As my mom would say, Capote “tells it like it is” when explaining the events, remaining factual. However, how he explains the characters surprised me. With a murder story like this, it is expected that the victims will be sympathized with and the murderers will be scorned. Capote does shed only a good light on the victims, but he also gives a lot of depth to the murderers, making them extremely complex characters. It is strange that Capote can cause readers to feel bad for the murderers when they’ve done such a terrible act. Capote gives background information like that “alcohol had blurred the face,” of Perry’s mom, and that Perry had been put in an orphanage and later a “children’s shelter operated by the Salvation army,” where he was hated for “wetting the bed” (131-132). Readers sympathize less with Dick, and mostly feel bad for Dick’s family, who are written as caring people. Although they’re criminals, Capote’s attitude towards Dick and Perry is very complicated because he works hard to portray them as human.
Capote tries to write the story as a bystander, with no personal opinion influencing his writing. Indeed he goes into great depth portraying the victims in section one. After the murder, he goes into much greater depth portraying the killers, their struggles, and their personal lives. This causes the reader to feel that Capote has sympathy for the murderers, like Dewey, who “found it possible to look at the man beside him without anger - with, rather, a measure of sympathy - for Perry Smith's life had been no bed of roses but pitiful, an ugly and lonely progress toward one mirage and then another” (246). However, these two men just murdered almost an entire family, four people whom they had no connection to whatsoever, in cold blood. Therefore Capote seems to be asking for sympathy for people who are very undeserving of sympathy, as they had none of their own.
Capote’s attitude while telling the story depended on who he was talking about. The Clutters were never disparaged and were in fact painted in a very positive light. However, Capote tries to garner sympathy for the murderers, Dick and Perry, as well. Capote mentions multiple times that Perry tried “to make the victim more comfortable” (p. 103) when he was murdering the Clutters. Capote spends a lot of time talking about the families of Dick and Perry, and their childhoods, especially Perry’s childhood, spent with Nuns who would frequently insult and hurt him. This attitude frustrated me, because at the end of the day, they’re murderers. It doesn’t matter what their lives were like, nothing gives anyone the right to murder someone else. The details about their pasts and about their families frustrated me, because they seemed very superfluous and extended the reading.
As Leora said, Capote remains factual in his writing. This event actually happened, after all. He generally maintains an impartial, non-biased stance towards the events in the story. However, he does portray the Clutters in a positive light. Everyone likes the Clutters, and they are good people. Mrs. Ashida says in the beginning of the book, “seems like I'm always thanking you, Herb. But thanks” (35). Capote talks a lot about the Clutters and how the people of Holcomb admired them. Capote also does something that is not ordinary in writing; he makes the reader feel sympathy and connection to the killers but painting them in a good light. He tells you Perry’s tough backstory, and focuses a good part of the story on Perry and Dick. So overall, Capote is both factual and partial to the characters and events in the story.
I think that as most other people said, Capote tried to tell it like it is. However, I don't think that his attitude was at all affected by the story he was telling. I think that he told the story in the light that his interviews painted it in. That being said, the attitudes towards the characters in the story are greatly affected by the interviews that he took, and the feelings of those people, and therefore not at all unbiased or removed. The clutters for example are always portrayed in a rosy light, with nothing wrong with them at all. Nancy, "before saying her prayers, [] always recorded in her diary a few occurrences" (56). Every one in the Clutter family is written about as if they were perfect idealistic people, which is impossible. Posthumously however, people only say nice things about them, so that's what Capote writes about.
I completely disagree. While Capote attempts to remain accurate and unbiased, he is an author and hence had an agenda. His attitude, perhaps shaped by opposition to the death penalty, is sympathetic to the murderers: “they shared a doom against which virtue was no defense” (185). Furthermore, throughout the first three sections of the novel clear themes exhibiting bias emerge. For example, Capote criticizes the fragility of the American Dream: while Mr. Clutter has seemingly achieved the Dream, he is murdered--making his hard work and accomplishments worthless. Capote also depicts the issue of class warfare and unequal distribution of wealth. For example, he points out that Dick never had any money and therefore could not attend college and that Perry’s “ life had been no bed of roses but pitiful” (246). Capote clearly implies that Dick’s and Perry’s socio-economic backgrounds determine their choices. So yes, Capote attempts to remain unbiased, only using interviews to write his novel; but after all, In Cold Blood is literature and literature has agendas.
