...Holcomb, Kansas, is a village containing approximately three hundred citizens. The square town is with described with having rivers, stations, horses, fields of wheat, a bank, and a school. In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, an image of the town of Holcomb is presented throughout types of style such as, diction, imagery, syntax, and tone. In order to communicate a Western way of speaking used in Holcomb, Truman Capote mentions the town as, "out there," and says the pronunciation of the Arkansas River as "Ar-kan-sas." Throughout the town there are a few signs which cause a ghostly presence there. For example, "—Dance—but dancing has ceased and the advertisement has been dark for several years," and "HOLCOMB BANK," which later on said,...
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...In cold Blood Research Paper In the novel In Cold Blood, Truman Capote explores a true story of two criminals Perry Smith and Dick Hickock who are convicted and executed for killing the Clutter family. The book follows the journey of these two criminals who are revealed to us as, not so much criminals but normal people with a different background and upbringing who have made not so good decisions, this draws us in as readers and we do not see them as dangerous criminals on the run, but troubled people with a sensitive past who have gotten caught up in something they could not have imagined themselves. Capote generates this effect from In Cold Blood, by it being a true story and having one on one personal interviews with the men while they were on trial, or as the book revealed; death row. We pick up on Dick’s more strong and masculine personality traits and learn of Perry’s more laid back and not as strong personality as Dick’s. In the midst of the reader’s coming close to them, both Dick and Perry are caught for the crime they committed together and tried for the murder, ultimately they are given the death penalty....
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...been a perplexing thought within the minds of many humans throughout history. From watching Law and Order or tuning into the famous OJ Simpson Trial, we as people are captivated by why some would commit this atrocious act against their fellow man. Just like in Truman Capote’s In Cold Blood and Edgar Allen Poe’s “The Tell Tale Heart,” where both try to peer into the minds of murderers using symbolism and themes of madness; yet, the narrator's perspective and overall tone differ. Throughout both stories the authors explore themes of madness, be it focused on a main character or the narrator themself. In his book, In Cold Blood, Truman Capote explores sanity through Perry Smith, the man who famously murdered the Clutter family in their home in Holcomb, Kansas; all because him and his accomplice wanted access to the Clutter family’s safe. Perry was a happy child until his father started brutally beating his mother, who then took to drinking and promiscuity. Eventually she dragged her kids to San Francisco, where Perry was getting into trouble constantly. He blamed it on having "no rule or discipline, or anyone to show me right from wrong." (Capote 275) This lead to Perry’s...
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...Truman Capote once said, “No one will ever know what In Cold Blood took out of me. It scraped me right down to the marrow of my bones. It nearly killed me. I think, in a way, it did kill me.” What about In Cold Blood was so harrowing for Capote? The answer is not clear from the quote but the answer can definitely be found in his book. The answer can be discerned by examining and analyzing his use of rhetorical elements. Thus, Capote’s projected persona must be examined, his audience must be identified, his relationship with the audience must be analyzed, his central message must be dissected, the arrangement of his arguments must be sorted out, the context must be explained, and the influence of the context must be thoroughly understood. By understanding these elements and their roles in In Cold Blood it will give readers an insight into Capote’s purpose and experience as an author. The First Rhetorical Question The first question that must be answered when examining the rhetorical elements is: “What kind of person does the writer or speaker seem to be?” This simply means to look at Capote’s diction and tone and determine his persona. In Cold Blood is alleged to be entirely factual; however, Capote blatantly infuses biases in the novel to further his overall argument and entertain readers. Capote shows himself in the text as a recorder of events, a reporter of the murders of the Clutter family, detailing the lives of every person involved. However, he gives special attention...
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...Truman Capote has said, “ Writing stopped being fun when i discovered the difference between good and bad, and even more terrifying, the difference between it and true art. And after that the whip came down.” Capote had many experiences in his lifetime that influenced his writing. One of the novels that he wrote “In Cold Blood “ was written based on a true story of a kansas murder. Capote had grown attached to the story. So he decided to write a novel about it. Truman Capote was born on September 30, 1924 in New Orleans, Louisiana (“Truman Capote.” Encyclopedia of World Biography) . He was born to the name Truman Streckfus Persons. As a young kid he did not have very good memories of his mother and his father. Primarily due to the fact that...
