Analysis of Murder in Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood

Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood" is the story of Perry and Dick and the night of November 15, 1959. This investigative, fast-paced and straightforward documentary provides a commentary on the nature of American violence and examines the details of  the motiveless murders of four members of the Clutter family and the investigation that led to the capture, trial, and execution of the killers.

In Truman Capote’s captivating nonfiction, In Cold Blood, Capote ventures through the journey and lives of both the killed and the killers all while analyzing the point in which they crossed paths. From the days before the four Clutters were murdered to the last moments of the two killers’ lives, Capote takes into account each and every aspect that creates the ‘famous’ Clutter Case with an in depth look of just how and why these strange and unforeseeable events occurred. What was originally supposed to only be an article in a newspaper turned into an entire book with Capote analyzing both how and why a murder comes to be through the use of pathos, juxtaposition, and foreshadowing.

In the United States, there are millions of people that are in jail cells for crimes they have committed. One of the goals of prison is to provide justice for the victim’s crimes but in our prison system, this is not the case. These people face harsh punishments that only cause worse actions in the future. The theme of justice and punishment is explored by Truman Capote in the book In Cold Blood. The two criminals, Dick and Perry, are challenged by society on if they should be imprisoned or if they should be free. In Capote’s work, the use of syntax, diction, and a variety of details portray the current system of punishment as cruel and ineffective in providing justice.

In Truman Capote’s Novel, In Cold Blood, Capote synthesises the writing techniques of a reporter and an author to tell the horrific and true story of the Clutter family murders. Capote uses comparison, selection of detail, and understatement to pose his argument that capital punishment is not a correct practice.

For centuries, men and women have murdered each other for greed, lust, revenge, etc. However, in 1959, Truman Capote traveled to Holcomb, Kansas to discover the other side of murder. Truman Capote, author of In Cold Blood, offers a close examination of the horrid murder of the Clutter family. He explored how two men of different backgrounds, ethnicities, and personalities joined together to kill an innocent family for riches. Capote provides different points of view through each of his character’s eyes for his readers’ better understanding of the murderers. The use of juxtaposition compares and contrasts Dick to Perry, the murders. Capote succeeds with using juxtaposition to reveal the murderer's how he perceived them.

Capote's structure in In Cold Blood is a subject that deserves discussion. The book is told from two alternating perspectives, that of the Clutter family who are the victims, and that of the two murderers, Dick Hickock and Perry Smith. The different perspectives allow the reader to relive both sides of the story; Capote presents them without bias. Capote masterfully utilizes the third person omniscient point of view to express the two perspectives. The non-chronological sequencing of some events emphasizes key scenes.

When we hear about a killing on the news, our natural instincts are to immediately antagonize the killers. More likely than not, we hate the killers, and hope they get a vengeful prison sentence. In Truman Capote’s true crime non-fiction book, In Cold Blood, we learn about the murders that took place in Holcomb. The story is about much more than the slaying of a respectful family, its focus is on the killers, Dick Hickock and Perry Smith. One of Capote’s main purposes in the book is to convey the multiple perspectives of a crime in order for the readers to view the killers as more than just the bad guys, and he achieves his purpose primarily through the use of pathos, anecdotes, and his chosen narrative.

The dynamic partnership between Dick and Perry stems from their egos, or lack thereof. Perry is especially self-conscious, and his behavior as presented in the book is due to his sense of lacking and

Capote presents alternating perspectives, the four members of the Clutter family Nancy, Kenyon, Mrs. Clutter and Mr. Clutter, being victims, and the two murderers, Dick Hickock and Perry Smith. These different perspectives allow the reader to relive each side of the story for

Many people say the documentation of the murder of the Clutter family is Truman Capote’s best work. It started out as an article for The New Yorker, and evolved into the non-fiction novel; the first of its kind. Capote traveled to Kansas with friend Harper Lee to research the killings. In the course of six years bringing this narrative together, Capote began taking drugs and drinking heavily due to the dark nature of the book. Truman Capote tells the true story of a family murdered in In Cold Blood, through character analysis and symbolism to prove nature is a stronger force than nature in shaping a person’s character.

The book In Cold Blood is a nonfiction book about the murder of the Clutter family. Taking place back in the 1959s, Truman Capote writes about the events leading up to the murders, when the murders took place, and the aftermath. He tells the story in such a descriptive manner, that it feels like we were there when it happened. The purpose of writing like that is so we can know everyone’s side of the story, even people you wouldn’t ordinarily think of. He helps us feel like we were there when it happened by effectively and efficiently using the rhetorical strategies. The rhetorical strategies I feel were most important to the story were pathos, logos, and the tone. The way Capote uses these rhetorical strategies and literary devices is

In the journalistic book In Cold Blood, Truman Capote recounts the murders of the members of the Clutter family and the ensuing search for the murderers from various perspectives, giving the event a new dimension of depth and complexity. Following the murders, Capote chronicles the flight of the murderers, Richard Eugene “Dick” Hickock and Perry Edward Smith, revealing each of their personalities and backgrounds through letters, personal accounts, and experiences. As the crime develops, Capote implants the idea that Dick and Perry are more than just cold blooded killers. Through long descriptions of their backgrounds, Perry’s in particular, Capote implicitly evokes sympathy for the killers by placing emphasis on character rather than action,

In the final months of 1959, the Clutter family was brutally murdered in their Holcomb, Kansas, home. Reports of their murders made national news. One of these headlines captured the attention of Truman Capote who chose to pursue the story further; eventually, after years of research and thousands of pages of notes, he penned In Cold Blood. It was first published in 1966, and it found immediate success. Capote’s original storytelling methods combined with the sensationalism of the crime was instrumental in creating, at the very least, popularizing a new genre: creative nonfiction. Utilizing unique narrative structure and author-tainted character development, Capote weaves a tale that questions the authenticity, the intent, and the meaning of justice.

The captivating story of In Cold Blood by Truman Capote is a beautifully written piece describing the unveiling of a family murder. This investigative, fast-paced and straightforward documentary provides a commentary of such violence and examines the details of the motiveless murders of four members of the Clutter family and the investigation that led to the capture, trial, and execution of the killers. As this twisted novel unravels, Capote defines the themes of childhood influences relevant to the adulthood of the murderers, opposite personalities, and nature versus nurture.

Truman Capote’s novel “In cold blood” was identified as a new form of non-fiction genre in which an objective approach was taken by the author, as his opinions and judgements were absent from the text, leaving only the truth for the reader to interpret. Capote’s narrative method allows the murders to be explained and rationalised within a framework of middle-class ideology and psychological analysis (Hollowell, 1997). Kazin (reference) conveys that the novel “In cold blood” creates a strong connection between the readers and characters within the novel through the use of novelistic techniques. In Cold blood provides facts and first-hand accounts of the murder of a wealthy family living in Holcomb, Kansas by two villains known as Dick Hickock and Perry Smith. This genre criticism will involve an in-depth analysis of Truman Capotes novel “In cold blood” and how specific novelistic techniques are used in certain ways to build that “closeness” which is the key in the evocation of a crime and its consequences in the non-fiction novel “In cold blood”.