Although Capote constructs Holcomb as an idyllic, blissful place, there is a shift from the safe, untroubled town to a paranoid untrusting society; therefore, conveying the idea that events such as murders can disrupt even the most serene of places.
The murders changed everything, consuming the town, obliterating everything known. Capote makes this clear with metaphorical references using a fire torching the Clutter’s belongings to portray the destruction caused by the deaths of the highly regarded Clutter household. Fire, a symbol of destruction, torches the Clutter’s belongings and everything ordinary about the insignificant town of Holcomb, Kansas: “They acquired additional fuel for the impending fire--blood-soiled bedclothes, mattresses,
The murders changed everything, consuming the town, obliterating everything known. Capote makes this clear with metaphorical references using a fire torching the Clutter’s belongings to portray the destruction caused by the deaths of the highly regarded Clutter household. Fire, a symbol of destruction, torches the Clutter’s belongings and everything ordinary about the insignificant town of Holcomb, Kansas: “They acquired additional fuel for the impending fire--blood-soiled bedclothes, mattresses,