Capote recalls the murders of the Clutter family in In Cold Blood. He conveys his view on how the incident truly occurs through his use of detail. There are details that Capote uses that there is no way that he could have possibly know. He writes about private conversations that occur between the members of the Clutter family that no one would know even happened because the family was not alive long enough after the conversation to tell of it. This happens between Nancy and Kenyon, children of the Clutter family. Capote tells of a conversation that occurred between the two about smoking cigarettes. Nancy keeps smelling cigarette smoke and doesn't know why. Kenyon tells her that its coming off of her breath but Nancy just replies back with "No, funny one. Yours." This is significant because the children in the Clutter family are seen as wholesome and as the "cookie cutter" children. Nancy is especially seen as this because she is the "go to" girl whenever a younger girl needs aid in anything. She doesn't hesitate when people need a lending hand. This detail shows the reader that Kenyon and Nancy are normal teenage kids just like everyone else in the town of Holcomb. The conversation between them that Capote makes up helps to develop Nancy and Kenyon as characters.
Capote also puts in important details about Bonnie, the mother of the Clutter family. She is seen as a stressed woman who has gone through post partom disorder after giving birth to her children. Capote also adds a detail about the bookmark that was in the book that Bonnie was reading the day that she got murdered. The bookmark read "Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is." This is almost ironic because no one could have foreshadowed the murders of the Clutter family except for Dick and Perry, the people who "kjilled" them. This detail also shows that even though Bonnie might have been a little looney, she still had her belief in life.
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2 comments:
Number one, proof-read if you have the time. It's really something everyone should do more assuming they have the time. That's more of a suggestion for the readability of you entries. My next suggestion is make sure what you're saying is accurate. I may be wrong, but I believe Mr. Clutter's assistant was in the room when the kids where have the cigarette conversation. One part I really did find intriguing was how you pointed out the irony in the bookmark; it was something I hadn't really picked up on and i really love finding stuff like that in books.
by the way, my second post is up, so yeah, you can reply if you're still on.
"The conversation between them that Capote makes up helps to develop Nancy and Kenyon as characters." Are you suggesting, then, that for the purposes of this novel Capote is compelled to create these details? What does this suggest about Capote's role in the telling of this story? Does he impose too much of himself on the story? Great post which raises many interesting questions.
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