A Skillful and Strict Clutter Family

            Having just begun the book In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, I found it very interesting to observe the thorough descriptions Capote makes of each individual in the family. Beginning with Mr. Clutter, Capote uses narration and exposition to present the characters and depict their main traits. I can predict that the family unit will be very important in this book, since Capote spends the first notable section of the book describing the relationship between the generations in the family and how this affects the environment in the house. For example, Capote states, “The Rupp family were Roman Catholics, the Clutters, Methodists—a fact that should in itself be sufficient to terminate whatever fancies she and this boy might have of some day marrying” (p. 8). I can relate this to families in the early 1900s and even some today, which uphold their religious traditions to high that they do not allow their heirs to marry someone who follows another religion. Despite this, Nancy still keeps the ring Bobby gave her as a symbol of her relationship.

            It is important to note that the Clutters are a very self-sufficient family and have learned how to deal with their own problems without the help of anyone else. Capote points this out when he declares, “Other than a housekeeper who came in on weekdays, the Clutters employed no household help…” (p. 9). It is impressive to observe how this fact allows the writer to continue the story by highlighting Nancy’s main skills, which are not few. The interesting part is that she does not brag about her abilities. This does not surprise me since the people who know they are very talented and have a high self-esteem do not need to go around bragging and forcing everyone to realize how good they are. With Mr. Capote’s fantastic cooking, architectonic, and designing skills accompanied by Nancy’s academic, riding, and artistic skills, the Clutter family has a very solid base from which to begin dreaming of a prosperous family. The point is, why does Capote give us such a detailed description of the family? Do the hunters from Oklahoma symbolize the beginning of a violent life?