Related text: In cold blood, by Truman Capote What the text is about The novel In cold blood, written

by Truman Capote is a hybridization of journalism and crime non-fiction that was first published in 1966. Whilst incorporating aspects of traditional crime fiction, Capote transcends the text beyond the case of the crime and the process and accretion of evidence. Primarily, he focuses upon the psychology and profiles of the criminals. In doing so, he explores the material, psychological and environmental circumstances that cause two otherwise ordinary human beings to commit the atrocious acts of murder in cold blood. Also, he dwells upon the system of the law and the administration of justice in the form of capital punishment. How does this text depict crime? Capote's style is objective and highly innovative prose; as it combines the factual accuracy of journalism with the emotive impact of fiction. Capote said that he wanted to bring "the art of the novelist together with the techniques of journalism." Through the integration of journalism he takes a non-fiction story from a newspaper and transcends it into a narrative form told through an objective narrator. He imbues journalist techniques such as extended dialogues, and internal monologue, Dick dropped the binoculars into a leather case.. He was annoyed. Annoyed as hell which is supplied from his anecdotal sources and acts as an enhancer of dramatic intensity within the novel and providing evocative description. Also, the presence of the journalists within the novel is self referential as whenever a dire event takes place such as the murdering of the Clutters and the conviction of the murderers they are always there to capture the story. This follows the extension of the genre of crime through being self-referential which is also evident within the film Rear Window whereby, Stella makes referential comments regarding the genre of pulp fiction, highlighting the influential presence of crime fiction within societys everyday lives. In conjunction, Truman Capote is a variation of the detective as the story is told through an omniscient, omnipotent narrator in third person, and acts as the witness to the murder and process of investigation. He also acts as the medium through which the characterisation of alternating viewpoints are disclosed in order to construct the story upon the basis of the memory of different characters from the past leading to the present. According to Wolfe, Capote was employing "the technique of presenting every scene to the reader through the eyes of a particular character, giving the reader the feeling of being inside the character's mind and experiencing the emotional reality of the scene." Initially, the story is told through present tense, emphasised through the word wear which then changes to the past tense, wore, as the narrator reflects upon the past. This combination and flitting from past to present, creates tension and suspense as the responders attempt to understand the murder with which they are first introduced and what crucial events lead to the climax of this atrocious commission.

Furthermore, the combination of the foreboding and ominous tone within touching the brim of his cap, he headed for home and the days work, unaware that it would be his last and the dress in which she would be buried highlights the conventional integration of suspense and tension which establishes the literary game between both the responder and the novel. This is also evident through the religious allusion: Take ye heed, watch and pray, for ye know not when the time is which foreshadows the crime that soon ensues and evokes the emotions of anticipation and apprehension within the reader. The social context Capote comments upon the loss of innocence and the undermining of the American Dream. The two distinctive version of the American dream are presented : the first being one of safety, security and the ability to determine ones own fate portrayed through the citizens of Holcomb and Garden City. This is juxtaposed and thwarted by the victimization of the Clutters. Their world must suddenly include the embittered rootless person, for whom this dream was never an option in the first place. The Clutter killings symbolise the collusion of the two sides of America within the 1960s : the prosperous, self-assured haves with the disappointed and destitute have-nots. Hence, Capote produces a stark image of the deep doubleness of American dream, as it forces us to confront those who were left behind. Capote also comments on how family life is a key determinant of the psychology, sense of morality and behaviour of individual character in the context of the book. The Clutters, who symbolise the utmost integrity of family, are obliterated by Perry who represents one who comes from a broken home. Similarly, Perrys criminality is connected to the dissolution of his own kinship ties. To what degree is this a traditional crime writing text? 1. The seemingly perfect crime at first it seems that the crime has been committed so meticulously that it is virtually unsolvable. A lot of time the answer seems so unattainable because the crime is so outrageous. This is evident in how the detectives struggle to discern the motive and cause for the crime, as the case involved murder without apparent motive committed by a person or persons unknown. Additionally, the lack of evidence linking the murderers to the crime adds to the apparent lack of seeming ability to solve the crime, emulated through the detectives question, wheres our proof?. 2. Detectives the detectives are instrumental within the process of observation, detection and apprehension of the criminals which is conventional within the detective crime fiction genre. Different detectives play a role in this process. However, the main private investigator- Al Dewey uses his intellect and powers of observation to make deductions upon the basis of evidence retrieved through scientific equipment. His rational thinking is demonstrated through the opinions, hypothesis and concepts he forms in reconstructing the crime such as his single killer concept and double killer concept. This is evident through his logical deduction and reasoning, in studying the death-scene

