop reading them. ”-Ray Bradbury. Censorship is the act of limiting information, ideas, or the freedom of thought, from life.

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1445 Words | 6 Pages

In the village of Holcomb, Kansas a wealthy family, the Clutters, was murdered on November 14, 1959. Dick Hickock and Perry Smith were convicted of these murders and received the death penalty. In Truman Capote’s novel In Cold Blood, the audience receives different viewpoints on why Dick and Perry either deserved the death penalty or not. Though the decision to sentence someone to death should be based on the truth, the truth is not always easy to define; Capote shows this through his depiction of the controversial executions of Dick Hickock and Perry Smith. Criminal punishment is an immensely ongoing controversial and societal issue in the United States, Europe and other parts of the world.

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1028 Words | 5 Pages

Throughout history, music has been a vital piece of culture. With music, censorship of it coincides. For America, this has been the case, especially with the invention of radios in the early 1900s which aided the development of widespread music in the nation. However, not all music is meant to be broadcasted for each and every listener of radio to hear. It is because of this that censorship of music on the radio is so necessary for a country with the potential it has to thrive.

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1202 Words | 5 Pages

Truman is trying to find out the truth about what happened to his father that day many years ago and to try and find peace with his past. After a long talk both of the most important people in his life tell him he is crazy and is only using his imagination. This leaves Truman feeling completely confused and still in awe for meaning. He is overwhelmed with the feeling that his whole life is a lie and wants the

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432 Words | 2 Pages

Contrastingly, the opposite opinion is revealed through the character Alvin Dewey in the book. Capote writes about Dewey’s beliefs on the case: “[The Clutter family] had experienced prolonged terror, they had suffered. And Dewey

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539 Words | 3 Pages

Additionally, Capote expressed the idea of there being two sides to every story for both the protagonist and antagonist. By doing so, he used a unique writing style to help develop the story. In Cold

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470 Words | 2 Pages

In doing so Capote invents a new genre of literature by telling the story through a new perspective. Capote as a writer chooses to put most of the focus of the book on the criminals, Dick Hickock and Perry Smith, particularly Smith. He follows Smith’s life story, and explains that Smith was abused as a child, and the reader is to infer that as a result he seeks approval from others. This approval is what leads him to kill, and invent stories about killing, as he wants Dick to think of him as macho. Capote provides a plethora of evidence to support this reasoning, “He was seven years old, a hated, hating half-breed child living in a California orphanage run by nuns- shrouded disciplinarians who whipped him for wetting his bed,” (93).

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908 Words | 4 Pages

Truman Capote uses variety of language devices such as diction, similes and symbolism to vividly develop Perry Smith in his novel In Cold Blood and reveal aspects of the murder. Perry Smith is a sensitive, somewhat frightening and psychologically unstable character, but then again

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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

He is portrayed as a mastermind in the cold-blooded killing of the Clutters family, a man with little respect for the lives of others, which can be seen through Dick’s expression before the murder of the Clutters when he converses Perry, “We’re gonna go in there and splatter those walls with hair” (Capote 234). This sudden tone shift enables Capote to depict Dick as a cruel and immoral character. Dick’s lack of empathy and concern for other people beside himself allow him to commit crimes without remorse, which is in contrast to Perry’s moral contemplation after each bad actions they committed. Moreover, Dick is represented as the true criminal with evident motives in murdering the Clutters, while Perry is seen as a vulnerable victim who depends on Dick for validation and acceptance, something in which Dick happily provides in order to manipulate Perry, as Capote writes, “Dick became convinced that Perry was that rarity, ‘a natural born killer,’—absolutely sane but conscienceless, and capable of dealing with or without motive, the coldest-blooded deathblows. It was Dick's theory that such a gift could, under his supervision, be profitably exploited” (Capote 205).

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