Capote Analysis

1. The subject of In Cold Blood is centered on Dick Hickock and Perry Smith. These men are responsible for murdering the Clutter family. Capote, the author, spent numerous chapters describing their lives after the murder took place. Some of those chapters talked about Dick and Perry receiving the death penalty. Even though there was no stated message, it seems to be that the death penalty is wrong and unnecessary is an underlying message. Capote added in the opinions of many people and even referenced the Bible. However, the purpose seems to be slightly different from giving his opinion on the death penalty. His purpose appears to be to explain the death penalty and the reaction from the common people through political figures. This murder resulting in the death penalty is the optimal storyline to explain the reason for the death penalty. This book being non-fiction adds a layer of credibility to Capote because that means he has to have done his research on the story. 2. Capote serves as the narrator for In Cold Blood. With his narrations, he gives us a view of the emotions of both Dick and Perry. When it was time for the execution Perry was “sober” (340), while Dick seemed to pass it off as if it was nothing important. Knowing that the book is non-fiction makes the author credible, but also the effort to keep other family members and people closely related to the story out gives him credibility. Another thing is that he pays a lot of attention to detail. The many chapters spent discussing the death penalty and the process after the trail proves that Capote knows what he is talking about. The story tends to skip some, which adds more credibility because it shows the author only wrote about the things he had solid evidence about. For example, Perry and Dick are hitchhiking to Omaha, and then it skips to them being in Las Vegas (174).

3. Capote’s audience would probably range from people interested in mystery novels to people wanting to understand capital