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...Truman Capote’s book, titled In Cold Blood, is about an unfortunate event that takes place in a small town called Holcomb. In his book, Capote describes Holcomb as a wore down, lonely little town in the middle of nowhere. There isn't much to do there and he really makes it sound like a depressing place. Capote does a very good job of including many different stylistic elements in his writing, such as imagery and tone to describe to us the dull town of Holcomb. Let's look first at the imagery in Capote's writing. When he describes Holcomb, he uses imagery to paint a clear picture about how the town looks and feels. He makes Holcomb sound like a dirty, forgotten town that nobody would ever want to visit by using sensory words that will tell us...
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...In this excerpt from Truman Capote’s, In Cold Blood, he explores multiple perspectives of the village of Holcomb in great detail. He accomplishes this through the use of imagery to provide his readers with a visual representation of what can be seen in the village. Throughout the excerpt, readers are overwhelmed with a great use of diction that creates a detailed image of Capote’s description. As an author, he does an exceptional job of describing each element he comes across in the village. When writing about the scenery around, he describes the countryside “...with its hard blue skies and desert-clear air” and “The land is flat, and the views are awesomely extensive...” Even though he says there is not much to see, he still achieves an in...
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...In Cold Blood is a non-fiction novel written by Truman Capote. Truman Capote was born in New Orleans in 1934. His birth last name is ‘Persons’, but his stepfather adopted him and took his last name. Growing up, he was largely neglected by his parents and bullied by schoolmates. Truman was a very good student in subjects that interested him but failed in all other academics. Although, many of his teachers had recognized his excellent writing skills. During his teen years, Truman got a job at The New Yorker. He attempted to get his own works published, but they would not publish them and he quit. After many years and some hit novels later, Truman read an article of four mysterious deaths in Kansas in 1959. Truman and his friend, Harper Lee, went...
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...In the novels Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson and In Cold Blood by Truman Capote both authors demonstrate their use of characters and their change throughout the novel. In Kidnapped, the characters David and Ebenezer Balfour and the characters Herb Clutter, Perry, and Alvin Dewey in In Cold Blood are dynamic characters because they all undergo a change within the novels. Furthermore, Capote and Stevenson use suspense to promote the character dynamics within the novels. Capote and Stevenson cohesively use suspense with irony, the theme of chase and the overall structure of their novels to illustrate the character dynamics. Suspenseful irony is used to show the change in character throughout the novels. Suspense adds to the theme of chase because the characters try to converge on something they are after. The structure of the novels plays to the authors’ use of suspense in their own styles. Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel, Kidnapped, depicts the adventures of David Balfour in search of his inheritance in the perilous Scottish Highlands in 1751. David comes close to retrieving his inheritance, but his uncle, Ebenezer Balfour, has other plans for David. He tries to kill David by coercing him to climb a rickety, old stair-tower. David barely manages to make it out alive because his uncle has lied to him about the condition of the stairs thus the devious side of Ebenezer Balfour emerges. Ebenezer’s failed attempt to get rid of David calls for the use of his secondary plan involving...
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...Human history has always been tainted with crime and wrongdoing. Thus being said, the severity of crime has varied and likewise, the punishments for crime have varied. In the case of murder, there has always been the question of the morality of capital punishment and whether or not the criminals who committed the murder have been sound of mind. In his novel In Cold Blood, Truman Capote uses diction, imagery, and tone to convey his central message that criminals such as Dick and Perry belong in a mental hospital, not on the Death Row. Truman Capote utilizes diction to persuade his audience to share the same view that he has on capital punishment. Capote’s target audience, particularly during the trial, is those who work in the judicial system...
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...In Truman Capote’s novel, In Cold Blood, the story of Dick Hickock and Perry Smith’s brutal murder of the Clutter family is shared with the reader. Capote writes to show the reader Perry and Dick in a new light. Using syntax, tone, and diction, Capote wraps the reader into getting to know Dick and Perry. Capote begins introducing the reader to Dick and Perry in a clearer sense starting with their arrival to Garden City. One technique that Capote uses in his syntax to connect with the reader is hyphens; they are used to expose the reader to the situation as well as the mood that Dick and Perry’s arrival holds. Capote makes the reader experience the atmosphere of their arrival as he writes: “It was the return of Hickock and Smith these professional...
