Truman Capote appears to have been an extremely opinionated individual. A particular view of his that strikes me is hid judgment of the Clutter’s murderers, Perry and Dick. By most people’s standards, Perry and Dick were ruthless monsters. However, Capote provides the impression that Perry was not the monster that everyone believed, but Dick was still subject to these presumptions. It appears that the connection that Capote made with Perry, shown within the film “Capote”, regarding their childhoods, allowed Capote to sympathize and identify with him. Whether intentional of unintentional, Capote expresses this view in the first section of his novel titled “The Last to See Them Alive.” Here, Perry is portrayed to have been made victim to Dick’s schemes. This is shown by the narrator:
“Dick’s theory that such a
gift could, under his supervision, be profitably exploited…
he had proceeded to woo Perry, flatter
him- pretend, for example, that he believed all the buried-
treasure stuff...” (55)
The excerpt illuminates the idea that Dick utilized Perry only to make a profit. It presents Capote’s view that Perry was merely a chess piece in Dick’s scheme to earn wealth. By screening Perry’s persecution, Capote permits readers to empathize with Perry, rather than categorize him as an executioner.
This question is extremely difficult to answer, after viewing "capote" prior to reading the entirety of the book, because it is clear in the movie that Capote is very attached to Perry, and therefore his opinion about the murder differs from that of the average person. This attitude rubs off in his books. It is clear from the first description of the killers that Capote intends to "humanize" Perry much more so than Dick. He shows that Perry has fantasies of adventure,
ReplyDelete"The dream of drifting downward through strange waters, of plunging toward a green sea-dusk, sliding past the scaly, savage-eyed protectors of a ship's hulk that loomed ahead"(17)
And fame,
"The same mental scenery- a night club in Las Vegas...It was an elegant room filled with celebrities excitedly focused on the new sensational star"(16).
Along with giving Perry relatable aspirations, he also goes into detail about his friendships, childhood and physical characteristics, while describing dick briefly and harshly.
Despite not meeting any of the other "characters" (namely the victims), Capote manages to add a hint of opinion to the description of the Cutter family. From watching "Capote" it was clear that Capote was a dreamy, let alone flamboyant, man, so it is easy to see how he could create his own story about the Clutters from a few anecdotes he heard from the residents of Holcomb. He portrays Mr. Cutter as a stern but good-hearted man who needs to pay more attention to his family, Mrs. Cutter as a sick woman stuck in the past, Nancy as a stressed over-achiever and Kenyon as a somewhat neglected and disillusioned teenager.