Truman Capote's attitude mostly remains neutral throughout the novel, however, he seems to feel sympathy towards Perry. When describing the murders and investigations, Capote does not write with much sense of mourning or sadness. Of course he hadn't know the Clutters personally, but he didn't know Perry either, yet he still felt for him. Perhaps the reason he goes into such detail about Perry’s suffering, and even sympathizes with Perry is because the two were similar. Capote was gay, and considering Perry’s persona and his obsession with Willie Jay, Perry was probably gay as well. Perry revealed that he never even would have gone with Dick if “things had work[ed] out with Willie-Jay,” his “real and only friend”(45). Capote sent letters to Perry discussing his homosexuality, and the investigators working the case revealed that the two became very close through the investigation process. Perhaps Capote understood Perry’s suffering and emotional problems which stemmed from the fact that he was gay, and therefore wrote the book feeling sympathy towards him.
Capote remains very objective throughout the book. Although he paints the Clutters in a very positive light, it is arguable that this is till objective, since, as it seems, Capote only makes the Clutters appear this way from the information of the townspeople. Taking all the information of what the townspeople have said, it is a fact that the Clutters were well liked people. Mr. Clutter is described by Mrs. Ashida as "a gentleman. She had never known him to act squire, or to take advantage or break a promise."(36). However, the only time that Capote can be seen as somewhat showing preference is when telling the story of Dick and Perry. Capote tried to make the reader feel more sympathetic for Dick and Perry when telling their background stories and the hardships they have faced. Capote also does this by making them relatable and telling the reader of Perry's dream to get away and hunt for treasure. However, by being bias here, Capote is able to add a deeper level to the story. This is crucial because it makes the overall story more engaging.
Capote remains unbiased throughout the book. One would think that his narration would be more emotionally charged than it was. Especially since it seems like Capote was fond of the Clutters. Capote describes the Clutters as being "a nice family, real nice" (160). Based on Capote's positive opinion of the Clutters, one would think that he would have a bias towards the murderers. However, instead of painting the murderers in a cruel light, he portrays them the same way he portrays all the other characters.
Truman Capote maintains a very unbiased attitude throughout the novel. He tells of the pleasant, popular image of the Clutter family, but also mentions the personal struggles they had, like Bonnie's illness. Capote also makes sure to write without emotion when they are killed by Dick and Perry. He is also surprisingly unprejudiced towards the killers, including the account of Perry's life story his father wrote for him. This passage makes the reader sympathize and pity the murderer Perry. Although Capote seems to like Perry enough to add this in, he does not seem to favor Dick in the same way. For example, he mentions that Dick runs over a dog and exclaimed, "Boy! We sure splattered him!" (113). These subtle character traits show us different views of the people in the novel, without Capote's obvious opinion about them. Nevertheless, Capote does a great job of concealing his own feelings, while still having the character emotion, which is crucial for the story to advance.
For the most part, Capote writes In Cold Blood using an unbiased opinion. Capote gets to choose which testimonies and facts get written in the book. He does have the choice to incorporate positive or negative facts about the Clutters and the murderers. Capote describes the Clutters in a positive way by writing that everyone liked them. On the other hand, Capote decides to include the story of Perry’s life, allowing for the reader to feel more sympathy towards him. The possible objective of telling Perry’s story was to portray him as a real human being with a life beyond jail. The reader is informed of Perry’s tough childhood, yet despite his struggles his father writes, “Perry never started the trouble” (127). Perry also says, “I think there must be something wrong with us. To do what we did” (108). Capote doesn’t straight-out write his feelings or opinion on the case. He just gets to choose which aspects of the story make it into the novel which shows his attitude on different events and people.
