Saturday, June 26, 2010
The Rhetoric of Characterization
One of Capote's goals in detailing the events of this murder case is to affect how the reader feels about Hickock and Smith. What do you believe was Capote's intent in making the reader spend so much time with these two individuals; i.e., how does he want you to feel about them? What phrases create these feelings in the reader? Analyze dialogue and diction in forming your answer.
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I think Capote had the reader spend so much time with the criminals because he wanted the readers to feel a mixed emotion of sympathy and resentment. He wanted the reader to understand these men and their motivation and how they felt about everything, which includes more than just the murder, but every aspect of their lives. What I'm guessing is by spending time with the two murderers the reader starts to feel like maybe they aren't such "bad" guys. This is especially true with Perry, who was deemed as mentally unstable. By going through his past thoroughly, Capote tries to show the hardship Perry had to face and causes the reader to sympathize. I mostly saw this for Perry, but not Dick, which makes me think that maybe the author himself had a preferred convict. He didn't mention Dick's low self esteem until the end parts of the book when he finally eloborated on that, but throughout the book, he spends a good time painting Perry as not a "bad" guy at all. For example, he makes me sympathize with Perry when Perry was moved out of the county jail and his small squirrel, Red, seems to miss him and refuses everyone but Perry. Squirrels are looked at as harmless, cute, and cuddely creatures, and one might not think that the person who committed such a horrid crime could possibly befriend a little squirrel. Capote also goes into extreme detail about Perry's past, and in a way, tries to focus on that and it makes the reader feel like he's had such a bad life and it ends badly as well.
ReplyDeleteHe does mention Hickock's insecurities in the end though, which does make the reader finally sympathize with him a bit. Capote, in a way, wanted to show how these two men deserved their punishment, but at the same time, he wanted us to think about whether or not it was morally right.
Mariela V.
Mariela,
ReplyDeleteVery insightful comment. Keep up the good thinking!
Mrs. Kasper
I think the reason Capote made the reader spend so much time with Hickock and Smith is to humanize them. When Capote described the murders it made the criminals seem completely barbaric. However while spending so much time with them Capote made the reader realize that in a way they are just like you and me with dreams and doubts. For example Smith's dream was to go to Mexico and search for sunken treasure though Hickock made his doubtful opinion clear as they arrived in Mexico “I'm not going to listen. Diamonds. Buried treasure. Wake up, little boy. There ain't no caskets of gold.”
ReplyDeleteI agree with Abby in that Capote wanted us to realize that Dick and Perry were humans. We spend so much time with their point of view and what they are feeling that we almost do sympathize a little bit with them (especially with Perry as we find out what a tough past he had with his family). We read into their past and find out just who they really are. We realize that yes, these people are murderers, but they aren't the cold-hearted low-life scum we think of whenever the thought of a murderer comes to mind. For example, it would be hard to believe that Dick has a family and people that love him, despite the fact that he is a murderer. Although I'm not saying that just because we know so much about them that their crimes were justifiable and that they did not deserve punishment, at least we can sympathize as we see where they are coming from.
ReplyDeleteI believe Capote’s intent in making the reader spend so much time with Hickock and Smith was so that the reader could get to know who they really were. By doing this, Capote makes you commiserate with and rail against the two individuals, especially with Smith. He wants the reader to see behind the murder and find out what Hickock and Smith’s ambitions were during this time. After all, if someone was to break into your house and kill you and your family, there has to be a purpose, right? By knowing background information and humanizing both individuals, the reader gets to see a different side of the men, a side that isn’t so awful after all. With knowing all we do about Smith and his constant struggle, it’s hard not to feel for him. And as for Hickock, we know that he’s just a lonely, compassionless, lost guy who we really don’t feel for as much, but he has a loving family that’s always there for him, no matter what he has done. Obtaining this knowledge lets us see Hickock and Smith as more than just murderers. We begin to see them as real human beings.
ReplyDelete-Braelyn B.
I think Capote's reason for having us get to know Dick and Perry so well is so that we realize that they are humans before they are murderers. Capote was trying to get across the fact that they have a family, that they had hardships to endure in the past (and not all were in jail), that these criminals have a life that is not always running from the law. I know that when I started the book and knew that these were the men that killed a family, the things that came to my mind were: prison, guns, rough attitude, and running. But in reality these things are not all that is in that person's life. Capote was making the readers dig deeper to the real lives of Dick and Perry.I found that the more I got to know about the characters life not on the road, the more I sympythazed. Which was Capote's intent. Something that really stuck out to me was when Dick's dad said that Dick had never fallen asleep watching a basketball game. That was completely personal, and proves he has the time for family, just like any other person would. I don't know what it was about that but it really moved me. Perhaps it was the personality of it, as if I could see my dad saying something of the same sense about me or a sibling. I believe Capote attached Dick and Perry to the readers to enlighten us that even though these 2 men are criminals, the are human before hand.
ReplyDeleteAGAIN!