photographs Dewey had distinguished other details that seemed to support his notion of a murderer now and again moved by considerate impulses, and having committed a crime with calculated motives. His sense of moral conviction is conventional, however, is transcended as he acknowledge felt a measure of sympathy- for Perry Smiths life had been no bed of roses but pitiful, an ugly and lonely progress towards one mirage and the another. However, his deep sense of moral conviction overpowers his sympathy as it was not deep enough to accommodate for forgiveness or mercy, as the Clutters, had experienced prolonged terror, they had suffered. He also states how he hoped to see Perry and his partner hanged- hanged back to back. Also, Truman Capotes novel goes beyond the whodunit murder mystery and extends to the detective having to prove that the murderers of Perry and Hickock has actually set foot inside the Clutter house which is a transformation of the detective crime genre. This parallels to Rear Window as Jeffrey the amateur detective must prove that a murder has happened. Other detectives which play a role in the process of investigation: The forensic scientists such as the coroner Dr Robert Fenton assist in providing details surrounding the death of the victims, as he reported on appreciable difference in the body temperatures of the victims, and on this basis, theorised that the order of execution had been: Mrs Clutter, Nancy, Kenyon and Mr Clutter. Moreover, laboratory technicians skilled in various categories of scientific crime detection, studied the physical evidence connecting the accused to the murders, (blood samples, footprints, cartridge shells, rope and tape). Additionally, a total of eighteen men were assigned to the case full time, including the main detective Dewey, himself a former sheriff of Finely County, and prior to that, a Special Agent of the FBA whose main objective was to extract the truth through the process of interviewing and interrogation. This is a contemporary transformation of the detective crime fiction genre as a group of detectives work together to solve the crime. Furthermore, Dr W. Mitchell Jones a specialist in criminal psychology and the criminally insane in his testimony, acts as a witness for the purpose of ascertaining whether either or both were insane, imbeciles or idiots, unable to comprehend their position and aid their defence through discerning the psychological state of the mental capacities of the prisoners. The presence of the psychologist is an added facet of detection in understanding the motives of the criminals. Also, the detectives act as witnesses for the prosecution through their testimony; in this sense playing a role in the process of administering justice lawfully.

3. The commission of a violent/ vicious crime This is highlighted in how the murderers, killed four people in cold blood which is further exacerbated through the simile of These were strange, ferocious murders. Four of your fellow citizens were slaughtered like hogs in a pen. Moreover, the diction of brutal and his throat had been cut too accentuates the magnitude of the suffering and torture of the victims. Also, short, dramatic, emphatic sentences, imbued with overtones of fear and terror, such as the viciousness of it. The suffering. The horror. They were dead. A whole family. Gentle, kindly people I knew and the syntax -murdered emphasises and encapsulates the violence of the crime. In conjunction, there is a dimension which is added to the murder as the victims are symbolic. Perry in his commission of the crimes was not killing the Clutter family but the representation of them as figures of his past, that he sought vengeance upon. The inability of the detectives to find a corresponding motive, results from the senseless actions of Perry, incurred by his lack of lucidity and consciousness as he is blindly driven by hatred and frustration. This internal rage finds a destructive outlet in the form of the brutality and viciousness of the murders he commits cold blood.