Truman Capote attempts to tell the story in an unbiased and factual manner staying true to the events that occurred. However, when describing the characters he constantly portrays the Clutters in an almost angelic light. They are always described as being influential in their town with seemingly perfect children. Nancy is said to have’’ practically run that big house... (been) a straight A student, the president of her class’’ (18) along with a myriad of other achievements. Capote also tries to draw sympathy from the reader for the murderers. He provides an extensive background for both Dick and Perry. He writes about the difficult pasts that Perry come from in an attempt for the reader to sympathize with a criminal that committed a heinous crime.
In my opinion, Truman Capote includes the long and detailed character descriptions (especially of the murderers [oops spoilers], Perry and Dick) to show the ordinariness of the committers of this horrific crime. When thinking about murderers, most people do not think of teachers of "harmonica and guitar. Drawing. And Penmanship (135). I do not think necessarily that Truman Capote want his reader feel bad and empathize with the killers, but actually wants to show how normal people can commit terrible things. Unless Capote was crazy, I do not see a good motive for portraying the killers as nice people. And I do not think he portrays them as nice people, just regular people (besides the killing part).
Capote is attached to the case as whole, as he dedicated four years of his life in Kansas researching it. He feels a connection to both the events and people involved in the crime case as a result of the countless hours he spent investigating. However, there is a much deeper, more personal connection that Capote feels, and this is towards Perry Smith. His great fascination in Perry’s story can be attributed to parallels between their childhoods. Both Perry and Capote struggled to overcome the hardships that they faced in their younger years: divorced parents, living with neither parent, and many years of loneliness. Both children were quite smart and artistically talented. But, only Capote overcame his challenges and became successful later on. Perry, on the other hand, can only feel a sense of anger as he exclaims, “oh, the man I could have been!” (185). It appears that Capote feels sympathy for Perry, as he himself was the lucky one between the two.
Capote remained more or less unbiased throughout the book using the interviews he collected to set the tone of the story. Capote describes the Clutter family in such a positive light and he would be understood if he portrayed the murderers in a negative light. However, Capote does not present the duo in this way. Instead he chooses to introduce the two by describing their appearances, specifically explaining certain injuries and accidents they were involved in at young ages. For example Perry is described as “maimed and his injuries, received in a motorcycle wreck were severer than Dick’s” (31). Capote does not make it clear at the beginning that these men are the murderers and does not portray them in a negative light, leaving the readers to make their own opinions on the case.
Capote does a wonderful job of staying impartial. In terms of the actual murders, Capote likes to keep things blunt, but when describing characters, Capote takes a different approach. Like most people, Capote makes an effort to eulogize the victims, something very normal. The way the author brings the murderers to life is more out of the ordinary. Capote describes the duo of Perry and Dick as people, highlighting their obvious flaws as well as their strengths. When describing Perry, Capote uses a made up note from Perry's father as means of humanizing Perry. In the note Perry describes his time in an orphanage. "The Black Widows were always at me. Hitting me. Because of wetting the bed. Which is one reason I have an aversion to Nuns." Here, Perry is described as a victim, which is usually not an attribute murderers receive often. Capote states the gruesome facts, but makes sure to counteract them with sympathetic stories.
Capote is for the most part factual and objective in his recounting of events, but he is subjective in the events he chooses to recount. The stories that he chooses to include in his book paint a certain picture that must be intentional. Perhaps the most obvious of these is his portrayal of Perry. He provides much more insight into not just the mind of Perry, but his family and history as well. These selected pieces of information compel sympathy for Perry. Another example that stood out to me was when Mr. Nye visited Dick’s parents and his dad said that “he seemed the same as normal,” but fell asleep for a long time and, unusually, slept through a basketball game(170). I think that Capote includes this information to show that maybe Dick isn’t 100% cold blooded.
