In part III of the novel readers get "Answers" and
some of these are not easy to read. This
is especially the case on pages 232-246 when the reader is given access to
Perry Smith's side of the story.
Consider this section of the novel and respond to one of the following prompts. What is most striking about Perry's
confession and the way in which Capote writes it? What is Perry's tone as he retells the story
of the night the Clutters were murdered and how is this tone conveyed? How does Perry seem to transform as he tells
this story and how is this change both consistent with and a departure from
what we know about Perry? Remember to
use direct quotations from the novel and provide page numbers for support. Close analysis is necessary. Also, avoid
personal pronouns in your response.
In part III of In Cold Blood, Capote used Perry's criminal confession as a way of describing the murder of the Clutter family to readers. Of all of the disturbing details that Capote included, the most striking was the relationship that Dick and Perry formed with the Clutter family before murdering them. Rather than killing the entire family without even giving them a chance to speak, Dick and Perry took time to get to know their victims. In fact, Perry confessed to Dewey that he actually thought Mr. Clutter was a very nice gentleman. Perry made the strongest connection, however, with Nancy Clutter. After tying up her hands and feet, Perry pulled up a chair by her bed and began talking to her, asking, "... if she had a boyfriend. She said yes, she did. She was trying hard to act casual and friendly. I really liked her. She was really nice. A very pretty girl, and not spoiled or anything. She told me quite a lot about herself. About school, and how she was going to a university to study music and art. Horses. Said next to dancing what she liked best was to gallop a horse, so I mentioned my mother had been a champion rodeo rider" (242). Because murderers are generally expected to be ruthless and kill-crazy, Perry's conversation with Nancy was very striking, and even seemed slightly out of place. Why would Capote chose to include this detail in his novel? In this instance, it can be assumed that Capote was attempting to build pathos toward Perry by showing readers that even though he did murder Nancy and her entire family, he was not a complete monster. Capote was trying to show readers that unlike most killers, Perry actually did care about the well being of his victims. Right up to the moment that he murdered them.
ReplyDeleteIt is interesting how Capote chose to write this part of the story through the eyes of Perry. Capote had so many different options to chose from; he had Dick, Dewey, Church, and the other detectives involved in the case. But still he chose Perry. The way Capote chose to write this from Perry's point of view shows how much he favors him. The most striking about part about Perry's confession was when Perry said," So Dick was afraid of me? That's amusing. I'm very amused.What he doesn't know is I almost did shoot him." The thing I find most shocking is not the sudden outburst as we know he known for that, but the way he turned on Dick so quickly. I expected that from Dick but not Perry. He was always the loyal sidekick and did anything Dick said and now suddenly he was about to shoot him. This is obviously another moment of Perry's compulsive lying in order to hide is emotions. Unlike when he lied about killing the colored man to get Dick to like him this lie was to cover up his anger and sadness. Perry and Dick were in it til the end , at least that's what Perry thought.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of In Cold Blood, Capote tells the story from Perry's point of view mainly because he got pretty close to Perry and he wanted everyone else to feel empathy for him just like Capote ended up doing. As he is telling explaining the murders from Perry's point of view, he makes Perry seem like a semi-good guy, like this was not Perry's doing, only Dicks. While Perry is recounting the night of the murders, he explains, "And that really put bubbles in my blood. I told Dick to count me out. If he was determined to go ahead with it, he'd have to do it alone" (235). Perry is almost portrayed as trying to help the Clutters by Capote but in all reality we know that he was just as big a part of the murders as Dick was. Capote again tries to make us feel better about Perry's role when Perry tells us that, "Dick told him to get up, but he didn't move, or move fast enough, so Dick punched him, pulled him out of bed, and I said, 'You don't have to hit him, Dick'" (239). Overall, the way Capote writes Perry's explanation is suppose to make us feel empathy for Perry.
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ReplyDeleteIn part III of In Cold Blood, the tone of Perry's confession is full of guilt. Perry blames Dick for the murders and tells the detectives that he didn't want to kill the Clutters and only did it because Dick made him. Perry tells the detectives how he felt before he murdered the family, "And just then I was outside myself. Watching myself in some nutty movie. It made me sick. I was just disgusted" (240). As Perry is confessing the reader can since his remorse and disgust with himself through quotes like the previous one. Perry's confession in a way makes the reader almost feel sorry for Perry and feel anger toward Dick for dragging Perry into the murder.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of In Cold Blood, the confessions of Dick and Perry are given. Between the two confessions, there is something striking about the way Perry reveals the murders. Throughout the first two parts of the book, Capote makes it seem as if Dick is the one who is in charge and is the one taking initiative and doing everything and Perry is just going with him. However, when the reader gets to part III and reads Perry's confession they learn that Perry was the one taking all of the initiative in the murders. As part of his confession Perry says, "Sometime along in there, I fixed the telephone" (237). This is something that the reader would have figured that Dick had done and to find out it was Perry is a bit shocking and right when he seems like a real bad guy he says, "Yes, I took a chair out of the hall and stuck it in the bathroom. So Mrs. Clutter could sit down. Seeing she was said to be an invalid" (239). This then plays on pathos, making the reader think that maybe Perry is not that bad. During Perry's confession the reader gets very confused on just how bad a guy Perry is because on one side he is taking initiative in the wrong doings but he is also making sure that they are comfortable even though he is trying to rob them. Perry's role in the murders is very conflicting and this is shown in Capote's writing of Perry's confession.
ReplyDeleteIn Part III of In Cold Blood, Perry explains what happened the night he and Dick murdered the Clutter family. One of the more confusing things about this part is when Perry talked about how Dick was going to rape Nancy. Perry comes to Nancy's defense saying to Dick that "you'll have to kill me first" (243). Perry defending Nancy confuses the readers, because the reader already knows that Perry murdered Nancy. It does not make sense that he would defend her considering that he was planning on robbing her family and leaving no witnesses. This shows that Perry is not all bad, he does not behave the way one would expect someone who had murder four people to. Perry not being the way one would expect surprises the reader and builds pathos which will make Perry's inevitable execution more dramatic.
ReplyDeleteStacee Durell
ReplyDeletePerry's tone while he recollects the events leading up to, during, and after the murders is one of detachment and bloodlessness. This is the tone given off to the reader by the way Perry so easily and calmly retells the events. During his confession Perry is detached from the reality of what he has done and this detachment gives his voice a chilling: or bloodless tone. For example, on page 244 of Truman Capote's book In Cold Blood, Perry is describing how he cut the throat of Herb Clutter while riding back to Kansas when he says, "I thought of that goddamn dollar. Silver dollar. The shame. Disgust. And they'd told me never to come back to Kansas. But I didn't realize what I'd done till I heard the sound". In this quote we hear just how detached and bloodless Perry was while retelling the story because he is not even concerned with the fact that he is slicing open Herb Clutters throat, one of the most gruesome things one can do, he is concerned with the shame of picking up a silver dollar off the floor. This proves that Perry's tone is detached from reality and bloodless because instead of describing the killing he chooses to focus on the story of the silver dollar.