Legal investigation- public justice- breaks the law goes to jail Personal justice- murderers seek their own justice

4. The disruption of order and the restoration of order CLOSURE / after justice has been served/ administered Al Dewey visits their graves then starting home, he walked towards the trees, and under them, leaving behind him the big sky, the whisper of wind voices in the wind-bent wheat personification Sue Kidwell closure Im very happy THE RESTORATION OF ORDER once justice has been achieved been achieved through the Retribution and avengement that has been exacted in the form of capital punishment

5. Clues /evidence how is this traditional who is deducing the evidence from the clues? Which are normally detected by the amateur detective in this case are done so with the aid of scientific equipment, where The prints, not noticeable to the naked eye, registered on film; indeed the delineating glare of a flashbulb revealed their presence with superb exactness.

The clues and evidence are not only essential in linking the murderers to the crime but in forming a solid case in order to prosecute the perpetrators where justice can be served in a court of law. You can compare this to skull beneath the skin ending and ideas of justice Photographs also provide a crucial key that ties the murderers to the crime, as a close-up of Mr Clutter and the mattress box upon which he lay, had already provided a valuable surprise: footprints, the dusty trackings of shoes with diamond- patterned shoes. Coupled with another footmark found on the same cardboard cover- the bold and bloody impression of a Cats Paw half stole were influential clues used within the unfolding of the mystery and catching the murderers.

What aspects does the text challenge or subvert?

NATURE VS NURTURE NURTURE: 1.The author focuses upon the psychological criminals profiles and offers an insight into the murderers background. He explores how ones environment and past experiences are influential in shaping the mentality and psychology of an individuals mind detrimentally. Capote questions whether a man alone can be held responsible for his actions when his environment has relentlessly neglected him. This profundity allows the readers to fathom the pressures brought to bear upon the criminals because of their, environment, intellectual frustration and a growing tendency towards isolationism. Personal/ public justice In this sense, the murderers are portrayed as victims themselves, eliciting the readers empathy, which is heightened through Perrys first person narration as he recounts, This one nurse, - shed fill a tub with ice-cold water, put me in it, and hold me under until I was blue. He also reveals: The Black widows were always at me. hitting me. because of wetting the bed. Which is one reason why I have an aversion to nuns. And God. And religion. Law/ justice Thus, the author dwells upon whether ones background and upbringing are justifiable in excusing the criminals to a degree, as the crime was a psychological accident. Therefore, this acts as a reworking of the crime conventions as the story of both the victims and the murderers are told equally. LINK TO CONTEXT AND VALUES 2. Morality In judging the morals of the criminals the author develops different angles, exploring the morals or rather lack of morals instilled within the perpetrators through their upbringing and environment. Additionally, he scrutinises the ability of the criminals to distinguish right from wrong and whether these morals affected their commission of the crimes, at the time of the offence. Upon this basis, Perrys admission, there was no rule or discipline, or anyone to show me right from wrong accentuates that his lack of morality and comprehension of this, has to a degree affected his resolve indicated through his murderous, uninhibited actions. In dealing with the issues of the criminals morality Dr Jones conduction of a psychiatric evaluation was performed in order to grasp the murderers concept of what is right and wrong. Based upon his evaluation he concluded that within the usual definitions Mr Hickock did know right from wrong however added that, although he professes usual moral standards he seems obviously uninfluenced by them in his actions. Furthermore, he asserted that the possibility of organic brain damage may have substantially influenced his behaviour, at the time of the crime. Hence, in discerning Dicks comprehension of morality in a sense dictates whether his actions within his own eyes were justified. His personal sense