As my mom would say, Capote “tells it like it is” when explaining the events, remaining factual. However, how he explains the characters surprised me. With a murder story like this, it is expected that the victims will be sympathized with and the murderers will be scorned. Capote does shed only a good light on the victims, but he also gives a lot of depth to the murderers, making them extremely complex characters. It is strange that Capote can cause readers to feel bad for the murderers when they’ve done such a terrible act. Capote gives background information like that “alcohol had blurred the face,” of Perry’s mom, and that Perry had been put in an orphanage and later a “children’s shelter operated by the Salvation army,” where he was hated for “wetting the bed” (131-132). Readers sympathize less with Dick, and mostly feel bad for Dick’s family, who are written as caring people. Although they’re criminals, Capote’s attitude towards Dick and Perry is very complicated because he works hard to portray them as human.
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ReplyDeleteCapote tries to write the story as a bystander, with no personal opinion influencing his writing. Indeed he goes into great depth portraying the victims in section one. After the murder, he goes into much greater depth portraying the killers, their struggles, and their personal lives. This causes the reader to feel that Capote has sympathy for the murderers, like Dewey, who “found it possible to look at the man beside him without anger - with, rather, a measure of sympathy - for Perry Smith's life had been no bed of roses but pitiful, an ugly and lonely progress toward one mirage and then another” (246). However, these two men just murdered almost an entire family, four people whom they had no connection to whatsoever, in cold blood. Therefore Capote seems to be asking for sympathy for people who are very undeserving of sympathy, as they had none of their own.
ReplyDeleteCapote’s attitude while telling the story depended on who he was talking about. The Clutters were never disparaged and were in fact painted in a very positive light. However, Capote tries to garner sympathy for the murderers, Dick and Perry, as well. Capote mentions multiple times that Perry tried “to make the victim more comfortable” (p. 103) when he was murdering the Clutters. Capote spends a lot of time talking about the families of Dick and Perry, and their childhoods, especially Perry’s childhood, spent with Nuns who would frequently insult and hurt him. This attitude frustrated me, because at the end of the day, they’re murderers. It doesn’t matter what their lives were like, nothing gives anyone the right to murder someone else. The details about their pasts and about their families frustrated me, because they seemed very superfluous and extended the reading.
ReplyDeleteAs Leora said, Capote remains factual in his writing. This event actually happened, after all. He generally maintains an impartial, non-biased stance towards the events in the story. However, he does portray the Clutters in a positive light. Everyone likes the Clutters, and they are good people. Mrs. Ashida says in the beginning of the book, “seems like I'm always thanking you, Herb. But thanks” (35). Capote talks a lot about the Clutters and how the people of Holcomb admired them. Capote also does something that is not ordinary in writing; he makes the reader feel sympathy and connection to the killers but painting them in a good light. He tells you Perry’s tough backstory, and focuses a good part of the story on Perry and Dick. So overall, Capote is both factual and partial to the characters and events in the story.
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ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteI think that as most other people said, Capote tried to tell it like it is. However, I don't think that his attitude was at all affected by the story he was telling. I think that he told the story in the light that his interviews painted it in. That being said, the attitudes towards the characters in the story are greatly affected by the interviews that he took, and the feelings of those people, and therefore not at all unbiased or removed. The clutters for example are always portrayed in a rosy light, with nothing wrong with them at all. Nancy, "before saying her prayers, [] always recorded in her diary a few occurrences" (56). Every one in the Clutter family is written about as if they were perfect idealistic people, which is impossible. Posthumously however, people only say nice things about them, so that's what Capote writes about.
ReplyDelete
DeleteI completely disagree. While Capote attempts to remain accurate and unbiased, he is an author and hence had an agenda. His attitude, perhaps shaped by opposition to the death penalty, is sympathetic to the murderers: “they shared a doom against which virtue was no defense” (185). Furthermore, throughout the first three sections of the novel clear themes exhibiting bias emerge. For example, Capote criticizes the fragility of the American Dream: while Mr. Clutter has seemingly achieved the Dream, he is murdered--making his hard work and accomplishments worthless. Capote also depicts the issue of class warfare and unequal distribution of wealth. For example, he points out that Dick never had any money and therefore could not attend college and that Perry’s “ life had been no bed of roses but pitiful” (246). Capote clearly implies that Dick’s and Perry’s socio-economic backgrounds determine their choices. So yes, Capote attempts to remain unbiased, only using interviews to write his novel; but after all, In Cold Blood is literature and literature has agendas.
