A journalist holds the occupation of reporting, writing, photographing or broadcasting news to seek the truth, investigate the case, and to report the accurate findings, with an unbiased opinion, to the general public, and the audience. They must report factual evidence, and give the exact truth and details on the events that occur. In 1966, Truman Capote, a journalist himself, published In Cold Blood, a non-fiction novel detailing the brutal murders of Mr. Clutter, his wife, and his two youngest children. However, many claimed that Capote failed to present a fair and unbiased report of the event, due to his very close involvement with the people involved in the murder itself. Capote did not accomplish his role as a journalist due to his detailed …show more content…
At one point of the trial Capote points out the disinterest the lawyers had on the case by telling the reader, "[Smith's lawyer] told the judge.”But if the court sees fit to appoint me, then of course I have no choice." Hickock's attorney... accepted the task with resigned grace: "Someone has to do it. And I'll do my best. Though I doubt that'll make me too popular around here." (Capote 257). By Capote pointing out the lack of enthusiasm the lawyers had, he is trying to convince the audience that Dick and Perry did not receive a just trial and convincing the audience is not the role of a journalist. Then as the trial continues, Dr. Jones does not take the opportunity to tell the jury a crucial fact about Perry’s mental condition. Capote tells the reader, " But had Dr. Jones been permitted to discourse on the cause of his indecision, he would have testified: "Perry Smith shows definite signs of severe mental illness" (Capote 296). Capote is constantly pointing out moments where it seems Dick and Perry are not receiving a genuine trial convinces the reader that the death sentence is not justifiable due to the fact of the trial they received. Capote is attempting to convince the audience that Dick and Perry received an unjust trial and as a journalist, he is not supposed to influence rather than let the reader formulate their
In discussion of In Cold Blood, one controversial issue has been Perry’s plea. Was justice served correctly by sending Perry to death row? On the one hand, it is an eye for an eye, which interpretates revenge. On the other hand, he should have been sentenced on a insane plea which would have resulted in on keeping him alive, and treat his psychological illness. Truman Capote demonstrates the trial in his book In Cold Blood.
However, the jury in Mr. Nealy trial heard the entire case, including both eye-witnesses’ and found their testimony to be credible. Mr. Nealy is very ardent in his believe that he is innocent and consistently throughout his trial argued with his attorney about how to proceed in the case because he did not feel that his attorney was going about his defense properly. Those arguments are on the record. In fact, in a pre-trial hearing Mr. Nealy moved to have his trial counsel dismissed. However, the court denied that motion and Mr. Nealy trial counsel was very active during the trial, objecting often and making several extensive arguments at bench conferences on behave of Mr.
The lawyer was assigned to “protect” Jefferson yet the attorney showed a clear image throughout the court scene that he does not care about the man one way or the other. For example, when the attorney describes Jefferson as “A thing to hold the handle of a plow, a thing to load your bales of cotton, a thing to dig your ditches, to chop your wood, to pull your corn,” (Gaines pg: 7) proves that the attorney does not have a desire to really help
The attorneys for the accused decided to put Mary Abernathy and Pokey Barnes, both “unlettered,” facing some of the best trial lawyers in the state. Lebsock’s juxtaposition of the educated lawyers and the illiterate orators works well and exposes the problematic assumptions that reside in such a facile
An interesting part to think about from this play is the fact that by the end of the story, all twelve men had agreed, not guilty for the defendants trial. The question is why would eleven men with the determined thought that the defendant was guilty, change their mind within a few hours and pieces of justified evidence? The final decision stated that the defendant was…“Not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty, not guilty. ”(Rose 1957)
The prosecutor, speaking to the jury in emotional terms with tears streaming down his face, laid out a graphic, depraved sexual scenario, accusing Morton of bludgeoning his wife for refusing to have sex on his birthday. "There was no scientific evidence, there was no eyewitness, there was no murder weapon, there was no believable motive," Morton says. "... I didn't see how any rational, thinking person would say that's enough for a guilty verdict."
