1# *In Cold Blood* - Truman Capote 2 3## Setting 4 5**What does the setting of the text include?** 6 7- Holcomb, Kansas, America, 1959 8- cultural information - America, small isolated community, agricultural economy, 1959 9- explicit mention of dates to set period (Nov 14, 1959) 10- Holcomb, Kansas - small town, "not a place that strangers come upon by chance" 11- introduction to characters - family interactions/relationships 12- integration of events & people to describe culture/period/location 13- "hip-high, sheep-slaughtering snows" - harsh weather 14- description of clothing - "narrow frontier trousers, Stevensons, and high heeled boots" 15- description of accent - "the local accent is barbed with a prairie twang" 16- landscape - dusty, dry flat, vast 17- low population 18- "few Americans [..] had ever heard of Holcomb" 19- dilapidated buildings, uniform through town 20 21**How do the setting and events work together?** 22 23**Foreshadowing** 24 25p 25, 41, 52, 63, 67 26 27- chapter titles - "the last to see them alive" etc 28- not going to church 29- ambiguous implications 30- “Chinese elms had turned into a tunnel of darkening green” (leading up to Clutters' house) 31- “until one morning in mid-November of 1959, few Americans [..] had ever heard of Holcomb” 32- Herbert “headed for home and the day’s work, unaware that it would be his last” 33- “if Dick had not hammered home the every-minute importance of the next twenty-four hours” - Dick and Perry planning 34- “the only sure thing is every one of them has got to go” - Dick 35- “four shotgun blasts that, all told, ended six human lives” 36- “Only now when I think back, I think somebody must have been hiding there. Maybe down among the trees. Somebody just waiting for me to leave” 37- dual narrative in chronological order approaching murder 38- - create a sense that the narrative will "collide" 39- - different settings, same time 40 41 42## Characters 43 44### Herbert Clutter 45 46- owns River Valley Farm 47- four children - two daughters (Eveanna + Beverly) + Nancy + Kenyon 48- successful - owns large property 49- "I'm not as poor as I look" 50- devout Methodist 51- approves of Bobby but wary of their relationship 52 53### Bonnie Clutter 54 55- wife of Herbert Clutter 56- mentally unstable (anxiety/BPD) 57 58### Kenyon Clutter 59- 15 60- builds stuff 61 62### Nancy Clutter 63- boyfriend Bobby Rupp 64- best friend Susan Kidwell 65 66### Clutter family 67 68- complement each other - "just beautiful honey, a beautiful southern Belle" 69- cares for each other - "poor Bonnie's afflictions", "just one serious cause of disquiet" 70- controls his kids with a genuine interest - "suggests she see less of Bobby", "his laws were laws" 71- strict routine/organisation 72- a family that was stereotypically perfect until Bonnie was sick - judgement of others 73 74### Bobby Rupp 75- Nancy's boyfriend 76 77### Alvin Dewey 78- Investigator for Kansas Bureau of Investigation 79- wife Marie (stenographer), two sons 80 81### Dick Hickock 82 83- murders Clutters with Perry Smith 84- "Dick, the practical Dick" 85- appears confident 86- married twice, had three sons 87- calls Perry "honey" 88- impulsive - if he had enough money, he "would spend it on vodka and women" 89- egotistical - e.g. tattoos (contrasting themes) etc 90- moderately high IQ 91- diction - indicates uneducation 92- charistmatic (e.g. cheques) 93- "honey" 94- family believes he is more innocent 95- diverts blame to others, justifies behaviour 96- desire for "American Dream" 97- assumes power over Perry 98- views himself as a victim of society 99- food 100- cautious of Perry due to tendency to suddenly take control 101 102 103 104*Perry and Dick appear less genuinely criminal at the beginning of the novel* 105 106### Perry Smith 107 108- murders Clutters with Dick Hickock 109- injured in motorcycle accident 110- breakfast - "three aspirin, cold root beer and a chain of Paul Mall cigarettes" 111- self-centred/egotistical - “Every time you see a mirror you go into a trance” 112- more open/prominent in text than Dick 113- messy/materialistic - “Christ, Perry. You carry that junk everywhere?” 114- "know the ins and outs of hunting gold" 115- has trouble meeting deadlines - "if Dick had not hammered home the every-minute importance of the next twenty-four hours" 116- criminal past 117- "never drank coffeemy name sluger lolol" 118- personal account of boyhood while in Mexico 119- parents were rodeo riders 120- two siblings and one inlaw committed suicide 121- tattoos - more delicate / meaningful than Dick's (juxtaposition). contrasting themes 122- legs 123- snake in dreams 124- yellow parrot 125- tiger 126- guitar 127- family issues 128- childish 129- hymns/music 130- correcting grammar 131- premonition 132- idolises Willie-Jay 133- relationship with Dick as a substitute for Willie-Jay 134- motivated to murder so that he can be associated with Dick 135- idealistic 136 137### Willie-Jay 138- assistant to prison chaplain 139- respects and mentors Perry 140 141### Minor characters 142 143- Myrtle Clare - postmistress 144- Mrs Hideo Ashida - family moved due to crime 145- Floyd Wells - worked on Clutter farm, imprisoned with Dick, snitched Dick & Perry 146- Andrews - prison inmate, temporary friend of Perry 147- Paul Helm - looks after Clutters' farm, close friend of Herb 148 149### Suspects 150- Bobby Rupp - lie detector test 151- John Jnr/Snr 152- Mr. Smith 153- robbery? 154- Mabel - cafe worker 155- Jonathan Daniel Adrian - breaks into Clutters' house, reported by Paul Helm 156 157**Manhunt** - Floyd Wells alerts authorities and Alvin Dewey starts manhunt. Dick and Perry steal car then return to Kansas to produce more cheques. They then move to Miami, then Las Vegas. Policewoman in Vegas recognises car. Dick confesses first, then Perry. Both undergo trial and are condemned to death. Five year appeal process - Perry starves himself, Dick writes letters to organisations. Dick accepts death sentence politely, Perry regretful/apologetic. 158 159## Themes 160 161- appearance vs. reality 162- family & relationships 163- juxtaposition/irony 164 165## Text structure 166 167Transition between scenes: 168 169- linking event/scenario e.g. car engine, full moon etc 170- continuous timeframe 171- songs/hymns 172- location is gradually introduced into transitions 173- aids with flow of storyline 174- foreshadowing of collision of character narratives 175 176## Writing style 177 178- detail 179- imagery 180- mixed perspective 181 182## Creative response analysis 183 184- knowledge of other parts of text 185- minor characters 186- descriptive imagery 187- linking motif in scene transitions 188- long sentences 189- include obscure plot details 190- implicit explanation of people & emotions 191- contrasting voice of dialogue & narrations 192- use obvious/explicit motifs sparingly 193- past tense consistently 194- don't replicate events from original 195 196### Statement of intention 197 198- explore purpose & style 199- explain themes & symobls