In Truman Capote's non-fiction novel, In Cold Blood, Perry Smith and Dick Hickcock were convicted of murdering the entire Clutter family. Once proven guilty, Perry and Dick were sentenced to death. Although Perry was the one who murdered the family members, Dick had planned the whole thing. Without Dick's planning, Perry would never have thought of killing this innocent family. Throughout the novel, the audience gets a glimpse into the backgrounds and inner thoughts of the criminals. Dick was fully capable of determining right from wrong, but he proceeded with the murders, maintaining complete control of the situation. On the other hand, Perry (who we learned later in the novel may have been a paranoid schizophrenic all along) had lost all control over the situation. Perry's childhood and mental health lead to the conclusion that he should be spared and treated for his mental instability. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay Authors often lead readers to feel compassion for the criminal, perhaps regarding an abused and abusive childhood, or the challenges and struggles they faced. . Even though people understand the consequences of the crime, they feel sympathy for someone who has suffered so much in their life. They assume that the “evil” was rooted in something that actually affected the criminal. Perry Smith is no exception. Capote included not only Perry's thoughts, but those of his father as well. Perry's father wrote a manuscript titled "A Story of My Boy's Life," trying to appease the Kansas State Parole Board so they could allow his son, Perry, to get conditional release. Mr. Smith writes about his drunkard wife (Perry's mother), who had taken Perry and his siblings from their father at a young age. “My children all cried loudly,” Perry’s father wrote, “and she only cursed them saying they would run away to come see me later.” (P.126). Just as his mother said then, Perry tried to run away from his mother. She then sent poor Perry to a Catholic orphanage. There, Perry was mercilessly beaten by nuns who punished him for small things like wetting the bed. After such an experience, Perry began to resent the nuns, religion, and God. He was kicked out of the Catholic orphanage and sent "to a worse place...A children's shelter run by the Salvation Army" (page 132). The shelter nurse had no love for him either – for wetting the bed and for having a Native American mother. The "bad bastard" filled a bathtub with ice water and held Perry helplessly underwater "until he turned blue." He inevitably fell ill with pneumonia (page 132). Perry's childhood was filled with abandonment, abuse and neglect. His horrible mother was constantly "throwing" him from the orphanage to the shelter (the next one being worse than the last) - trying to get rid of him somewhere so he wouldn't have his "burden". No one should be treated like this. He had grown up in a very dysfunctional world, with almost no sense of self-worth or self-respect. This led to an emotional imbalance in his life, which caused him bigger problems as an adult. This ultimately affected his mental health, leading to his loss of control during the murders. Throughout the novel, we read that Perry is a child trapped in the body of an adult man. Perry dreams of “buried treasure” and adventures around the world. His always active imagination attracts.