of justice is a transformation of the crime genre as the responder takes into account the perception of the morality of the murder and questions whether if he regarded his actions as correct if this can be a justification. Moreover, in his assessment of Perry he states that he shows definite signs of severe mental illness and that he seems to have grown up without direction, without love, and without ever having absorbed any fixed sense of moral values. Thus, this acts as a transformation of the crime writing conventions as the perpetrators are portrayed as humans and are not simply deemed as inhumane and guilty upon their apprehension, but there is further investigation conducted in discerning the degree of their guilt when taking into account their psychology, environment, profile and sense of morality. CONTEMPORARY SHIFT TOWARDS FORENSIC PSYCHOLOGY and the need to justify badness does it make us feel safe? Whether we can stop them by changing environment? Symbolic victims- represent figures from his past that he seeks vengeance upon- brutality, senselessness actions in the murder emphasises the lack of lucidity and consciousness of the murderers- motivates them to kill in cold blood outcome of abuse- importance of family situations and how this influences the psychological makeup of people in behaviour, personality and their relationship with others

Legal justice, moral justice, personal justice and public justice

3. Logically motivated: The discussion of the criminal responsibilities legally of the murderers, - Dr Satter Article: intertextuality??? In the American Journal of Psychiatry Labelled Murder without apparent motive A study in personality disorganisation In attempting to assess the criminal responsibility of the murderers, the law tries to divide them into two groups, the sane and the insane. The sane murderer is thought of as acting upon rational motives that can be understood, though condemned, and the insane one as being driven by irrational senseless motives. When rational motives are conspicuous (for example, when a man kills for personal gain) or when the irrational motives are accompanied by delusions or hallucinations ( for example a paranoid patient who kills his fantasied persecutor), the situation presents little problem to the psychiatrist. Obviously, three of the murders Smith committed were logically motivated- Nancy, Kenyon, and their mother had to be killed because Mr Clutter had been killed. But it is Dr Sattens contention that only the first murder matters psychologically, and that when Smith attacked Mr Clutter he was under a mental eclipse, deep inside a schizophrenic darkness,(metaphor)

for it was not entirely a flesh-and-blood man he suddenly discovered himself destroying, but a key figure in some past traumatic configuration: his father? The orphanage nuns who had derided and beaten him? 1. I didnt want to harm the man. I thought he was a very nice gentleman. Softspoken. I thought so right up to the moment I cut his throat. Perry, pg. 244 Perry claims to have liked Mr. Clutter, as well as the other members of the family; this at first seems ironic, but in fact it says a great deal about Perrys motive for killing the Clutters. The murders, it seems, were not inspired by a literal hatred of this specific family, but by misdirected frustration and resentment that finds a symbolic object in the Clutters and the values that they represent. The family is unlucky enough to be on the receiving end of this fury, but they are by no means its source.

i guess somebody had to pay for it I didn't have anything against them, and they never did anything wrong to me--the way other people have all my life. Maybe they're just the ones who had to pay for it." Herb Clutter represents a key figure in some past traumatic configuration: his father? the orphanage nuns who had derided and beaten him? the hated army sergeant? the parole officer who had ordered him to stay out of Kansas? One of them, or all of them (302). As well, Perrys trance-like state (mental eclipse) while committing the murders is accounted for as a common experience of those with his background and psychological disposition. This complex and nuanced interpretation of Perry and Dicks psychological makeup invites sympathy rather than condemnation, and this may be part of the reason that the testimony of Dr. Jones is denied during the trial. The prisoners are held to the simplistic MNaghten rule, which contends that if the defendant knows his actions were wrong by the usual definitions of right and wrong, then he is responsible for them. This is opposed to the more lenient Durham rule, which claims that defendants cannot be held responsible if the crime is the result of a mental defect (which would, if upheld, exonerate the two prisoners).