Perry's confession in part III of in cold blood is a climactic scene, and Capote highlights the importance by switching to present tense rather than continuing to use past tense as he did through the majority of the novel. This is perhaps the most striking choice he makes at this point in the novel stylistically, but the content of Perry's confession itself is arresting as well. Through the bulk of the story, Capote consistently characterizes Perry as somehow more morally sound than his partner, and this is yet again reestablished when Dick tells Perry his plans to rape Nancy before they murder him and Perry warns, "Uh-huh. But you'll have to kill me first" (243). This specific instance is one of many he mentions during the confession which further characterize him as a moral foil to Dick's pointless cruelty and a bridling force to his violence. However, towards the end of his confession, Perry's tone darkens when he says of Dick, "He'd said it over and over, he'd drummed it into me: No witnesses. And I thought, He's a witness. I don't know what stopped me. God knows I should've done it. Shot him dead" (245). This shows that despite Capote's efforts to establish a sense of pathos towards Perry, he is still a murderer. The hateful tone Perry uses when describing his thoughts of killing his partner are a stark change from his descriptions of earlier thoughts and actions. The hush that follows in the novel as the men drive "for ten miles and more" could be seen as symbolic of the pause the reader might take at this point, considering the feelings of empathy they had towards a man who, in the end, participated in the murder of four innocent people (245).
ReplyDeleteIn part III of In Cold Blood, the reader finally gets the answers they have been waiting for. The confessions of both Dick and Perry are both present. At first, Dick blames everything on Perry, when in all reality they both are at fault. As Perry shares his confession, the reader gets a sense of the tone, and how he felt throughout this process. For example, on page 234 Perry says, "..and I wanted the money as much as he did. I wanted to get it and go to Mexico. But I hoped we could do it without violence". The tone readers get from this is that Perry is terrified to commit any murders, and at the same time he is determined to do whatever is needed to get the money. Perry in the beginning is characterized as the innocent one, when later on in the novel readers get a chance to see who the real Perry is. He described the murders in substantial detail. Being terrified and determined come into play when Perry will do anything to get the money. To readers Perry is not seen as the innocent one, and that readers should not feel bad for him anymore.
ReplyDeletePerry's confession in part III is one of the most interesting parts of the book to read. Perry before hand has acted more childlike than his partner, Dick. But after Perry starts telling his side of the story, he seems to say a lot things that resound more to the coldblooded murderer he is. He did sound sympathetic when he described his conversation with Nancy and his trying to protect her, somewhat. However, as Perry goes on, his tone changes into a real casual one, which is disturbing, seeing how he describes how he murdered Mr. Clutter with ease. Perry's transformation from a sympathetic, mentally ill, criminal, to a murderer devoid of any guilt is especially apparent when he says, "I thought he was a very nice gentleman. Soft-spoken. I thought so right up to the moment I cut his throat" (244). Perry was thought to be the more naive of the two, which he does continue to act like for the rest of the book. But with his confession, he shows the part of him that actually seems like a real cold blooded killer. Since he is mentally ill, this goes with what the reader knows about him, being a bit unstable and childish, and yet shocks them somewhat at the same time, with him actually acting like an adult, albeit a cold, killer adult.
ReplyDeleteAs has been stated, Perry seems to have a gentle way of going about the robbery. He talks to Nancy and he is genuinely interested in her life and affairs. This measures up with what we've seen of Perry throughout the novel. He is the more compassionate and caring one of the two murderers. Yet, things seem to switch for a bit when Perry tells of murdering Mr. Clutter when he says, "I handed the knife to Dick. I said, 'Finish him. You'll feel better.' Dick tried-or pretended to. But the man had the strength of ten men-he was half out of his ropes, his hands were free. Dick panicked. Dick wanted to get the hell out of there. But I wouldn't let him go. The man would have died anyway, I know that, but I couldn't leave him like he was. I told Dick to hold the flashlight, focus it. Then I aimed the gun. The room just exploded" (244). Usually Dick is the one who gives the orders and tells Perry what to do but we see that Perry is more cold-hearted than he sometimes lets on. While Dick is scared, Perry isn't averse to doing what is necessary. This makes the reader dislike Perry more than before this happens. Even though Perry is built up as being less of a killer than Dick throughout the book, this event shows that Perry is really no different than Dick and shouldn't be viewed as such.
ReplyDeleteIn Part III of In Cold Blood, Perry begins confesses his crimes to Dewey. The most shocking part of the whole confession is how Perry was so against violence against the Clutters. He continually argued with Dick about how he did not want to kill them and instead buy some black stockings to hide their identities so they would not be caught when they stole the money. He was also nice to the Clutters before he killed them. For example, in the words of Perry, "We went to the boy's room. He was awake. Lying there like he was too scared to movie. Dick told him to get up, but he didn't move, or move fast enough, so Dick punched him, pulled him out of bed, and I said, "You don't have to hit him, Dick." And I told the boy-He was only wearing a T-Shirt-to put pants on" (239). Perry tells Dick not to punch the Clutter boy and also tell him to put pants on. It makes the reader think that Perry did not did not want to carry out with the murders. He treated them kindly and was concerned for them. Capote writes Perry's confession in a way that makes you hate Dick but feel bad for Perry. The reader might feel bad for Perry because it seemed as though he did not want to commit the crimes but in the end, he murdered them anyway.
ReplyDeleteDuring part III of In Cold Blood, the reader hears Perry’s confession. The reader also sees a transformation take place in Perry as he is describing the events. Before Dick and Perry even go into the Clutter’s home, they watch from a car outside. They see the neighbor’s lights go on and off a few times and it starts to make Perry nervous. He describes, “And that really put bubbles in my blood. I told Dick to count me out. If he was determined to go ahead with it, he’d have to do it alone” (235). Dick starts to leave after that but then turns around and comes back. This is what the readers have seen throughout the entire book in regards to their partnership. Perry is the submissive partner while Dick is the dominant one, controlling everything they do. Dick is forcing Perry to help him commit the crimes when all Perry wants to do is leave. Later in the confession, a role reversal takes place. Perry describes it as, “Dick panicked. Dick wanted to get the hell out of there. But I couldn’t let him go” (244). Suddenly, Dick is the nervous one wanting to leave and Perry is the dominant one wanting to stay. He says he “couldn’t let him go” showing that he is forcing Dick to stay just like how Dick had forced the car around to bring Perry there. This proves that Perry is not as innocent as he has led on throughout the book. He is a cold blooded killer that took the life of at least two members of the Clutter family. Some readers might have seen surprised by this change, however, readers have been introduced to the killer side of Perry before. It was introduced when Perry described how he almost killed his dad and imagined killing the black man.
ReplyDeleteIn part three of In Cold Blood, we see Perry giving us everything that happened during the murder. His tone starts out angry to get back at Dick for ratting him out about killing a nigger, which turned out to be a lie. However, as Perry continues to go through the story he seems to get this matter of fact tone as if he is just telling a story instead of a murder. He continues in this tone and even enplanes how he knew why there had been no eyewitness to which Dewey responds, "Not eyewitness. Witness. Someone whose testimony associates you and Hickock with the case," (236). He understands what this means and then continues with the story. This shows how Perry is just telling another story. Everyone gets confused with there stories and asks someone else who knows to chime in. This shows Perry's calm tone when he continues to tell this terrible story.
