In Cold Blood
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I've heard that Capote had a "thing" for Perry but...
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Capote certainly had more to say regarding Perry, though I thought what made In Cold Blood so good was the depth he went into most angles of the crime. Perhaps the book have been more balanced, but i don't think it diminished the final product.
The "thing" between Capote and Smith has been speculated on for a long time, but unfortunately it comes down to how you choose to look at it. Perry was more willing to talk to Capote than Dick. Capote also used to look for something to bond with within his subjects and with Perry, he found a lot of parallels of his own life.Guards have reported that Capote paid them to "stay away and give privacy" when talking to Perry, but he explained it off as saying that Perry was extremely shy and wouldn't talk honestly if the guards were within ear shot. Others say he paid them off to have sex with Perry. No one knows. Perry DID leave all of his belongings (including diary, drawings, notes....) to Capote.
Personally, I think Capote was in love with Perry. Capote had a thing for men who treated him poorly, and so Perry Smith would have been his taste. On the other hand, Capote also knew what would sell, and a man getting a stay of execution wouldn't.
It's been a long time since I've read the book but this conversation has sparked my interest again. I may have to check the book out again, at the time I read it the movie had already been made and my focus was more on the killings than the people involved.
I'm not sure it matters that much. I don't see anything in the way Capote treats Perry that indicates favoritism. It was never clearly established that Perry was gay or bisexual by anyone familiar with the case.
John wrote: "I'm not sure it matters that much. ...It was never clearly established that Perry was gay or bisexual by anyone familiar."I'm not suggesting that there was.
My original question was about why Dick seemed to become such an uninteresting character after the arrest. I really am hoping that someone suggests something I've just missed. Something to improve the overall reading experience for me.
They did do some interesting things with the character when Anthony Edwards played him.
Eric wrote: "The "thing" between Capote and Smith has been speculated on for a long time, but unfortunately it comes down to how you choose to look at it. Perry was more willing to talk to Capote than Dick. Cap..."Please add your sources! I'd like to know where you found this information...
Either biography by George Plimpton or Gerald Clarke
Stephen wrote: "Doesn't it seem like Dick becomes almost two dimensional after they're caught. I generally pose NE Trivia questions as I am reading and I realized I'd posted 3 in a row about Perry. I started loo..."
Maybe Dick was two dimensional because he was a psychopath? I think Perry was also, but Perry did exhibit SOME decency in not letting Dick rape young girls? So, I will contradict myself and say maybe Perry wasn't a pure psychopath...If Dick was, and I'm assuming he was, psychopaths might have so little depth that they are boring. The most interesting thing to me about Dick was his head injury. Don't know if that injury caused to psyopathy. But all Dick cares about is himself and he's such a creep, maybe Capote just didn't want to dig.
Stephen wrote: "Doesn't it seem like Dick becomes almost two dimensional after they're caught. I generally pose NE Trivia questions as I am reading and I realized I'd posted 3 in a row about Perry. I started loo..."
Stephen, wow, great discussion question. To me, Dick was the one who planned it all and was painted by those who analyzed him as psychotic. But those who analyzed Perry couldn't quite come to a clear decision: Perry had been used and abused all his life, and now by Dick. Perry shows empathy, Dick never does. It's as if Perry IS indeed slightly human. As if Perry has more dimensions than Dick. Just my two cents.
Cindy wrote: "Stephen wrote: "Doesn't it seem like Dick becomes almost two dimensional after they're caught. I generally pose NE Trivia questions as I am reading and I realized I'd posted 3 in a row about Perr..."
Cindy, yes, I agree with what you are saying.
Eric wrote: "Either biography by George Plimpton or Gerald Clarke"Thanks Eric. I haven't read either, I don't think. But I have read one biography....must research.
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I generally pose NE Trivia questions as I am reading and I realized I'd posted 3 in a row about Perry. I started looking for something memorable about Dick. I've now posed six in a row on Perry and can't find anything memorable enough about Dick (other than the pedo angle) to make a good question.
Am I wrong? Is there a deeper literary meaning why he's become such a flat character? His dad's more memorable than he is!