Truman Capote's In Cold Blood is critically acclaimed as a masterful depiction of American crime and is known for introducing the concept of the "non-fiction novel ". At this intersection of real events and stories, many criticisms can be made. For example, many have viewed the book as a polemic against capital punishment. It is easy to argue that this is not the case, because Capote's objective descriptive style and lack of insightful commentary do not illustrate what the Merriam-Webster dictionary defines as "a strong... attack on someone's opinions." 'another'. However, ignoring the negative connotation of the text with regard to capital punishment would only scratch the surface of a book which certainly presents a certain form of argument against capital punishment, which could be described as "controversial » or not. By the end of the book, the reader is not led to feel any sense of joy or success following the hanging of two criminals, but rather some form of the opposite. It may not go as far as evoking grief or sorrow, but after getting to know the Clutter Killers as characters and following their lives - from childhood to death row - the reader develops a sense of closeness to them, allowing Capote to craft a subtle argument against capital punishment that is perhaps far more compelling than any direct criticism. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get an Original Essay One of Capote's main tools in developing this argument is to describe in detail the personalities, actions, and lives of Clutter's murderers, Dick Hickock and Perry. Black-smith. Especially when it comes to Smith, who Capote himself became very close to, the reader develops an attachment to these characters as one would in a novel, even if he is not presented as particularly sympathetic. From the beginning of the story, we are introduced with Perry's dreams of success (for the majority of the book, Capote uses their first names) as an artist and his obsessions with the world's lost treasures that he has left to find. Perry's almost childish personality contrasts with Dick's more practical mindset and lays the foundation for a deeper analysis of the relationship between the two criminals as characters. Simply the length and detail of the account of their time together alone evokes a certain closeness for the reader, just as any character-centered story does. In terms of developing sympathy on the part of the reader, although Dick's affection for his family should be noted, the details of Perry Smith's life are particularly compelling. A “childhood marked by brutality” (296), abuse at the hands of the nuns at the orphanage who “held me under [cold water] until I turned blue” (132) and a police sergeant the army that wanted him to "turn around" (134) a "lack of concern on the part of both parents" (296) and other details make Perry feel that the world is working against him, allowing the reader to identify, or at least to sympathize. This feeling persists after the trial is over, with the murder fully understood in the eyes of the law, but Perry – and indeed the reader – is still faced with confusion as to what led Perry to kill four people who "didn't bother me." have never done any harm. ..like people have done all my life.' "(302) Perry is often depicted wondering if he was trying to prove his worth to Dick or if he was letting out rage at people in his life, including his sister, whom he wished on one occasion"'had been in that house.'" (143) When everyone around him is shown drawing conclusions faster than Perry, the reader wonders if those conclusions should be enough to justify the man's death. This feeling is strongly evidenced in Capote's work. portrait of the trial of the murderers, now moving on to a more specific and direct critique of a legal system that results in capital punishment. The trial is, in many ways, presented as biased and, while again, does not directly condemn anything, Capote writes and includes information in a way that guides the reader to think a certain way. Evidence is presented that some members of the jury, all from near the scene of the murder, had opinions about capital punishment or about the Clutters. The psychological analysts' statements are released to the reader but were not allowed to be heard in court due to the "M'Naghten Rule", which the State of Kansas abides by, which allows "nothing more "only a yes or no answer" to the question of the murderer's mental state, which Capote describes as a "color-blind formula to any gradation between black and white" (294). The reader is informed that such gradations existed based on Dr. Jones' analysis, which is included in the text. In Hickock's case, Jones emphasizes the importance that the presence of "organic brain damage" be investigated more closely, due to his "severe head trauma," and that in all cases, Hickock showed signs of “serious character disorders. » (295). In Smith's case this is even more obvious; Jones states that "'Perry Smith shows clear signs of mental illness'" but again calls for "'further evaluation'" (298). The fact that this further analysis did not take place and was not even mentioned in court strongly suggests to the reader the inability of this trial to determine the life or death of these men. Other opinions from other characters reinforce this view – from a jury member calling the trial "wild, brutal" and the execution "'damn cold-blooded too'" to a reverend claiming that " “capital punishment is no answer: it does not give the sinner enough time to come to God” (306). One particularly credible opinion—that of Dr. Satten, a respected authority on psychiatry—identified the murder as one "for no apparent motive," linked to "personality disorganization" (299), and understood Smith to be "in schizophrenic obscurity." » (302) by killing Mr. Clutter. This again shows the extra attention Capote thought this case should have received, considering it put these two men to death, and led the reader to agree. Finally, Capote moves closer to the subject of the controversy itself and spends the next section of the book giving the impression that capital punishment is very arbitrary, but that it always results in the same brutal end to a human life. He discusses the bureaucratic inconsistency behind the death penalty, as well as its differences from state to state, including Kansas, where "'juries hand out punishment like they're giving candy to children'" ( 322). One point he focuses on is the time spent by prisoners on death row, the variation of which, he says, "depends little on luck and much on the magnitude of the litigation" (330). For example, he compares a Texas robber killed a month after his conviction with two Louisiana rapists who wait 12 years. Capote also brings up the fact that, although all the other death row inmates at the Kansas State Penitentiary were murderers, Hickock had technically "never touched a.