ReplyDeleteCapote's use of Perry's point of view provides a new perspective for the audience. Many items are striking about Perry's confession but one stands out in the middle of it all. Murderers are thought of to be heartless and uncaring people but during the middle of his interrogation Perry asks about the hired man. Perry asks Mr. Dewey, "Then the light went off. Mr. Dewey--the witness you mentioned. Is that who you meant--the hired man?" (235). It struck as odd that, even though Perry was being interviewed, he still asked about a man that had very little part in his story. Capote includes this to prove to the audience that although Perry did, in fact, murder the Clutter family, he wasn't completely heartless. It shows that there is still some humanity within him.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of In Cold Blood, Capote tells of Perry's confession after him and Dick are caught. At the beginning of the confession, Perry is angry with Dick because Dick told the detectives how he "murdered a black man" when he really did not. Perry says, "So Dick was afraid of me? That's amusing. I'm very amused. What he don't know is, I almost did shoot him"(233). Perry has been portrayed throughout the book as weaker than Dick but in this quote, Perry seemed to have power over Dick and his life. As Perry's confession goes on, however, he says that he only felt sorry for the Clutter family and did not want to kill them which is conflicting how he was acting prior to telling the confession. As the reader gets deeper into the events of what happened the night the Clutter family was murdered, Perry is showing signs of sympathy and he tells the detectives how Dick manipulated him into killing the Clutters and leads him to almost killing Dick as well. The readers get the idea that Perry can be terrifying but also sympathetic in the beginning of the book and his confession shows that his personality is consistent with the telling of the murders.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of Capote's novel, Perry finds himself arrested and confessing to the K.B.I. agents. Perry's tone throughout the confession is very calm as Stacee and Ryan had said. The flow almost sounds as if he is reading from a book but instead he is the one doing the actions in the story. When Perry talks about shooting of Nancy and Bonnie Clutter, he goes straight through the events with no hesitation. After he talks about the two killings, he is more fixated on how "That last shell was a bitch to locate" instead of the dead bodies (245). Perry seems to not care much about the horrible act he commits which is why he delivers the story so clearly.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of In Cold Blood, the most striking thing in Perry's confession is the movement. Everything starts off as kind of slow. It's interesting, but it doesn't seem to be leading anywhere. It seems as if Perry is going to make sure nothing happens to the family. He describes the event in such a way where it makes the reader feel comfortable, but in the back of their minds they know what is about to happen. So, Perry is very kind to the family and does his best to make them comfortable. He even tells them that they will not be harmed and that he won't let Dick hurt them. He even puts Mrs. Clutter to bed with the promise of a new morning. Everything seems fine, until Perry and Dick have a conversation about where to go from there. The family is all tied up and they know that there is no more money. Perry tells Dick that they should just let them go, then the audience is blindsided by the next part. Perry decides to practically dare Dick to stop him from slitting Mr. Clutter's neck. Dick, of course, to Perry's surprise, does not stop him. This is where the momentum picks up. "I didn't realize what I'd done till I heard the sound. Like somebody drowning. Screaming underwater." (244). Things go from zero to one-hundred in that statement. All of a sudden we get this quick image of Perry shooting Mr. Clutter and Keyton, and Dick hurriedly picking up the shells. Then they rush upstairs and kill Nancy and Mrs. Clutter. It picks up speed very quickly, which is something that strikes the audience.
ReplyDeleteIn part three of In Cold Blood, Capote tells the story of Perry's confession to the murder of Clutter family, and the way it is told from Perry's eyes is very unusual. Perhaps the most interesting thing about it is how Perry makes sure he remembers every little detail, even stopping himself once saying he wasn't telling it the way it was. On page 245, Perry recalls,"That last shell was a bitch to locate." Perry vividly remembers how everything went during the murder, all the way down to the last shell used on the Clutters. Perry also tells us his thoughts about potentially killing his counterpart through it all, Dick. We had previously learned that they're relationship had been faltering and that Perry had been thinking about committing suicide, but the murder of Dick had never been hinted. Capote also focuses on the emotions and movements of both Perry and Dewey. For example, Dewey's sorrow is noted after Perry finishes confessing. The magnitude of the entire murder plot really jumps out at the reader during this chapter.
ReplyDeleteCapote uses Perry's confession in the third part of In Cold Blood to clear up exactly what happened the night the Clutter family was killed. Although Dick already confessed and told the police the story, Capote does not tell the reader exactly what he said because it is not reliable. Perry, who is favoured by Capote, gets the limelight because he tells the story in detail, answering all questions about the four deaths. At first Perry refuses to speak to the police in the car but then, when Alvin Dewey says Dick told the police about the "nigger" Perry had killed in Las Vegas. Perry gets angry and "he twists around in his seat until he can see, through the rear window, the motorcade's second car, see inside: 'That tough boy!'" (232). As a result Perry tells of the night of the murders almost in defence of himself. Knowing Dick had blamed him, it seemed like Perry wanted to explain it exactly how it happened just so the story was straight, not to benefit himself in any way. This was shown because he took great care in remembering how many lights they turned on in the house and how he felt during the robbery/murder. Towards the end, Perry says he "didn't want to harm the man [Mr. Clutter]" (244). Perry's tone went from angry for being accused of killing someone in Las Vegas to almost sad because he had murdered Mr. Clutter even when he did not want to.
ReplyDeleteIn part three of the novel, the audience gets more questions answered about the night that the murders took place. Capote uses Perry's confession to do this. In Perry's confession, the readers see a major transformation in Perry's personality and attitude. Like stated previously, throughout the story we see Dick as being the dominant force and Perry always following in his shadows. Perry would always feel bad about what they did and Dick would always push it aside. This is still the case when Perry is first getting questioned. Perry still feels guilty and shows that he is the inferior one in the partnership when he claims, "The mood I was in, I let myself be carried along. But also-I'll be honest- I had faith in Dick; he struck me as being very practical, the masculine type, and I wanted the money as much as he did. I wanted to get it and go to Mexico. But I hoped we could do it without violence" (234). Perry's sentences are very choppy in these few lines like he can't think straight. Perry also shows his guilt and soft side when he states, "I had to get down on my knees. And just then it was like I was outside myself. Watching myself in a nutty movie. It made me sick" (240). This is the typical Perry we are used to, afraid and guilty. However, later in the confession, Perry is describing the murder of Mr. Clutter when he states, "Then I aimed the gun. The room just exploded" (244). All along, the audience thought Dick was the violent one but after Perry's confession, it shows that he is equally as violent. As the confession goes along, Perry shows less and less guilt then he previously shown before and starts telling the murder like a story. This is the complete opposite of what Perry's personality was throughout the rest of the book.
ReplyDeleteIn Part III of In Cold Blood, Capote finally answers the questions readers have been asking. We get to hear what happened on the night of the murder from Perry's side. The most shocking thing, like Jack stated above, is the amount of detail Perry can provide. Throughout the entire story, Perry gets down to the tiny details. He states his emotions before, after, and even during the story. Perry also goes through the sequence of events telling what objects he used, and even the things that he put in his car to take. This is very interesting, and almost odd that he remembered every single detail. Earlier in Part III, Perry states, "Ask Dick. He'll know. I never remember junk like that" (225). This quote is talking about the name of the hotel Dick and Perry took the prostitutes to. After being questioned on what motel it was, Perry says he doesn't remember that kind of stuff. It's very ironic considering that he knew the exact conversations with the Clutter family, and even remembered everything Nancy was wearing. After that, the reader definitely gets a better understanding as to who Perry is. He isn't always the nice, emotional guy Capote often describes. In the end he is much more than that, a killer.
