It is no coincidence that Capote ends his account of this captivating mystery with Dewey. Of all of the surviving characters of In Cold Blood, Dewey is arguably the most affected by the case. Capote reveals that Dewey’s dream of living on a farm were ultimately not realized, due to Marie’s uneasiness to live “in that sort of isolation” as a result of the Clutter murders, a case with which she had become all too familiar (341). Dewey himself was unable to bring himself to watch the death of Perry Smith, and “shut his eyes” when he was ultimately hung (340). A man who had worked four years to catch these murders, was still unable to stomach the sight of killing them. Capote employs Dewey’s family and sensitivity to the murders in order to create sympathy in his audience for
It is no coincidence that Capote ends his account of this captivating mystery with Dewey. Of all of the surviving characters of In Cold Blood, Dewey is arguably the most affected by the case. Capote reveals that Dewey’s dream of living on a farm were ultimately not realized, due to Marie’s uneasiness to live “in that sort of isolation” as a result of the Clutter murders, a case with which she had become all too familiar (341). Dewey himself was unable to bring himself to watch the death of Perry Smith, and “shut his eyes” when he was ultimately hung (340). A man who had worked four years to catch these murders, was still unable to stomach the sight of killing them. Capote employs Dewey’s family and sensitivity to the murders in order to create sympathy in his audience for