ReplyDeleteTruman Capote's attitude mostly remains neutral throughout the novel, however, he seems to feel sympathy towards Perry. When describing the murders and investigations, Capote does not write with much sense of mourning or sadness. Of course he hadn't know the Clutters personally, but he didn't know Perry either, yet he still felt for him. Perhaps the reason he goes into such detail about Perry’s suffering, and even sympathizes with Perry is because the two were similar. Capote was gay, and considering Perry’s persona and his obsession with Willie Jay, Perry was probably gay as well. Perry revealed that he never even would have gone with Dick if “things had work[ed] out with Willie-Jay,” his “real and only friend”(45). Capote sent letters to Perry discussing his homosexuality, and the investigators working the case revealed that the two became very close through the investigation process. Perhaps Capote understood Perry’s suffering and emotional problems which stemmed from the fact that he was gay, and therefore wrote the book feeling sympathy towards him.
Capote remains very objective throughout the book. Although he paints the Clutters in a very positive light, it is arguable that this is till objective, since, as it seems, Capote only makes the Clutters appear this way from the information of the townspeople. Taking all the information of what the townspeople have said, it is a fact that the Clutters were well liked people. Mr. Clutter is described by Mrs. Ashida as "a gentleman. She had never known him to act squire, or to take advantage or break a promise."(36). However, the only time that Capote can be seen as somewhat showing preference is when telling the story of Dick and Perry. Capote tried to make the reader feel more sympathetic for Dick and Perry when telling their background stories and the hardships they have faced. Capote also does this by making them relatable and telling the reader of Perry's dream to get away and hunt for treasure. However, by being bias here, Capote is able to add a deeper level to the story. This is crucial because it makes the overall story more engaging.
ReplyDeleteCapote remains unbiased throughout the book. One would think that his narration would be more emotionally charged than it was. Especially since it seems like Capote was fond of the Clutters. Capote describes the Clutters as being "a nice family, real nice" (160). Based on Capote's positive opinion of the Clutters, one would think that he would have a bias towards the murderers. However, instead of painting the murderers in a cruel light, he portrays them the same way he portrays all the other characters.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteTruman Capote maintains a very unbiased attitude throughout the novel. He tells of the pleasant, popular image of the Clutter family, but also mentions the personal struggles they had, like Bonnie's illness. Capote also makes sure to write without emotion when they are killed by Dick and Perry. He is also surprisingly unprejudiced towards the killers, including the account of Perry's life story his father wrote for him. This passage makes the reader sympathize and pity the murderer Perry. Although Capote seems to like Perry enough to add this in, he does not seem to favor Dick in the same way. For example, he mentions that Dick runs over a dog and exclaimed, "Boy! We sure splattered him!" (113). These subtle character traits show us different views of the people in the novel, without Capote's obvious opinion about them. Nevertheless, Capote does a great job of concealing his own feelings, while still having the character emotion, which is crucial for the story to advance.
ReplyDeleteFor the most part, Capote writes In Cold Blood using an unbiased opinion. Capote gets to choose which testimonies and facts get written in the book. He does have the choice to incorporate positive or negative facts about the Clutters and the murderers. Capote describes the Clutters in a positive way by writing that everyone liked them. On the other hand, Capote decides to include the story of Perry’s life, allowing for the reader to feel more sympathy towards him. The possible objective of telling Perry’s story was to portray him as a real human being with a life beyond jail. The reader is informed of Perry’s tough childhood, yet despite his struggles his father writes, “Perry never started the trouble” (127). Perry also says, “I think there must be something wrong with us. To do what we did” (108). Capote doesn’t straight-out write his feelings or opinion on the case. He just gets to choose which aspects of the story make it into the novel which shows his attitude on different events and people.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDeleteTruman Capote attempts to tell the story in an unbiased and factual manner staying true to the events that occurred. However, when describing the characters he constantly portrays the Clutters in an almost angelic light. They are always described as being influential in their town with seemingly perfect children. Nancy is said to have’’ practically run that big house... (been) a straight A student, the president of her class’’ (18) along with a myriad of other achievements. Capote also tries to draw sympathy from the reader for the murderers. He provides an extensive background for both Dick and Perry. He writes about the difficult pasts that Perry come from in an attempt for the reader to sympathize with a criminal that committed a heinous crime.