ReplyDeleteWhile retelling the account of the murder, Perry becomes extremely anxious. Previously we read how Perry becomes upset about simple grammatical errors, and that reflects in his physical being. while recounting the murder. Often through his dialogue, Perry must stop and correct himself to make sure he got the story right. He did not do this for the benefit of the police officers, but for himself. He wants to tell his side perfectly, without mistake. Along with making sure his story is correct, Perry often rubs his legs, and is physically affected. For instance, on page 244, Perry is telling the part where Dick and him tie up the family, but he comes physically uncomfortable, and must fix what he is saying. "'Wait. I'm not telling it the way it was.' Perry scowls. He rubs his legs; the handcuffs rattle," (244). The reader can get a sense of his anxiety about not telling the story the right way by stopping and rubbing his legs. He then proceeds with the correct account. In this scene the reader gets a real sense of Perry's anxiety about the proper structure of his story, and how it reflects in his body movements.
ReplyDeleteIn Part III of the novel, Perry gives his confession of what happened the night of the murders. During Perry's confession, he uses a very matter-of-fact tone. Perry begins retelling the story only giving details and information relevant to the crime. "One. One-thirty." and "Around midnight" are some of the specific time references Perry exercises during his account of the murders, and the happenings before (234 & 235). Perry's tone is conveyed by the specific times and facts that he uses amid his retelling of the crime. Capote writes his confession in this way to allow the reader to picture what happened during the murder, when it happened, and how it happened, through Perry's eyes.
ReplyDeleteAt the beginning of Perry's story about the murders, he sounds like the Perry we've known throughout the book: sensitive, sympathetic, and solicitous. As he is describing the murder of Mr. Clutter, he says, "Well, I didn't feel I ought to ask him to stretch out on the cold floor, so I dragged the mattress box over, flattened it, and told him to lie down."(241). In this quote, Perry isn't necessarily showing remorse for what they're doing, but he definitely shows the compassion we're used to. The way Capote writes Perry leads the reader to believe he would show some type of remorse for this brutal crime. He doesn't. This is very inconsistent from how we've seen Perry throughout the book. He tells the story very businesslike, like he's telling a story about something that happened at work. He says about the last murder, "That last shell was a bitch to locate. Dick wiggled under the bed to get it. Then we closed Mrs. Clutter's door and went downstairs to the office."(245). His story is so unemotional and methodical, the reader forgets they're reading from the point of view of the emotional and sensitive Perry. The detached Perry we meet as he is telling this story is completely different from the Perry we've previously known.
ReplyDeleteIn Part III of Truman Capote's In Cold Blood, the reader gets to hear what really happened in the Clutter household. Perry's confession provides a vivid description of the events that led to the deaths of the Clutter's. Although Perry has been portrayed as sensitive and the lesser of the two evils, he is more brutal than he seems. The audience gets a taste of this from the nonchalant tone of his confession. Perry clearly conveys the accounts from his memory focuses on facts and details without any sense of emotion. Perry detailed the most meaningless features such as recalling that "one window was curtained with Venetian blinds, but moonlight was coming through" (236). Although his confession was truthful, Perry's confession was nonchalant and did not show many signs of remorse.
ReplyDeletePerry's confession (in part III of "In Cold Blood") is the most striking section in this part of the novel as we see Perry, who is usually the weaker of the two, show a stronger personality. In a cool casual way, shown by the way Perry smokes as he speaks, smoking with his eyes closed as he recollects his thoughts (233), he describes how he shot and killed the men. Based on Capote's earlier writing on Perry, the thought of Perry, the one Dick called "honey" so many times(243), went and killed a full grown man(244). This is striking, as the reader realizes that perhaps Perry is the partner of the two that begins to pull off these murders, and not the Dick, the seemingly stronger of the two. This is shocking to the reader, more so than all of the other details.
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ReplyDeletePart III of In Cold Blood finally provides some answers about the night the Clutters were murdered in the form of Perry's confession. This confession reveals even more levels of Perry's character, though viewed from different perspectives. One view of Perry's confession might perceive him merciful towards the Clutters and only guilty by association. Perry recounts his conversation with Dick just before the murders: "'I told Dick to count me out. If he was determined to go ahead with it, he'd have to do it alone'" (235). Perry also mentions several times how during the murder he wanted to just leave the family alone. On the other hand however, perhaps Perry portrays himself this way to gain the clemency of the investigators and ultimately, Truman Capote. Portraying himself this way reveals the true manipulative side of Perry Smith.
ReplyDeleteIn part three of the novel, Truman Capote uses Perry's confession of the murders to illustrate exactly what happened that fateful night. Perry and Dick, not being able to find their imagined safe, decided to scour the house to look for valuables. Perry was sickened with himself when he realized he was crawling around to steal a child's money. This gives the reader a glimpse of Perry's guilt for his actions. However, Perry immediately erases this guilt when he concluded, "But that's what you do. You get what you can. I frisked the boy's room, too. Not a dime" (240). This statement is a complete departure from what Perry had previously shown. Throughout the novel, Perry has shown that he felt guilt for what he did. He instantly reverses this with a seemingly nonchalant answer about what was necessary that night.
ReplyDeleteIn part three of the novel Capote begins with the interrogation of Dick and later Perry. After these interrogations Dick blames Perry for all the murders. While being transferred Perry practically "spilled the beans" after he became aware of Dick's false story. His tone is very unique while telling the story. At the start, Perry shows disgust in Dick because of his false accusations. Perry reacts with a gasp and starts rambling on about how Dick was a "tough guy" and how he wouldn't even harm a flea, but would run over a dog just for the heck of it. It's the first real reaction you get from Perry, but as he tells the true tale of the crime he calms down. Before he begins the story Perry relaxes, "Smith smokes with closed eyes, and explains, 'I'm thinking'(233)." Perry calms and clears his mind. Throughout his tale he portrays every little thing, every detail in a clear and systematic way, and answers every question. Even when you get to him talking about the times when they pulled the trigger, "Dewey's ears ring with it- a ringing that almost deafens him to the whispery rush of Smith's soft voice(244)." Perry seems very calm with his "whispery rush" and "soft voice."
