In Cold Blood By Truman Capote

About the Author Truman Capote was an American author best known for his early short stories and essays Norman Mailer called Capote, “the most perfect writer of my generation.” Capote became fascinated with the Clutter murders in Kansas In Cold Blood was crucial to ushering in “New Journalism” Capote made his mark in the literary world Truman Capote, as photographed by Roger Higgins in 1959.

“New Journalism” A style of nonfiction writing that documents current events by blending journalistic intention with creative, literary style. The essential difference between the new nonfiction and conventional reporting is that the basic unit of reporting was no longer the datum or piece of information but the scene. Scene is what underlies "the sophisticated strategies of prose” (Wolfe).

The first of the new breed of nonfiction writers to receive wide notoriety was Truman Capote, whose 1965 best-seller, In Cold Blood, was a detailed narrative of the murder of a Kansas farm family. Capote culled material from some 6,000 pages of notes. Capote announced that he had created a new art form which he labelled the "nonfiction novel.”

His aim was to write about real-life events Capote introduced the idea of the nonfiction novel into popular discourse. He also triggered controversy among reporters who wondered if responsible journalists really could write a true story that read like a novel Liz Fikazis: muckraking-to-Wolfe-Talese-and-Capote

The Novel’s Epigraph by poet, Francois Villon Translation: Brothers, men who live after us, Let not your hearts be hardened against us, Because, if you have pity for us poor men, God will have more mercy toward you.

Consider: Capote’s epigraph choice for a book about two men who brutally murdered a family.

Extended Journal Write a biographical statement about yourself, including: 1) your background 2) personality 3) why you think you became the kind of person you are today You will have 15 minutes to write this entry