Justice many different perceptions of the characters within the novel embody the different perspectives of society as we are shown through the characterisation of Perrys sister, Mr Clutters brother, Al dewey and Dr Jones. Impartial Through the use of high modality and acting as the voice of rationality and reason However, he makes the distinction that

Perrys sisters letter I truthfully feel none of us have anyone to blame for whatever we have done with our own personal lives. It has been proven that at the age of 7 most of us have reached the age of reason which means we do, at this age, understand & know the difference between right & wrong. Of course environment plays an awfully important part in our lives. We have very little control over our human weaknesses, I feel IT IS NO SHAME TO HAVE A DIRTY FACE- THE SHAME COMES WHEN YOU KEEP IT DIRTY I am a normal individual with basic reasoning powers & the will to live my life according to the laws of God & Man. It is also true that I have fallen at times, as is normal for as I said I am human & therefore have human weaknesses but the point is again. There is no shamehaving a dirty face- the shame comes when you keep it dirty. (REPETITION) Dad is not responsible for your wrong doings or your good deeds. What you have done, whether right or wrong, is your own doing. HIGH MODALITY, voice of reason justice You are a human being with a free will. Which puts you above the animal level. But if you live your life without feeling and compassion for your fellow man- you are an animal an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. As far as responsibility goes, no one really wants it- but all of us are responsible to the community we live in and its laws. THE LETTER WAS A compassionate demonstration of Christian principles

resolve her letter failed because she couldnt conceive of the profundity of your problem- she couldnt fathom the pressures brought to bear upon you because of environment, intellectual frustration and a growing tendency towards isolationism.

Al Dewey, However, long it takes, it may be the rest of my life, Im going to know what happened in that house: the why and the who. Dewy, found it difficult to understand how two individuals could reach the same degree of rage, the kind of psychopathic rage it took to commit such a crime. He went on to explain: Assuming the murderer was someone known to the family, a member of this community; assuming that he was an ordinary man, ordinary except that he had a quirk, an insane grudge against the Clutters it doesnt add up. It doesnt make sense. But then, come right down to it, nothing does. Finding the cause for the crime The investigators attempt to discern the killers motives classifying the crime a personal thing a grudge that got out of hand, unless it was robbery Theories behind the motive Sure maybe the killer did take the money but just to try and mislead us, make us think this robbery was the reason LINK TO Agatha Christie Murder on the Orient Express understanding the reasoning / attempting to recreate/ see into the mind of the murderer/ discerning his motives and actions Details of crime- accumulation arrived and left with the murder weapon, without being seen shot four persons in different parts of the house, calmly picking up the expended shotgun shells. the investigators are left faced with a sear for a killer or killers whose cunning is apparent is his (or their) motive is not. Acted without a motive, if you care to discount an abortive robbery attempt, which the investigators are wont to do. Al Dewey believed that the death of Herb Clutter had been the criminals main objective, the motive being a psychopathic hatred, or possibly a combination of hatred and thievery, and he believed that the commission of the murders had been a leisurely labour. Perrys motive I wanted the money

What aspects does the text challenge or subvert

based upon your examination do you have an opinion as to whether or not Richard Eugene Hickock knew right from wrong at the time of the commission of the crime I think that within the usual definitions Mr Hickock did know right from wrong. Dick It is important that steps be taken to rule out the possibility of organic brain damage, since, if present, it might have substantially influenced his behaviour during the past several years and at the time of the crime. Dr Jones

Nature versus nurture - The composite image of Smith derived from these accounts is one of an innately intelligent, talented, sensitive being warped and eroded by neglect, abuse, humiliation, and unresolved emotional trauma. Perry Smith, who, abused and abandoned as a child and scorned as an adult, allegedly commits all four murders. In framing the question of nature versus nurture, Capote's tightly documented, evocatively written account of the Clutter killings asks whether a man alone can be held responsible for his action when his environment has relentlessly neglected him.

Willie Jay to Perry- foreshadows You exist in a half- world suspended by two between two superstructures, one self expression and the other self-destruction. You are strong, but there is a flaw in your strength, and unless you learn to control it the flaw will prove stronger than your strength and defeat you. The flaw? Explosive emotional reaction out of all proportion to occasion. Nature Perry After all, it was painful to imagine that one might be not just right particularly if whatever was wrong was not you own fault but maybe something that you were born with. look at what had happened there! His mother, an alcoholic, had strangled to death on her own vomit Jimmy, who had one day driven his wife to suicide and killed himself the next. his characterisation Perry was that rarity, a natural killer absolutely sane, but conscienceless, and capable of dealing, with or without motive, the cold-bloodest deathblows.