ReplyDeleteIn Part III of the novel, Capote reveals the answers to the questions the audience has been pondering the whole novel. The reader also gets to see the kind of person Dick and Perry are through Perry's tone during the confession. Perry's tone overly calm about the whole situation with occasional points in which he shows guilt and fear. He also has moments in which the reader sees remorse in him, like in the quote, "I wasn't kidding him. I didn't want to harm the man. I thought he was a very nice gentleman. Soft-spoken. I thought so right up to the moment I cut his throat," (244). Perry did not wish to harm the Clutter family at all; he only wanted the money. However, the reader does learn that Perry, even though he did not wish to harm the Clutter family, he will do whatever is needed to get the money. The feeling that Perry is "moral" is reinforced when he continually stops Dick from raping Nancy. This "morality" is later contradicted when Perry is the one to "initiate" the murders as a way to call Dick's bluff; Perry thought Dick would chicken out when it came to actually committing the murders. The reader sees paranoia in Perry's tone in the quote, "He'd said over and over, he'd drummed it into me: No witnesses. And I thought, He's a witness. I don't know what stopped me. God knows I should've done it. Shot him dead. Got in the car and kept on going till I lost myself in Mexico," (245). Perry is afraid of what will come of him because of Dick and even considers killing him and run and hide in Mexico. Overall, Perry's tone is extremely calm for this situation, a situation where he should be quite sad and remorseful. His tone helps reveal Perry's psyche; the reader gets to see how Perry thinks and feels about the whole situation.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, readers get the answers to the questions they have had the entire book. Capote writes in Perry's point of view as he confesses about the murders. Even though, there is plenty of pathos within this confession there is one instance that is more striking than plenty of the others. As Perry describes arriving at the house he tells about a near by house whose lights kept coming on. This makes Dick and Perry nervous and Perry states that Dick, "started the car, we were leaving, and I thought, Bless Jesus. I've always trusted my intuitions; they've saved my life more than once" (235). At this point of the book the reader is able to realize how different the outcome of the tragedies could have been. If Dick and Perry would have actually gone through with leaving the story would never have been written and the murders would have never taken place. There is also irony in Perry's confession. Perry thinks that his intuition is saving his life but in reality when he goes through with the crimes his consequence is death. Capote writes this part of the book in a way that makes you pity Perry and hate that this tragedy was almost avoided.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of In Cold Blood, answers, the reader finally gets an account of the crimes committed in the Clutter home from Perry’s point of view. The point that was the most striking was when Perry started talking about the way Dick was acting toward Nancy while she was tied up in her bed. Perry told Dewey and Duntz “I suspected Dick was plotting something, something I wouldn’t stand for” (242). In this quote, Perry is talking about how he thought that Dick was going to sexually harass Nancy. This quote is striking because at the end Perry says it’s “something he wouldn’t stand for”, trying to make himself look like a better person than Dick. Perry continues stating “I stopped that”, meaning that if Perry wasn’t there Dick would have raped Nancy. Perry puts a lot of emphasis on how he treated Nancy and how he “saved” her. He is trying to make himself appear more of a good person than he is, when in reality he had as much to do with the murders of the clutter family as Dick did.
ReplyDeleteIn part three III of the novel the reader finally gets some answers about the Clutter's murders. The novel took some time to describe this event through the eyes of Perry and gave his confession . During this part we start to get a firm idea of who Perry really is. What is most striking is how Capote describes Perry as more of the "good guy" in this situation even though he was part of the murders. Perry seems to be upset about his actions and acted as of he wanted to back out. Here Perry shows some of his remorse, "I didn't' want to harm the man"(244) and "And I thought, why don't I just walk off" (240). the first quote is explaining how he never wanted hurt any one he Clutters. In the next quote capote also describes Perry as wanting to just leave the whole situation so he could not be a part of it. In the end Perry goes back into the house and goes along with the murders, remorse or not.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of In Cold Blood, the reader gets many answers about the murders. Perry tells the KBI agents his side of what happened the night the Clutter's were murdered. The most striking thing in Perry's recollection is that he actually killed the first person. Perry states, "I told Dick to hold the flashlight, focus it. Then I aimed the gun. The room just exploded"(244). This is striking to the reader because throughout the novel, Perry is characterized as the more gentle of the two killers. He is portrayed as someone who would not hurt a fly. Dick is characterized as the brutal killer, not Perry. It is surprising, as the reader, to find out that Perry fired the first shot to kill Herb Clutter.
ReplyDeletePerry's confession of the Clutter family murder is shocking because he manages to keep a cool front and stand tall while being convicted of murder. In his confession, he notifies Dewey of his almost shooting Dick. Perry claims, "What he don't know is, I almost did shoot him," (233). Perry tells Dewey he threatened to shoot Dick because Dick wanted to rape Nancy Clutter before she was murdered. Perry felt he was being disgusting and took a stand.This part of Perry's confession is most shocking because he tends to look up to Dick. Dick is the more dominant of the two while Perry follows his commands and stands in his shadow. Capote includes this information to show the reader Perry has a more complex personality and he is still a ruthless murderer. Perry tends to take on an inferior role in the novel because he is considered weak, however his confession tells otherwise. Perry is capable of murder without remorse.
ReplyDeleteIn Part III of, In Cold Blood, Perry transforms from his whimmy child state to a destructive monster. At the beginning of Perry's story, Perry tells the investigators how he did not want to go through with the event or to harm the Clutters. For example, Capote expresses, "'I could see he was thinking, Here I've set up this big score, here we've come all this way, and now this punk wants to chicken out'" (235). Perry is thinking this when they pull into the Clutters long abandoned driveway. He is hit with realization that they are REALLY going to go through with the robbing and he has to prove Dick wrong. As Perry tells his side of the story, he portrays himself as being the "charitable" one. He explains that he let Mr. Clutter lay on the mattress box instead of the cold floor, puts a pillow behind Kenyon's head, and carries on a nice conversation with Nancy upstairs in her room. But his sympathetic self all of a sudden changes when they both go downstairs to check up on Mr. Clutter. Perry suddenly slits Mr. Clutter's throat and wants Dick to finish the "job". Perry unexpectedly does this to see if Dick is really just a phony or an actual "tough boy". He wants to show Dick that he is actually tough and superior over him because he was able to carry out the first killing. For instance, Perry at points thinks its humorous, for instance he says, "'Oh. Uh-huh. Uh-huh. Him. And Dick always said he'd be too scared. Ha!'" (236). Perry says this to show how Dick may have thought he was too scared to kill the Clutters, but he proves him wrong, which makes him laugh. This part of Perry is a departure from what we already know about him because in previous chapters we have learned that Perry is the weaker of the two until now Perry is proving his superiority over Dick.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of In Cold Blood the reader gets some answers as to what really went down the night the Clutter family was killed. As Perry tells Officer Dewey about that night while in the police car, hand-cuffed and smoking, he transforms. At the beginning of his retelling, he talks about how they heard about this “score,” then, when he gets to the part when they are at the Clutter house and demanding Mr. Clutter tell them where he keeps his safe, Perry thinks to himself after Mr. Clutter tells them he does not have any safe, “I knew right then it was true. He had that kind of face. You just knew whatever he told you was pretty much the truth,” (237). At this point of his recount of events, Perry seems like he is very aware of everything that is going on, even doesn’t agree with the things they are doing and what Dick wants to do, like rape Nancy, and stops him before he can do it. But as his story goes on, we see him transform, doing things without thought, not realizing what he has done till it was already too late, like when he slit Mr. Clutter’s throat (244). At this point, Perry starts seeming more detached to what he and Dick had done rather than at the beginning when he was trying to help the Clutter family as much as he could. The beginning of his recount of events does leave Dewey and the reader feeling some sympathy for Perry because of his appearance to have cared for the family and did not want anyone to get hurt.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of Truman Capotes In Cold Blood, Perry confesses to the audience about the night the Clutters were murdered. Perrys tone starts out as it always is- childlike. On page 235, Perry mentions that when he saw the hired mans lights go off and on, it gave him, "bubbles in [his] blood" and told Dick to count him out (235). However, this childlike Perry the audience has known goes away immediately as he begins to talk about killing the Clutters. Perry transitions into a tone that is more dangerous and hateful when he describes Mr.Clutter as, "a very nice gentleman. Soft-spoken. I thought so right up to the moment I cut his throat" (244). As he continues to describe killing this innocent family, he begins to become more disgruntled, scowling and rubbing his legs. In Answers, Perrys tone of his confession changes from his childish ways to something darker and more sinister.
