The Family/ The Killers

The style of writing that Truman Capote used to portray both the Clutter family and the two murderers, Perry and Dick, is one that truly delivers a suspenseful and intriguing story. In the first part of the novel, The Last to See Them Alive, the chapters literally shorten as it goes on, adding suspense and a sense of simultaneity to the two perspectives happening at once. The one perspective is the one of the killers and their long drive across the state of Kansas, this includes everything from their troubles along the way to what they had to eat before arriving at the Clutter family home. The other perspective is of the Clutter family as they go about their everyday business, oblivious to the fact that this particular day is their last.
"The travelers stopped for dinner at a restaurant in Great Bend... They ordered two steaks medium rare, baked potatoes, French fries, fried onions, succotash, side dishes of macaroni and hominy, salad with Thousand Island dressing, cinnamon rolls, apple pie and ice cream, and coffee." (Capote 67) The detail put into this one quote is enormous and it is a very good representation of the detail used throughout the entire book. This detail adds to the story telling, making you connect with both the killers and the Clutter family. One 0f the people Capote connects you to the most, however, has to be Nancy Clutter. She is the town sweetheart and everyone loves her and for good reason. "She found the time... to be available when younger girls came to her wanting help... and still managed to 'practically run that big house' and be a straight-A student, the president of her class, a leader in the 4-H program and the Young Methodists League, a skilled rider, and excellent musician, and annual winner at the county fair - how a girl not yet seventeen could haul such a wagonload... was an enigma the community pondered." (Capote 29) Capote really makes you believe that she is just the perfect girl and to kill her off would be a terribly unforgivable sin.
"Dick doused the headlights, slowed down, and stopped until his eyes were adjusted to the moon-illuminated night. Presently, the car crept foward." (Capote 73) An interesting thing that Capote does that intrigues me to want to continue reading is his leaving out the actual murder scene. We never really find out what happens to the family even though we want some kind of resolution to it but at the same time we dont want to know because of our grown love for the Clutter family. It is a clever choice by Mr. Capote and one that keeps us on our toes as this mystery begins to unravel.