1. Justice the law Snake/ symbolic represents justice tree- temptation , if he gives into his desire and temptation he will bring the force of justice and law enforcement upon himself , evil nature of humans, snake = symbol - avenger His dream Im there to pick myself a bushel of diamonds. But I know that the minute I try to, the minute I reach up, a snake is gonna fall on me. A snake that guards the tree. But I figure, Well, Ill take my chances. What it comes down to is I want the diamonds more than Im afraid of the snake. So I got to pick one, I have the diamond in my hand, Im pulling at it, when the snake lands on top of me. hes crushing me , he starts to swallow me whole. The criminals - Dick The poem Theres a race of men that dont fit in,

A race that cant stay still; So they break the hearts of kith and kin; And they roam the world at will. They range the field and they rover the flood. And they climb the mountains crest; Theirs is the curse of the gipsy blood, And they dont know how to rest. If they just went straight they might go far; They are strong and brave and true; But theyre always tired of the things that are, And they want the strange and new Rhyming pattern / external rhyme A B A B they at least were of the same species, brothers in the breed of Cain 2. Retribution Al Dewey he felt a measure of sympathy- for Perry Smiths life had been no bed of roses but pitiful, an ugly and lonely progress towards one mirage and then another. Deweys sympathy however, was not deep enough to accommodate for forgiveness or mercy , they had experienced prolonged terror, they had suffered. he hoped to see Perry and his partner hanged- hanged back to back. A roving radio reporter interviewed sundry other townfolk, asking them what, in their opinion, the proper retribution would be for the doers of such a dastardly deed (alliteration), . One student replied I think they ought to be locked in the same cell for the rest of their lives. Never allowed any visitors. Just sit there staring at each other till the day they die. And a tough, strutty little man said, I believe in capital punishment. Its like the Bible says an eye for an eye. Theyre mad because they arent getting what they want revenge Dick ritual of vengeance execution of justice Detective he deserved it Like the majority of American law enforcement officials, Dewey was certain that capital punishment is a deterrent to violent crime, and he felt that if ever the penalty had been earned, the present instance was it.

SOCIAL DISORDER/ AND ADD RESTORATION OF ORDER 3. The effect upon the community they act as detectives EXPLORES THE IMPACT OF MURDER UPON THE COMMUNITY Alfred Stoecklein, makes his own deduction, But my opinion

Nowadays, Garden City, which was once a raucous frontier town, is quite subdued.

1. This hitherto peaceful congregation of neighbors and old friends had suddenly to endure the unique experience of distrusting each other; understandably, they believed that the murderer was among themselves. pg. 88 The Clutter killings wreak havoc on the security of Holcomb, fragmenting the community and sowing the first seeds of doubt and suspicion. In allegorical terms, the residents of Holcomb experience a kind of fall from grace, and a loss of their former innocence, as for the first time they are forced to confront the unseemly reality of the killers and the world they represent. frightened and depressed

But the case was by no means closed for the people of Finney County no closure

People from the community, announced plans to pack up and leave not merely Finney County but the state. Because they cant sleep. After what happened to Herb and his family, I felt something round here had come to an end. I mean personally. For me.