ReplyDeletePerry’s confession in Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood is striking to the reader because it provides insight into the complicated mind of Perry as he recollects what he felt and thought throughout the bloody murder of the Clutters. Finishing off his testimony, Perry confesses, “No witnesses. And I thought, He’s a witness. I don’t know what stopped me. God knows I should’ve done it. Shot him dead. Got in the car and kept on going till I lost myself in Mexico,” (245). In this quote, Perry comes to realize that Dick is also a witness and should be murdered if he wishes to get away without any repercussions. The blunt, abrasive way Capote chooses to write this scene sticks with the reader in a lasting and memorable fashion because it reminds the reader that Perry is not just the underprivileged child he once was, but is instead a murderer and a thief.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of In Cold Blood, Perry's tone as he retells the story of the night the Clutters were murdered was significantly expressed. Dewey says that Dick was afraid of Perry because he was scared that he would shoot him. Perry was very surprised by this. He does admit that he almost shot him when he says, "So Dick was afraid of me? That's amusing. I'm very amused. What he don't know is, I almost did shoot him" (233). This gives off the tone of arrogance to the reader, which is kind of ironic. He is caught for murdering the Clutter family but yet he still has an arrogant sort of attitude. Another tone is set when Perry "frowns, rubs his knees with his manacled hands" (239). The reader picks up a nervous vibe from Perry. The reader can tell that Perry is not happy with his decisions and is disappointed with himself.
ReplyDeleteAnswers are given during part III of the novel. Readers find out through Perry’s eyes what happened the night of the Clutter family murders. While Perry speaks of that night the tone is forthright, gloomy, and solemn. Perry is very direct and forward throughout his explanation of the murders. He does not appear to be leaving much detail out or withholding information. The readers feel the solemnity of Perry’s story due to its serious manner. During Perry’s recount of the story to the police he explains, “Then I pulled up the covers, tucked her in…She told me quite a lot about herself. About school, and how she was going to go to a university to study music and art” (242). Capote writes this part of Perry’s confession not only to be accurate but to give an eerie and gloomy feel. It is odd to see a humanistic side of a killer but this side of Perry only adds to the tone of the novel. He sits with Nancy after tucking her in like a child and talks about her future only hours before he kills her. By adding this testimony Capote creates pathos for the readers. Not only do readers feel sympathetic for the Clutters but also for Perry. He makes it seem like Dick forced him to commit this crime. It leaves readers wondering, would the Clutter’s have lived if Perry never reconnected with Dick?
ReplyDeletePerry's confession in part three was one of the most well written and intriguing parts of In Cold Blood. Perry who the readers know as the more sympathetic, tender character of the two seems to recall almost every detail of what happened leading up to the murder from the time they left "One. One-thirty. Just after lunch..."(236) even the little wind that was rustling the leaves as they entered the Clutter's house. Although the fact that Perry remembers the murder in such close detail which would suggest that he is sympathetic towards the murders, the tone he speaks in is placid. His tone seems to change when he starts to talk about what the Clutters where saying as the robbery was taking place for instance he recalls Mrs. Clutter saying " ' Please don't hurt anybody. Please don't hurt my children.' "(239) The speed of Perry's tone seems to quicken like he is upset or nervous. Capote conveys Perry as being tense and uncomfortable. He writes about how Perry grabs his knees from time to time later asking for an aspirin.
ReplyDeleteIn Part III of In Cold Blood, Capote gives readers the answers about what really happened the night of the Clutter murders from the point of view of Perry Smith. The details that are most striking about Perry's confession have to do with the conversations and treatment that he himself had with the victims. For example, when he leads the family members to their different areas and ties them up, he makes sure they are plenty comfortable, as an act of kindness towards them. In describing how he places Mr. Clutter, Perry says, "I saw a big cardboard box leaning against the wall. A mattress box. Well, I didn't feel I ought to ask him to stretch out on the cold floor, so I dragged the mattress box over, flattened it, and told him to lie down," (241). When he goes to tie up Nancy Clutter, he also makes sure she is comfortable by pulling up the covers of her bed and tucking her in. However, with Nancy, Perry seems to build almost an acquaintance with her; he asks about her boyfriend, schooling, and interests. He even states, "I really liked her. She was really nice. A very pretty girl, and not spoiled or anything," (242). He also keeps Dick from raping her, showing care and respect here as well. Throughout the novel, readers have seen Perry as very sensitive, but in this confession, Capote writes it in a way that shows this characterization of him the most. He makes readers feel as though Perry truly did not want for the murders to happen, although he committed two of them personally. Capote's details almost make readers pity Perry and sympathize with him, similar to Al Dewey's thoughts when Capote says, "Nonetheless, he 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). Although Perry was just as much at fault as Dick in the Clutter murders, the gentle ways he went about committing them were the most striking and really add to the sensitivity of his characterization in the novel.
ReplyDeleteThroughout parts one and two in the book, the reader is lead on to believe that both Dick and Perry were involved in the murders of the Clutters. In part three, the reader then comes to find out that only Perry was the one who did the killing. When being interviewed by Dewey, Perry admits that the "meeting his sister in Fort Scott" story was just a story, not an alibi. Then Dick is threatened by Church to be charged with four counts of murder in the first degree. Dick then tells him that Perry killed the Clutters. He states, "It was Perry. I couldn't stop him. He killed them all"(230). Perry begins a detailed description of the Clutter massacre after Dewey mentions that Dick said Perry was a "natural born killer". Capote allows the reader to understand the murder from Perry's perspective. The reader is left to imagine the horrific details of the Clutter's last hours of being alive.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of Truman Capote's novel, In Cold Blood, he reveals the confessions from Dick and Perry. When Dewey talks to Perry about his prior conversations with Dick, he states that Dick reported that Perry had killed a colored man, Capote writes, "To Dewey's surprise, the prisoner [Perry] gasps," (232). Before Perry's confession officially begins, the audience sees the betrayal that he feels toward Dick. He says he knew that Dick would tell about the "nigger" if they ever got caught. The fact that the audience is shown from the start the way Perry feels about Dick's confession, shows that Capote was trying to display one way their relationship stayed the same. Perry always seemed to trust Dick and follow him, and now when Dick has betrayed him, he's hurt. His sensitivity has been constant throughout the novel. Shortly thereafter, Perry says to Dewey, "So Dick was afraid of me? That's amusing. I'm very amused. What he don't know is, I almost did shoot him," (233). Directly after showing Perry's emotional side, the reader is shown how Perry is still just a murderer, sensitive and emotional or not. In a way, it's as if Capote wanted people to feel sorry for Perry and know that he was a good man, while still reiterating the fact that he murdered an innocent family solely for money. Not only did he already kill a family but he was willing to kill his partner, and close friend, when he supposedly didn't want to go through with any of it.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of In Cold Blood, Capote chooses to share information about Perry's confession that makes the readers sympathize with him. Capote's word choice makes Perry seem more human, instead of a crazed killer. For example, when Capote is describing Perry when he's giving his confession, Capote says, "'Wait. I'm not telling it the way it was.' Perry scowls. He rubs his legs; the handcuffs rattle" (244). Capote repeats Perry's actions of rubbing his legs several times in this part of the text. After every piece of information Perry gives, he seems to rub his legs. This allows the reader to piece together that Perry is nervous and regretful about the events that he is describing. This can also, in some ways, allow the reader to connect with Perry. since everyone has been nervous at once in their life, adding to the sympathy that Capote is trying to invoke in the reader. Capote also does this by describing how Perry thought about just forgetting about the crime they were going to commit and leaving when Capote says, "' I carried the binoculars and the radio out to the car. It was cold, and the wind and the cold felt good. The moon was so bright you could see for miles. And I thought, why don't I(Perry) walk off? Walk to the highway, hitch a ride.'" (240). This shows Perry's conscience was present at the time, which we can't really say about Dick. Capote's word choice in this passage makes the reader see Perry as human, while also making him more relatable . While the reader knows that Perry still had his part in the murder, Capote makes him seem less at fault.