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion, Truman Capote includes the long and detailed character descriptions (especially of the murderers [oops spoilers], Perry and Dick) to show the ordinariness of the committers of this horrific crime. When thinking about murderers, most people do not think of teachers of "harmonica and guitar. Drawing. And Penmanship (135). I do not think necessarily that Truman Capote want his reader feel bad and empathize with the killers, but actually wants to show how normal people can commit terrible things. Unless Capote was crazy, I do not see a good motive for portraying the killers as nice people. And I do not think he portrays them as nice people, just regular people (besides the killing part).
ReplyDeleteCapote is attached to the case as whole, as he dedicated four years of his life in Kansas researching it. He feels a connection to both the events and people involved in the crime case as a result of the countless hours he spent investigating. However, there is a much deeper, more personal connection that Capote feels, and this is towards Perry Smith. His great fascination in Perry’s story can be attributed to parallels between their childhoods. Both Perry and Capote struggled to overcome the hardships that they faced in their younger years: divorced parents, living with neither parent, and many years of loneliness. Both children were quite smart and artistically talented. But, only Capote overcame his challenges and became successful later on. Perry, on the other hand, can only feel a sense of anger as he exclaims, “oh, the man I could have been!” (185). It appears that Capote feels sympathy for Perry, as he himself was the lucky one between the two.
ReplyDeleteCapote remained more or less unbiased throughout the book using the interviews he collected to set the tone of the story. Capote describes the Clutter family in such a positive light and he would be understood if he portrayed the murderers in a negative light. However, Capote does not present the duo in this way. Instead he chooses to introduce the two by describing their appearances, specifically explaining certain injuries and accidents they were involved in at young ages. For example Perry is described as “maimed and his injuries, received in a motorcycle wreck were severer than Dick’s” (31). Capote does not make it clear at the beginning that these men are the murderers and does not portray them in a negative light, leaving the readers to make their own opinions on the case.
ReplyDeleteCapote does a wonderful job of staying impartial. In terms of the actual murders, Capote likes to keep things blunt, but when describing characters, Capote takes a different approach. Like most people, Capote makes an effort to eulogize the victims, something very normal. The way the author brings the murderers to life is more out of the ordinary. Capote describes the duo of Perry and Dick as people, highlighting their obvious flaws as well as their strengths. When describing Perry, Capote uses a made up note from Perry's father as means of humanizing Perry. In the note Perry describes his time in an orphanage. "The Black Widows were always at me. Hitting me. Because of wetting the bed. Which is one reason I have an aversion to Nuns." Here, Perry is described as a victim, which is usually not an attribute murderers receive often. Capote states the gruesome facts, but makes sure to counteract them with sympathetic stories.
ReplyDeleteCapote is for the most part factual and objective in his recounting of events, but he is subjective in the events he chooses to recount. The stories that he chooses to include in his book paint a certain picture that must be intentional. Perhaps the most obvious of these is his portrayal of Perry. He provides much more insight into not just the mind of Perry, but his family and history as well. These selected pieces of information compel sympathy for Perry. Another example that stood out to me was when Mr. Nye visited Dick’s parents and his dad said that “he seemed the same as normal,” but fell asleep for a long time and, unusually, slept through a basketball game(170). I think that Capote includes this information to show that maybe Dick isn’t 100% cold blooded.
ReplyDelete