Capote uses authorial bias to convey the
character of Perry Smith. In Cold Blood
is a non-fiction, true crime novel published in 1966 by Truman Capote. The book
documents the lives, motives, murder and eventual capture of Perry Smith and Dick
Hickock for the unlawful killing of Herbert William Clutter and his family. ‘The main man’ Herbert, is described as a ‘popular citizen’ and in
‘first rate condition’. His wife, Bonnie, is very secluded and suffers with her
spine. Their children are denoted as darlings and their daughter is denoted as
a ‘Southern Belle’.
Capote uses background knowledge from
his research as a detective to clearly state both convicts’ mental health and
motives for wanting to kill off the whole family. Capote uses chapter 1 and
parts of chapter 2 to give an extradiegetic view into their lives, building up
to the murders. The beginning of the chapter establishes the scene - a village in Holcomb
in Western Kansas, 70 miles east from the border of Colorado.
a
The residents' accents are described as "barbed with a prairie twang". The adjective
"barbed" denotes a sharp item (such as barbed wire), which could say
that their accents are sharp like a knife, and leaves a strong and distinctive effect. The noun prairie denotes a large open space (such
as grassland or deserts) – this makes us believe that the residents of Holcomb
originate from different parts of the state, and maybe not just one place so
accents are strong, but different. The noun "twang" denotes the nasal characteristic connoting
somebody's dialect, which also denotes the idea of classism and intellectuality
– as well as their backgrounds and regional identity.
Capote uses symbolism to denote class - especially in relation to the
men. He also uses asyndetic listing to describe the scene to invoke
imagery in the reader's head. He describes the men's attire denoting
"many of them wearing narrow frontier trousers, Stetsons (which symbolised
manhood as well as freedom) and high heeled boots with pointed toes (heels
could connote status between the men).
In this chapter 2, the murder investigation is well underway. When they
found out that the men were not residents of Holcomb, but smart cold-blooded
killers instead of ex-friends seeking revenge. Multifaceted backstories and
unique(ish) dispositions provided a rich number of findings for Capote to write
up. It is the perfect microcosm. The bodies have been removed from the scene of
the crime and suspicion and fear among the residents is sky high. Whereas
before, everyone could trust each other, hostility has taken over, residents
giving others second glances, paranoia setting in and trust
dissolving between neighbours. When the constabulary closed their
preliminary investigation, they ensured that the cleaned the Clutters' house as
if nothing had taken place.
The author also gives us some insight into Perry's life and his
childhood. Capote illustrates how Perry was "a model child",
looked after and loved. But when his parents split because of his mother's
chronic alcoholism, Perry's life took a turn for the worst. Perry was trapped
in a cyclical cycle of "care" and being sexually and physically
abused by the nuns affected his mental health horrifically. This could be what
makes Perry the way he is.
Capote sculpts Perry's level of sanity around the symbolism of a golden parrot. Whereas in other novels, like in Of Mice and Men, Lennie's dream is sculpted around rabbits, Perry's entire mentality is sculpted around a bird. This makes us as readers believe that Perry has essentially lost his mind and his mental state is questionable. As an alternative interpretation, you could say that Capote talks more about Perry to show his struggle getting to manhood, but his downfall – which is why the book is more focused on him and not Dick.
Chapters 3 and 4 are the “juicy parts of
the book”, as we are introduced to Floyd Wells, who gives us the dirt that we
need to know about Dick and Perry, and their plan to kill the Clutters. Floyd reveals what Dick confessed to him. By
this point, we can denote that Dick is very loose-lipped and has essentially
incarcerated himself and Perry before they’ve even committed their carnival of
carnage against the Clutters.
Floyd was afraid to step forward as he
felt his life “wouldn’t be worth a dead
coyote”. Capote used this quote to connote the idea of coyote hunting, and fur
stripping. Fur would be taken off the skin of a coyote or another animal, washed,
tanned and then made into a lavish coat or pair of shoes. Capote has used this
quote in the form of a strong antonym as in to say “we’ll kill you, however,
were going to kill you in a way that your fur can’t be sold and your carcass
will be thrown.”
When Dick and Perry are put on death
row, they were told how they would die.
Hanging.
Smith and Hickock would have to climb
the gallows to the top, have the noose placed around their necks and the trap
door would open – “snapping their necks”, killing them in under 20 minutes.
Onlookers of the event said “it wouldn’t be humane if it hurt”, which is
bittersweet as when they shot and slit the Clutters’ throats, they were in pain
and they bled to death. Which makes us wonder why they got away with it so
easily by being sentenced to a “painless death”.
Hickock was first, when he got to the
top of the gallows, a “delicate black mask was tied around his eyes”. The
concept of delicacy before death is almost ironic, as if to put the coat on the
cow before slitting its throat, as if to paint the house before demolishing the
land. Capote uses this to add relief to
Dick’s death. When Perry is hung, the story is much more different. Capote
doesn’t have a reporter’s monologue, but a change in scene – like old friends
seeing each other after a few years. The hanging is seen as a family event,
something that you can enjoy. Capote also uses mirror imaging and visional
expression to portray the girl at the end of the book, “as Nancy would have
been” – this gives us the idea of Nancy being the focus of the book, as well as
her dad, the cyclical structure is based around Nancy.
In conclusion, Capote’s use of bias
towards Perry is strong in the beginning of the book, as he wants to depict the
stature of the character, but also his mental state and backstory to why he is
how he is. When the end of the book dawns, the bias is put more towards Dick
and Nancy than towards Perry. When Perry dies, life goes on as normal, as in a
revert in events. However, when Dick died, people were talking about him, us as
readers felt empathy for Dick, but Capote presented Perry’s death as a quick
event that you could see or leave.