ReplyDeletePart III of Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood is correctly titled Answers. In this section Capote reveals the final details of the Clutter Family murders through a confession from Perry. As Perry is telling the story of the killings he also reveals an unseen side of himself. As he tells his story he seems to get more and more involved. At the start o the crim Perry is more or less the same as he has been. Dick mainly takes the lead as Perry does the tasks like cutting the phone wire. It is not until the murders that Perry starts to gain control. This is where we see the normally soft spoken Perry turn angry and violent and Dick so is seen as The tough guy turn cowardly when he sees the task of killing Mr. Clutter ahead of him. Up till this point Perry is seen as the follower, and Dick as the leader. However, when Dick can't kill Mr Clutter and wants to runaway Perry, ¨Wouldn’t let him go. The man would have died anyway, I know that, but I couldn't leave him like he was. I told Dick to hold the flashlight, focus it. Then I aimed the gun”(224). This passage shows Perry is in charge and in power. He is the one telling Dick what to do, not the other way around. Before, Perry would have been the one readers thought would run away but now he is the one telling Dick to stay.
ReplyDeleteDuring Part III of In Cold Blood Capote provides Perry's detailed, extensive account of the night of the murders. In this particular section the reader learns that Perry has transformed psychologically. When Perry begins his account he sounds very matter-of-fact about the situation, but the drastic transformation occurs when he mentions Mr. Clutter's execution. Perry claims that when he was holding the knife, poised to strike the victim, he awaited Dick's protestation to stop so he could call Dick's bluff on killing Mr. Clutter; however, the admittance never came. Perry attests, "I meant to call his bluff, make him argue me out of it, make him admit he was a phony and a coward" (244). At this moment Perry snapped when he realized Dick could not follow through with his boastful braggadocio. Throughout the book Perry has been portrayed as a soft spoken, kindhearted idealist who does not wish anyone harm, but in this scene a spark of rage and violence occurred within him due to Dick's sudden cowardice: "Just then it made my stomach turn to think I'd every admired him, lapped up all that brag" (244). Perry's revulsion towards Dick grew stronger by the second: "I knelt down beside Mr. Clutter, and the pain of kneeling--I thought of that goddam dollar. Silver dollar. The shame. Disgust" (244). Eventually, Perry completes the deed himself, in spite of Dick's lack of bravery. All in all, the transformation in him is a major exchange of personas between Dick and Perry. Perry has become the murderer that Dick believed him to be, and Dick has become the coward whom Perry never imagined.
ReplyDeleteIn part 3 of In Cold Blood, Truman Capote gives us Perry's account of the night of the murder. Perry gives off clear emotion while telling Dewey his side of the story for Dick decided to tell Dewey that Perry had Killed them all, refering to Perry as a "natural-born killer" (232). After Perry goes against Dick's account, Perry gives us his. Perry's tone while telling the side of the story from his point of view, varies. One minute Perry gives off a very angry tone and the next minute a sympathetic tone; Perry is an emotional rollercoaster. When Perry starts to explain, Capote tells us how Perry reacted to hearing what Dick had said. Capote explains, "...the prisoner gaps. He twists around until he can see..."(232). After this, Perry's tone is very dark and betrayed. Perry gets vety angry. But then, once we get further into his explantion we get a different tone from Perry. We get this genuine feel from him that Perry really is decent inside. On page 243, Perry says, "uh huh. But you'll have to kill me first"(243). Perry says this to Dick when he says, "I'm gunna bust that girl" (243). Perry, with some morals still intact, gives us a very sympathetic, serious, and moralic tone. Perry was not going to let Dick hurt Nancy like that. Perry gives off many tones and switches back and forth between them throughout his entire account to Dewey.
ReplyDeleteIn Part III of Capote's In Cold Blood, Perry Smith shares his side of the events of the night of the murder. In Perry's shocking explanation he begins by stating that Mr. Clutter owned a "safe... never less than ten thousand dollars". (232). As if this motive isn't appalling enough, Perry concludes by disclosing that the two men received, "between forty and fifty dollars." (246). Capote includes this information to almost make the reader feel bad for the murders because they went to great lengths expecting something "worth it".
ReplyDeleteThe most shocking part of Perry's confession in chapter 3 of In Cold Blood by Truman Capote is its honesty. Up until this point, Perry is similar to a sidekick to Dick. He is not seen interacting with many others besides Dick up until this point in the book. This is because Perry is not fully mentally there due to a bad childhood, recent injuries from a motorcycle accident, and the recent murder he has committed which has left him to follow Dick who acts like a almost parental figure to him. Once finding out that Dick had told the investigators everything in his favor, a change is seen in Perry. This betrayal has left him alone with no one to follow, and out of options. He begins to tell the story of what happened in detail. One can feel the honesty in the story because of its details and the self incriminating statements that were made. He admitted to killing the Clutter's because part of him was guilty, and as he said from the beginning of the story, he never actually wanted to kill them. Like most people reading the novel, Dewey admits to feeling sorry for Perry in saying, "he found it possible to look at the man beside him without anger - with, rather, a measure of sympathy" (246). Capote chooses to show the reader this so it can be conveyed that even the investigator whose everyday life and family is shaken by this crime can feel sympathy for the man who truthfully didn't want to or have intentions of hurting anyone. Perry was honest even though he could have lied and put things in his favor, as Dick did. It is shocking to the reader because it shows that maybe in some ways, Perry is more mature than Dick.
ReplyDeleteNancy Clutter died in fear after being set at ease by her two captors. Perry states in his confession ,"She was trying hard to act casual and friendly. I really liked her" (242). They spoke about her dream of attending school and majoring in art. Nancy was frightened but she was never cruel to these men, she never said anything ill to them. Perry even granted her mercy. He states referring to Dick ,""I'm [Dick] gonna bust that little girl.' And I said, 'Uh-huh. But you'll have to kill me first'"(243). Nancy was spared the pain and torment of rape however, she still heard the murder of her father and brother. The most striking part of this story was this incessant pleading for her life, the true fear within her. Capote rights this fear in such a way that one feel her terror. He also shows the contrast with Perry setting her at ease with small talk of boyfriends and school. However the reader sees the monster that Perry is when one makes the realization that Nancy had too, the realization that she would never become the art major like she said to Perry. She was doomed to death that night, the minute the murderers walked in. And she faced one of the greatest horrors that could ever torment a person, at the age of sixteen.