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...perfect place to set the stage for murder. In the opening of “In Cold Blood”, Truman Capote paints a picture of Holcomb that is nothing more than a dull, boring, and desolate small town. He develops his view thought specific detail selection which depicts visual imagery, a detached and repetitious tone, accompanied with a specialized sentence structure. In a town that is as dreary as Holcomb, no one would ever expect a quadruple murder. Through his details, Capote attempts to place Holcomb as an extremely desolate and lonesome a area. He refers to Holcomb as a place that “other Kansans call ‘out there’”. He also depicts that the small town is surrounded by rivers, prairies, and wheat fields which gives the reader a feeling of loneliness. Several times he mentions the decaying paint among the “aimless congregation of buildings”, which shows how he views that Holcomb is dull and unchanging. Capote also uses broad terms to describe the inhabitants. He has them all “barbed with a prairie twang [accent]”, and wearing trousers and “boots with pointed toes”. He focuses on the superficial and outward appearance of all of the townsfolk of Holcomb, while describing one specific towns person as “[she] wears a rawhide jacket, denims, and cowboy boots”. That is another way of saying trousers and pointed toe boots. He never really develops any unique insight into any of the inhabitants. This overgeneralization proves Capote’s view that Holcomb is one-dimensional and simplistic, and therefore...
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...Writer, Truman Capote, in his documentary account of murder, In Cold Blood, inserts himself into the crime scene regarding the casualties of the clutter family. Capote’s purpose is to show every detail of the text from perspectives of the killers and the victims. He adapts a sincere tone in order to convey how motives can change and differ; while showing that all decisions are not made based on ideas of what will be the outcome. A quote by Bryan Stevenson “Why do we want to kill all the broken people?” is proven valid by Capote as his writing is constantly changing perspectives revealing the broken past of Perry Smith. Capote uses vivid descriptions of the past of the perpetrators to portray motives and the emotions acquired from every action....
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...Truly successful authors have the ability to convey their view of a place without actually saying it, to portray a landscape in a certain light simply by describing it. In the provided excerpt taken from the opening paragraphs of In Cold Blood, Truman Capote does just this. Through his use of stylistic elements such as selection of detail, imagery, and figurative language, Capote reveals his own solemn and mysterious view of Holcomb, Kansas, while setting the stage for an imminent change. Beginning in the first line of the passage, Capote selects the most boring details of life in the small town in order to portray its solemnity. He draws attention to the physical isolation of Holcomb by referring to it as the place that "other Kansans call 'out there.'" In addition, he speaks of the parameters of the small town, pointing out that it is enclosed on all sides by rivers, prairies, and wheat fields. He describes the town as remote and unaffected, desolate and boring, continually mentioning the old, peeling paint and "irrelevant signs" that dot the landscape. Capote also gives the village a feeling of laziness in his writing, describing it as an "aimless congregation of buildings" and a "haphazard hamlet." He obviously feels that the town lacks liveliness, that it is bland and unchanging, simple and average. Almost looking down on the village and its inhabitants, the author characterizes the people in broad categories and focuses on their outward appearances and superficial similarities...
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...Truly successful authors have the ability to convey their view of a place without actually saying it, to portray a landscape in a certain light simply by describing it. In the opening paragraphs of In Cold Blood, Truman Capote does just this. Through his use of stylistic elements such as selection of detail, imagery, and figurative language, Capote reveals his own solemn and mysterious view of Holcomb, Kansas, while setting the stage for an imminent change. Beginning in the first line of the passage, Capote selects the most boring details of life in the small town in order to portray its character. He draws attention to the physical isolation of Holcomb by referring to it as the place that "other Kansans call 'out there.'" In addition, he speaks of the parameters of the small town, pointing out that it is enclosed on all sides by rivers, prairies, and wheat fields. He describes the town as remote and unaffected, desolate and boring, continually mentioning the old, peeling paint and "irrelevant signs" that dot the landscape. Capote also gives the village a feeling of laziness in his writing, describing it as an "aimless congregation of buildings" and a "haphazard hamlet." He obviously feels that the town lacks liveliness, that it is bland and unchanging, simple and average. Almost looking down on the village and its inhabitants, the author characterizes the people in broad categories and focuses on their outward appearances and superficial similarities instead of delving more...
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