"In Cold Blood"

[bloom]

I was inspired by the Capote movie to read "In Cold Blood". Written in 1965.

The book is pretty interesting in light of some recent discussions around here. For one thing - it makes quite a contrast between the conventional, forgiving, Christian people - the only difference is their denomination - and the criminals who either never ascribed to religion or abandoned it. What a contrast between the people who lived in a small town and whose family was the most important thing and those who abandoned the idea of family (or whose family abandoned them).

It's interesting because the book was written by a non-conventional, New York City person who was able to write (what seemed to be) fairly objectively about the people. There was the case of the mother whose devotion to her family seemed to be the cause of her depression or "spells" or whatever. But there were very few negative aspects ascribed to the conventional life.

The morality of the murderers was interesting. Like the one murderer who did everything to prevent the other murderer from child molesting. And the person who planned the murders, who set up someone else to do the actual killing who wanted to see himself as not guilty. And how the murderers saw the death penalty as immoral.

The book gets into the hate for humanity that the murderers have. And how some (but not all) religious people forgive them anyway.

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It's not like religious people have a corner on positive feelings. There is probably some book (or there should be) that shows how "religious" people, men mostly, took part in the KKK (some that still do) - hiding themselves because they knew it was wrong - killing people because they hated a certain part of humanity that was different from them. And it's interesting how blacks who were targets of the hate were often religious, themselves.
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People have such expectations - even still - of people who live the conventional, often religious, life and take part in the power structure - that even still if a policeman or the wife of a minister get arrested for anything - but esp. murder - that disrupts a lot of people's viewpoint. And of course there was the BTK murderer with his church-going practices.

I think a lot of people take comfort in the idea of conventionality providing security and predictability. Even people who don't consider themselves to be conventional.

[Sequoia]

1. I've wanted to read that book, but avoided it because of the

murders that Capote changed him forever. I have 4 books to read first, maybe I'll get to this one.

[Warpy]

7. I read that book when I was a kid

and it was a masterpiece. Capote, who came from a horrible background himself and had a bizarre appearance and demeanor to boot, was able to get into these guys' skins and walk around. He made us see their humanity as well as their monstrosity. Like he often said, he felt as though they'd all grown up in the same house, only he left by the front door and they left through the back.

Realizing how close he'd actually come to being exactly the same sort of monster is what unhinged him. Realizing how utterly normal they were in so many ways unhinged him. Realizing how close to the conventional they'd been all their lives with none of the "nice" people particularly caring what horrible things were happening to them unhinged him. His alcohol habit was already established. Quite possibly the strain of developing a close friendship (and it was) with two monsters and watching them executed (he did) was what sent him all the way down the alcohol road to his death.

I'd read "Breakfast at Tiffany's" and it was entertaining fluff. "In Cold Blood" was out of character and it was a great book. I am grateful for his sacrifice in writing it.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

2. I read that book as a teenager

and read it more than once. It had an enormous effect on my life. It is a masterpiece. And a lot of my concept of fundamentalists, I think, come from the descriptions of the family who got murdered.

[NaturalHigh]

3. How so?

I've never read the book, and I've only seen bits and pieces of the movie.

[bloom]

4. The book

gets into a lot more into what the murdered family was like.

Along with the problems of the mother - there was also the bit about the dad not wanting the daughter to be serious and marry a Catholic. But I see as more of divisiveness along those lines at the time - than I do of fundamentalism. It was also a "dry" county and the dad was very against drinking.

The dad definitely was the one making the decisions and the mother pretty much resigned from anything. Though that seemed more of a problem particular to that family than a general description of family life.

[TallahasseeGrannie]

5. Well, it has been a while since I read it

but the father was portrayed as very authoritarian. Then again, it was the 50's or early 60's. There was something about the family that just made me, a kid living in the metropolitican NYC area, very creeped out. One thing I remember is when they said that they had open caskets for all four, but since their heads were disfigured the undertaker wrapped them in some sort of white gauze that looked like a cocoon. I realize now that the whole "feeling" of the family was very midwestern "heartland" and Protestant. The mother was portrayed as somehow not quite fitting into the culture. As I remember she was often ill. I remember wondering whether or not she might have been a drunk. And the daughter was portrayed as very innocent and virginal.

I'd like to read it again.

[raccoon]

9. I wondered about the mother too. Not then, when I first read it

as a teenager, but in the last few years, since I saw the made-for-TV movie about the murders.

I thought the mother might be clinically depressed. Or it could be something else, such as alcohol or prescription drugs. Or a combination.

[bloom]

13. My impression

was that if there was an alcohol problem - Capote would have found out about it. :)


I read it as clinical depression - with possibly some other mental disorder like Schizophrenia.

[peacetalksforall]

6. Thanks for an excellent post. I am amazed how your brought out

impressions that I would have found intriguing had I read the book if I had been able to find what you found. I'm not sure that makes sense. But I am definitely intrigued with the points you make.

I had the book in my hand many times and if I had read your words I would have read it, but I didn't. I couldn't bring myself to read it because I thought it would be mostly about the murder act. I debated about seeing the movie, put it way off, and decided I had to see it to see how Harper Lee was portrayed and for insight into the lives of Capote and Lee.

I'm glad I did. But, from what you write I believe I'll have to finally read the book. I am also intrigued about the way people synthesize their opionions about their relgion and the way they view the religion of others.

A side theme that will carry me will be the question of how different the people were then to what I imagine the Kansas people might be now given all the attention some of them have brought on themselves over things religious.




There

[bloom]

11. thanks

I wouldn't have read it without seeing Capote - I was thinking along the lines you were. In this case - I think seeing the movie - more about the writing - added to the reading of the book.


I figured that "What's the Matter with Kansas" would be a good followup. So that's what I'm reading now.

[Goblinmonger]

8. One thing that taints the mix, though.

The morality of the murderers was interesting. Like the one murderer who did everything to prevent the other murderer from child molesting.

You do know that Capote had fallen in love with the "good" murderer. That could have been the basis for the portrayal of that person in a positive light.

This was an excellent book. As an American Lit teacher, it brought about a whole new genre of novel. I wish Capote would have written more serious novels rather than getting so wrapped up in his celebrity as to ignore his writing.

[raccoon]

10. I wish Capote had gone into Dick's background (and Perry's) more.

Last time I picked up the book and read it here and there that's what I was looking for: what were their backgrounds like?

One thing Capote included that I thought VERY telling was one time when Perry's father aimed a gun at him and said, "I'm the last person you'll ever see."

[bloom]

12. I thought the book was pretty thorough

into Perry's background. The rodeo days when the parents were stars - the promiscuous, alcoholic mother who left with the children after she and Perry's father had a nearly lethal argument - his abandonment - the beatings he received at various institutions, the mother's probable suicide, the siblings problems, etc.

I wondered if there were "secrets" about Dick's background that never came out - but even still - the book went into a lot more detail about Dick than the Capote movie - which barely mentioned it at all.

[bloom]

19. Another thing

that Capote seemed to emphasize in the book - was that both Perry and Dick were very resentful of not getting the education that they felt they deserved.

While the book mentioned that they were both stealing by the age of about 7 - with Perry being wild on the streets and Dick's neighbors being fed-up that nobody did anything about it, it seemed like it was the lack of education that drove their feelings of powerless and resentment. Or maybe it was how they justified/rationalized their crimes. A way to blame others instead of themselves.

[Strong Atheist]

14. Of course you were inspired:

it makes quite a contrast between the conventional, forgiving, Christian people - the only difference is their denomination - and the criminals who either never ascribed to religion or abandoned it.

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