ReplyDeleteIn part III of In Cold Blood, the audience gets to view all aspects of Perry's personality. Perry narrates not only what happened, but also what he was thinking and feeling during the events of the murders. The reader views the good hearted side of Perry that has been present throughout parts I and II of the novel. Mrs. Clutter can even sense the good in Perry and tells him this during their first dialogue "...she felt I was a decent young man. I'm sure you are, she says, and made me promise I wouldn't let Dick hurt anybody" (242). Perry then argues with Dick about raping Nancy. Perry has a strong detestation for that kind of behavior and as soon as this becomes a topic, he creates a more demanding, blunt, story telling fashion. All of the childlike qualities are stripped from Perry's narrating voice. As the reader continues, they view Perry as more of a leader during the events leading up to Mr. Clutter's death. "He was holding the knife. I asked him for it, and he gave it to me, and I said 'alright Dick, here goes'..."(244). Usually Dick leads with Perry as his sidekick. Perry contradicts his weak persona when he is able to kill when Dick is not. Capote's choice to use Perry as the narrator worked well in order to develop the depth of Perry's character.
ReplyDeleteEven when Dick and Perry are sent back to Kansas once they are found, Perry still protects Dick. He will not verify anything, and though the officers have tried to tell him that Dick sold him out, he refuses to believe them. During the car ride to Garden City Dewey mentions to Perry how Dick had told them about his murdering of a black man in his old apartment building. Once Perry realizes that Dick has in fact given in to the law and betrayed him, he begins to tell his testimony to Dewey. Perry tells the story of the murder with large detail, and makes sure to mention that Dick personally murdered two of the Clutters. Perry's confession is so striking because he was so insistent on remaining loyal to Dick, but as soon as he found out that Dick sold him out he was quick to do so as well. Perry's description of the murders is very gloomy and depressing for the reader, but Perry tells the tale as if it were just another day that Dick and Perry had together. He tells his story with little emotion or regret.
ReplyDeleteThe way Perry discusses his murdering the Clutters is interesting because Perry truly doesn't know why he transformed from his normally mild-mannered self into someone who could kill four people. In part III of Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood" Perry recalls how he killed Mr. Clutter, saying that "I didn't want to harm the man. I thought he was a very nice gentleman. Soft-spoken. I thought so right up to the moment I cut his throat" (244). Perry never gives an explanation as to why he killed Mr. Clutter, he expresses guilt as to having done it, but never explains why he didn't back out then and leave the Clutters alive. I think this shows that Perry was a very sick man who was unhinged in a horrible way.
ReplyDeleteIn part III, Answers, Capote uses this chapter to reveal any unanswered questions in detail. Capote starts off by giving readers the point of view of Perry. What was striking about this testimony- aside from the obvious- was how he knew what he was doing but somehow he did feel a tinge of regret. For example when Perry talks about raiding Nancy's room, 'And just then it was like I was outside myself. Watching myself in some nutty movie. It made me sick, I was just disgusted. Dick, and all his talk about a rich man's safe, and here i am crawling on my belly to steal a child's silver dollar. One dollar. And i'm crawling on my belly to get it' (240). Sick being the whole mastermind, decided to continue with the murder even when they both realized there was no safe. Perry still followed Dick and murdered the Clutter family. Everything about this section is striking, the details Capote included is heartbreaking and mind boggling. Capote did show the regretful side of Perry in this sections perhaps to entice readers into seeing the mindset of Dick and Perry. In addition to creating pathos for the Clutter family, Capote also creates pathos for Perry. Capote was able to open to mind and understand two sides of the story instead of just calling them murderers.
ReplyDeleteWhile Perry is relaying what happened the night of the murders in In Cold Blood Part III, the tone he uses is a little out of character. After the murders happened, Perry was a little bit of a nervous wreck. So when he would talk about the events, Dick would usually just brush him off and Perry was unable to get his emotions out about it. When he is in questioning and they ask him to tell the story, it seems like his whole outlook on the situation shifts. The way he tells about what happened, and how he describes the emotions and feelings going on around him is sort of story-like. Meaning, he seems to be telling the story, like he is reading it out of a book. His tone is very mystic and ominous, especially when he is going through Nancy's things and finds a silver dollar, "Dick and all his talk about a rich man's safe, and here I am crawling on my belly to steal a child's silver dollar. One dollar. And I'm crawling on my belly to get it." (240) Perry seems to be looking at his past self as a character in a book. A character he has very mixed feelings about.
ReplyDeleteIn Part III of In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, readers see a true account of the Clutters' murders through Perry. The most shocking thing about it is how it all went down. It strongly contrasts what the typical reader imagined, brutality, cruelty and mercilessness. Rather, readers see a rather laid back, calm attempt at a robbery. Perry at one point has a deep chat with Nancy, who he says, "was really nice" and ,"a very pretty girl" (242). Also, Perry reflects on Bonnie, stating, "she felt I was a decent young man. I'm sure you are, she says, and made me promise I wouldn't let Dick hurt anybody." (242). It is clear from this confession that all Dick and Perry were really after was a sum of 10,000 dollars to be found in Mr. Clutters safe, which did not, in fact, exist. The murders were merely a psychological lapse of the murderers (mainly Dick) at the absence of a safe, both of whom were extremely hesitant at taking the family's lives. Alvin Dewey describes it as accidental as being, "killed by lightning." (245). This is what shocked me most about the true account of the Clutters' murders.
ReplyDeleteStriking details come from Perry's side of the story in part III of In Cold Blood but the most shocking is Perry's willingness to kill his partner in crime. Throughout the novel instances of Perry doubting Dick and vice versa are mentioned but it isn't until part III that both mention how they should've killed the other. Capote includes Perry's unexpected decision to kill dick when he states "...that's when I decided I better shoot Dick. He'd said it over and over, he'd drummed it into me: No witnesses. And I thought, He's a Witness"(245). In this quote Capote surprises the reader by introducing this new idea of a murderer murdering his partner in crime. The way Capote presents this is also striking because of his use of irony. He expresses the irony of it when he includes Dicks catch phrase "no witnesses" and relates Dick as a witness who should be murdered rather than an accomplice. The tone of this quote is also quite unsettling because of how apathetic Perry is and how he outright confesses that he should have killed his friend as if it was no big deal.
ReplyDeleteIn part three of In Cold Blood, readers get a description of Perry's side of the story. He is questioned with his motives and his actions on the night of the murder, he confesses, "And just then I was outside myself. Watching myself in some nutty movie. It made me sick. I was just disgusted" (240). This is showing readers a different side of Perry and how he feels some guilt when killing the Clutter family. Capote is giving readers a second look at the murderers, and that we should not judge them right away. Perry has many sides that Capote shows, like his suicidal thoughts and his thoughts of turning on his partner, Dick. Perry is shown to have his mental state depleting after the murders, and he is feeling some regret when he is interviewed.
ReplyDeleteAs we read In Cold Blood part III , we realized how "tight" Dick and Perry really were. It was quite surprising how fragile Perry was that lead him to confess the way he did. As soon as he heard about the black guy he had "supposedly" killed, he knew that only one person had known about that incident other than himself. Him knowing that Dick would throw him under the bus the way he did, he went with it and confessed what had happened the night of the murders of the Clutter family. As Perry tells Officer Dewey what had happened that night , he expresses himself with a remorseful kind of tone. He begins to feel regret , more apologetic. Through out ICB , Perry was Dick's base his foundation, and in pg 239, he states" I wanted to discuss the situation so we stepped outside... I told Dick, ' These people are telling the truth.The one who lied is your friend Floyd Wells." Perry recognizes that fact that him and Dick did wrong by invading an innocent family and committing that murder. Perry was always the more sensitive one of them both and so this is an act of consistency through out the book and also recognition from Perry's perspective is something that he hasn't been able to obtain so its something that he reveals as well.
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