Critique Essay on In Cold Blood
In every murder case, no matter how perfect the crime may seem, clues are always left behind. Whether it is a lost bullet shell casing or a partial fingerprint, these criminals unknowingly provide for their own demise and capture. Although it seems as there is a never ending amount of murder cases to be solved, it is the cases that seem the most difficult, the ones where the killers have no motive, are found the most interesting and fulfilling when the criminals are brought to justice. This book is one such story based on a murder in 1959. The novel In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, the murder of the Clutter family is viewed from the perspectives of all characters within the novel and this successfully creates a creative impression and layers of suspense to the story.
In this novel, Capote set out to accomplish a creative masterpiece of literature by transforming a murder from a newspaper into a piece of art, criticizing the American Dream in the process. In order to achieve this goal, Capote utilized a constant switch in perspective to create contradicting subsequent images and lasting impressions on the reader. One of the biggest usages of this technique was between the killers and the Clutter familys perspectives, how one page readers learn about the killers prepping for the murder and another finding Nancy helping tutor a neighbor and baking an apple pie. By the nature this story is written, Capote takes the murder of an American Dream family, which is the ideal family where everything is perfect the way it is, and ends it brutally by two criminals, showing how fragile the American Dream truly is.
When collecting the information to the Clutter murder, Capote made sure that no piece of evidence was missing so that he could soundly say that the American Dream was shattered. In order to completely recreate the criminals, Dick and Perry, Capote took the full, psychological evaluation of the two and placed himself in each of their shoes, becoming in unison with their thought processes. This allowed Capote to not only reveal accurate information on the emotions behind the Clutter case, but to also achieve Capotes goal of creating a nonfiction literature.
Murder is a terrifying crime and an even more powerful threat to inner fears than anything else. I feel Capotes in-depth analysis and reconstruction of this murder case struck horror into my heart, knowing how unpredictable murder is and how devastating the effects were afterwards. Personally, this story almost seemed unreal, that a murder with seemingly no motive almost went unsolved, but luckily had a fairy-tale ending in which the criminals were caught. It is crimes like these that the criminals deserve the death sentance, even if the punishment is cruel. Even though I do not live in the same time period as the Clutter murder, I think that I would have to disagree with Capotes thinking that hanging was wrong, since the criminals clearly deserved the punishment, which oddly, they were willing to accept.
Capotes ability to combine journalism and creative work into a novel of was truly magnificent in creating an irresistible novel. By accomplishing the publishing of this novel, Capote also succeeded in inventing the nonfiction literature which, led to widespread knowledge of the Clutter murder. This story acclaims to all criminals who are in hiding from accused murder that even the best are caught, and that justice always prevails.
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