Murders occur on a day-to-day basis all over the globe. Though many are covered in the news, many are left in the dust and never gain any relevance. The murder of the Clutter family, an exemplar of a case left under the dust, occurred in Holcomb, Kansas in the late 1950s. Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood follows the Clutter murder, yet primarily focuses on the stories of the killers, Dick Hickcock and Perry Smith. Capote shows bias towards Perry by using certain writing techniques in order to stir sympathy towards Perry. Capote also uncovers the truth behind Perry and Dick’s friendship. Truman Capote sheds light onto Perry’s childhood in order to not only express his sympathy for Perry but also to get readers to develop sympathy towards Perry as well by using certain techniques. Perry’s mother …show more content…
Initially, Dick never considers Perry as someone special or worth his time. His mind changes when Perry tells him the time he murders a coloured man in Las Vegas with a bicycle chain. According to the text, “He had liked him but not considered him especially worth cultivating until, one day, Perry described a murder, telling how, simply for “the hell of it”, he had killed a colored man in Las Vegas- beaten him to death with a bicycle chain” (Capote 54).Identically, Dick believes that Perry is a natural at killing, a rarity, in Dick’s eyes. The text states, “Dick became convinced that Perry was a rarity, “a natural born killer,”- absolutely sane but conscienceless, and capable of dealing with or without motive… he proceeded to woo Perry…” (Capote 205). Together with the previous quote, Dick wants to take advantage of Perry. In Dick’s perspective, their friendship is just a lie in order to deem control over Perry. To sum up, Capote portrays Dick as the prime mastermind behind the murder and Perry as the sidekick who gives in to gain