However, by bringing the technique of fiction to journalism, Capote’s In Cold Blood became an instant success and a long lasting bestseller (Wainwright 2). The story of the “motiveless murders” follows a single cohesive narrative while suppressing the contradictory details that usually arise out of true events (Wainwright 2). Capote’s deft use of different points-of-view while incorporating extensive dialog draws the reader in and creates a high level suspense for the reader. In the beginning, the reader is introduced to the Clutter family, but soon after in the next scene, Capote switches the point of view to that of the murderers detailing their actions at the same moment (Capote 40).
“No, I did not go to the trial, I did not hear the verdict because I knew all the time what it would be. ”(Gaines, 3) The anxiousness of Grant is vividly illustrated when he has not even been to the trial but can predict the outcome. He gives us a setting in his head even though he was never there with a total inevitable result. This imagery of an environment forces us to make assumptions of what had happened.
How crazy would it be to interview criminals who murdered 4 people in cold blood? Well that’s exactly what Truman Capote did in this chilling book. In the novel In Cold Blood, Truman Capote used different rhetorical strategies to create sympathy and influence the idea that there are always two sides to every story. Some of the mainly used rhetorical strategies throughout the novel were imagery, diction, tone, and pathos. Furthermore, Capote also illustrated sympathetical emotion towards both types of characters, the protagonists and antagonists.
In Cold Blood by Truman Capote takes a brave deviation from the mainstream of murder or crime novels in that it takes the perspective of the perpetrators of the crime in question. Dick Hickock and Perry Smith were two particularly perverse individuals who were hung for the murder of the Clutter family. The two lack virtually any relatability to the casual reader, however, Capote manages to evaluate the six weeks following November 14th, 1959 in such an analytical depth that the reader may even begin to sympathize with the duo. The men are portrayed by Capote through a journalistic and impartial description that enhances the reader's understanding of the two by going into trivial details. Dick and Perry are two individuals from conflicting
These lawyers cared more about pinning the crime on someone and closing the case, than actually figuring out who committed the crime. Stevenson represents cases in a way that shows how critical and important it is for the court to truly think about their decisions. Stevenson states that: "The Court's ruling had become increasingly hostile to death row prisoners and less committed to the notion that 'death is different,' requiring more careful review" (Stevenson 78). The court system and the conduct of: police men, lawyers, judges, and juries, had become so strayed from the path of justice that the court system would rather kill then try to save a persons life. Instead of allowing a retrial of someone who had inadequate legal representation or had mental disabilities the court simply wanted to let them die.
The trial brings many inconveniences and disagreements to the town. In the novel To Kill a Mockingbird, Harper Lee uses symbolism and figurative language to express a lesson that even though abiding by the law is important, abiding by a moral code is more important. To start
In Cold Blood is a novel based on true events of a murder written by Truman Capote. Perry Smith and Richard Dick, have committed murders of four family members of the Clutter family. From the beginning, it’s obvious that the novel focuses on many characters and one becomes more interested in learning about how their personalities will open out during the novel. Several characters in the novel fit the description of the protagonist, including Perry, Dick and Herb Clutter. Therefore, the most expand the character and the obvious protagonist in the novel is Perry Smith as the narrative revolves so much around him.
He took his job as being the Foreman seriously by breaking up arguments and by making sure that everyone had a turn to speak. Despite having one of the hardest jobs in the jury, he remained civil and calm throughout the play. In the play “Twelve Angry Men” an argument between the jurors happens, the Physical Education Teacher stops it by saying, “All right. Let’s stop the arguing. Who’s got something constructive to say?”
The reader notices Capote’s techniques in his various attempts to create sympathy for perry and repugnance and condemnation towards Dick; these methods leave the reader with many heterogeneous emotions, in which their contrast creates an enhanced context of each emotion. The book starts out describing the Clutter family and their daily routine while explaining what exactly what was going on the day of this murder. Although these characters aren’t present, this gave them a sense of humanity and normality. This sense of normality creates sympathy for the Clutter family which then intrigues the reader as to why they were murdered. At first the reader feels horrible and feels absolutely no sympathy for the murderers, as the book develops, the reader then understands Perry more and more but also criticizes Dick mostly.