An Analysis Of Truman Capote's The Dogs Bark: Public People And Private Places

The Dogs Bark: Public People and Private Places was a novel written by Truman Capote and published in 1951. The extract above tells the tale of Joe Vitale, a radio-repair man who used to be a famous swimmer called the Black Wido. He dreamed of swimming again, and told the town of his plans, but when he tried the lifeguards wouldn’t let him, and everyone mocked him. This devastated him, and after the event he gave up, and hasn’t been seen since. The extract explores themes of dreams and the consequences of their failure, and whilst the extract begins hopefully, it quickly descends into a tragic tone.

The writer uses detailed diction and characterisation to construct a shy but hopeful portrait of Joe Vitale. This can be seen when the narrative
This can be seen here, “…there appeared across the front of his store a strange sign: The Black Wido…so our neighbourhood wondered, waited.” This extract is written in past tense, so the narrator is aware of the meaning of the sign, but they choose not to disclose it. This builds suspense and intrigue, along with transporting the reader into the mind frame of the confused neighbourhood, which helps them to invest emotionally in the
This can be seen in the collective first person perspective at the beginning of the extract, “So our neighbourhood wondered,” “whom we’d all known,” “we were warned.” This builds a feeling of inclusivity in the reader, whilst also giving a removed outsiders perspective on the events that were befalling Vitale. Then in line twenty, the perspective shifts to collective third person when talking of people’s reactions to Vitale’s attempted swim. This can be seen with the narrative voice says, “Then one morning the world woke up and laughed at the dream of Joe Vitale… And in their accounts this is the attitude most of the papers took.” This perspective shift establishes the media as an “other,” a foe of Vitale and a force that the reader should not identify with.
The final perspective in the extract is seen in the final paragraph, when the prose begins talking of the tragedy of the situation. The second person is evident when the narrator says, “how sorry you are, how brave you think him, and say, well, whatever you can.” This perspective combined with the present tense draws the attention back to the reader, and ends the extract on a personal and relatable note. The shifting voice of the passage manipulates the reader throughout, and builds intrigue and personal