ReplyDeleteSooooo sorry
post prior to this here is by
Emily Haban
I think that Capote wrote this book wonderfully. When you watch most shows about murders and such, the narrator describes the killer as a sick monster with no morals or anything. But the way Capote crafted this 'true account' makes you see the true person. Especially Perry. Reading about Perry without knowing what he had done would never make me believe that he was capable of murdering the four members of the Clutter family. It's very interesting how Capote describes him as a sensitive and compassionate person. He's in to poetry, music, and is caring. And when he goes into Perry's past, Capote makes you feel sympathetic for Perry. But then at the end of the book, it's like you're reminded of what a cruel, heartless thing that Perry was capable of, and it was shocking. I believe Capote knew what he was going when he wrote this book. He knew exactly how he would draw the reader in to liking Perry and painting him as an innocent character in your mind so it would be that much more of a shocker when you find out that Perry commited all four of the murders. It's silly, but even though I met Perry in a book, I believe I got a little attached to his character and found myself not wanting to believe that he did what he did to the Clutters.
ReplyDeleteCourtney H.
I believe the reason Capote spent so much time with characterizing Dick and Perry, was to show everyone that they are just regular human beings, but also have a very dark side. As you keep reading about each character you question why they even murdered the Clutter family. It's very suprising to learn the amount of involvement Perry had in the crime and the little involvement Dick had. The reason you know this is because as you follow Dick and Perry after they murdered them you realize Perry is a lot sensible and nicer than Dick, which is why it really shocks you learning the crimes details. Capote wants you to feel sympathy towards them, but still know that they murdered four innocent people. With the knowledge of their lives you learn they both have a nicer side and then also a dark, scary, and manipulative side. Though you realize they have a nicer side they still have a need to kill innocent people. "Hey, Perry, pass me a match." whereupon Dick was suposed to seize the steering wheel, while Perry, wielding his handkerchief-wrapped rock, belabored the salesman's head-" which just proves Capote wants you to know their good side, but also still realize they have a very dark side.
ReplyDeleteCapote wanted the reader to get to know the killers in order for them to have a point of veiw that contrasted the "good guys'" in the novel. Without this crucial point of view the reader would have condemned Dick and Perry to death with out a second thought. But by spending time with the human side of them, the reader's feelings toward Hickock and Smith become very conficted towards the end. Capote wants the reader to see Perry (without judgement,) as benevolent and tenderhearted, whose brutality could be explained by his difficult childhood. The kind of man who "was always pestering Dick to pick up the...sorriest-looking [hitchhickers]," (Capote, 207) yet "could slide into a fury 'quicker than ten drunk Indians.'" (Capote, 108) I believe that Perry's double personality and depth of character interested Capote, which was why he described the criminal so thoroughly. On the other hand, the reader feels significantly less sympathetic towards Dick, who comes across as vulgar and haughty. A man with an impulsive need for violence which "was satisfied...after running down a dog...something he did whenever the opportunity arose." (Capote 113) By getting to know these characters and their ambitions, feelings, even their favorite foods, the reader is shocked of the crime for which they were responsible and saddened by their executions.
ReplyDeleteJaclyn M.
Capote wrote this book in a way regarding Hickock and Smith that gave the reader and equal ground to create their own opinions. He didnt hold anything back, rather slowly unveiled different aspects of their personality. This left me, personally, undecided. I learned a lot of details that impressed me about them, Perry plays guitar, Dick is a gifted mechanic. Both have so much talent, Dick has a 130 IQ, and Perry is very intelligent too. Also I feel sympathy towards Perry's rough life in general and Dick missing out on going to college, then there is also Dick's facade of manliness, masking his insecurities. I feel like all of this detail "takes my guard down" so to say. For example, " Perry could be 'such a kid' always wetting his bed and crying in his sleep." (Capote 108) Reading this disconcerts me, I know that Perry is a criminal and a murderer, One who under my normal circumstance's would bring my greatest enmity towards him, I feel only pity, Almost as if he was a victim too.
ReplyDelete-Colton Larsen
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ReplyDeleteI believe Capote’s intent was for us to know that they were humans just like you and me. At the beginning of the book, Capote talks about how they both want to start a life in Mexico and make money. This made me feel as though they weren’t completely bad people. Instead, they just took the wrong path which eventually lead to their death.
ReplyDeleteAs we get more into the book, we find out more about their past life and know who they really are.
I felt sympathy for Perry more than Dick. Perry had a hard life since the beginning. With his parents divorcing, his siblings dying, and with no one to look up too really. I felt that because of this, he took the wrong path and became somewhat mentally unstable.
Although, with Dick, I felt more of resentment towards his attitude. Towards the end, I felt a bit more sympathy towards him due to his low self esteem and loving family that he has.
At the time of their hanging, Capote definitely made me sympathy towards the two. How the two probably did reflect on their actions. As Dick was the first to go, he tells the people there that he holds no harsh feelings towards them and that it was probably for the best. He shock hands with the investigators with his charming smile (Capote 339). When it was Perry’s turn, he apologized for what he did (Capote 340). This makes me feel that they weren’t truly murderers like the townspeople had thought.
-Diana T.