Al Dewey, The real thing is Ive come to feel I know Herb and the family better than they ever knew themselves. Im haunted by them. I guess I always will be. Until I know what happened.

what a terrible thing when neighbours cant look at each other without kind of wondering they act as detectives, But who hated the Clutters? I never heard a word against them; they were about as popular as a family can be, and if something like this could happen to them, then whos safe, I ask you? repetitive questions

well, she was wearing some jewellery, two rings- which is one of the reasons why Ive always discounted robbery as a motive. Larry Hendricks acts as a detective as he makes his own observation and deduction

the shot gun blasts afterwards the townspeople, theretofore sufficiently unfearful of each other to seldom trouble to lock their doors, found fantasy recreating them over and over again- those sombre explosions that stimulated fires of mistrust in the glare of which many old neighbours viewed each other strangely, and as strangers
Closing: ... he [Dewey] walked toward the trees, and under them, leaving behind him the big sky, the whisper of wind voices in the wind-bent wheat.[46] Weber noted the evocative quality of the book's ending:... drawing us out of the account of waves of feeling for both the Clutters and the killers, for lives unrealized and cut short, and leaving us with an evocation of the serene order of the landscape, an order that has been violated yet persists, somehow larger and more enduring than man's evil acts.

4. Al Dewey- his faith in god a belief in God and the rituals surrounding that belief- church every Sunday, grace before meals, prayers before bed- were an important part of Deweys existence. Mr Howard Fox- the brother of Mr Clutter I have even heard on more than one occasion that the man, when found, should be hanged from the nearest tress. Let us not feel this way. The deed is done and taking another life cannot change it. Instead, let us forgive as God would have us do. It is not right that we should hold a grudge in our hearts. The doer of this act is going to find it very difficult to live with himself. His only peace of mind will be when he goes to God for forgiveness. Let us not stand in the way but give prayers that he may find his peace. the murderer will have God to answer to Perrys absence of faith= absence of morality and sense of what is right or wrong, he had never come near a belief in God. Most of the ministers are opposed to capital punishment, say its immoral; unchristian He criticises gossip Clare Its time for everyone to stop wagging their loose tongues. Because thats a crime too- telling plain out lies. But what can you expect? Look around you. rattlesnakes. Varmints. Rumourmongers. 5. Prosecutor

if the case goes before a jury, I will request the jury, upon finding them guilty, to sentence them to the death penalty. If the defendant waive right to jury trial and enter a plea of guilty before the judge, I will request the judge to set the death penalty. I feel that due to the violence of the crime and the apparent utter lack of mercy shown the victims, the only way the public can be absolutely protected is to have the death penalty set against these defendants. This is especially true since in Kansas there is no such thing as life imprisonment without possibility of parole. Persons sentenced to life imprisonment, actually serve, on the average, less than fifteen years. the court was asked to permit the state hospital in Larned, Kansas, a mental institution with maximum security facilities, to take custody of the prisoners for the purpose of ascertaining whether either or both were insane, imbeciles or idiots, unable to comprehend their position and aid their defence. a verdict upon the mental capacities of the prisoners Dr W. Mitchell Jones, was exceptionally competent; not yet thirty, a sophisticated specialist in criminal psychology and the criminally insane Closing statement of the prosecutor the voice of justice can there be a single doubt in your minds regarding the guilt of these defendants? No! Regardless of who pulled the trigger on Richard Eugene Hickocks shotgun, both men are equally guilty. There is only one way to ensure that these men will never again roam the towns and cities of this land. We request the maximum penalty death. This request is made not in vengeance, but in all humbleness Voice of Christianity / theological debate Harrison Smith appealed to the jurors presumed Christianity, took as his main theme the evils of capital punishment: It is a relic of human barbarism. The law tells us that the taking of human life is wrong, then goes ahead and sets the example. Which is almost as wicked as the crime it punished. The state has no right to inflict it. It isnt effective. It doesnt deter crime, but merely cheapen human life and gives rise to more murders. All we ask is mercy. Speaking in behalf of the defendants Persecutors closing statement - Green Intertextuality/ theological allusions the Bible and the ten commandments Thou shalt not kill. This refers to unlawful killing. the penalty for disobedience, reads: He that smiteth a man, so that he die, shall be surely put to death. Who sheddeth mans blood, by man shall his blood be shed. our state provides that the punishment for murder in the first degree shall be imprisonment for life or death by hanging. That is the law

and if ever there was a case in which the maximum penalty was justified, this is it. These were strange, ferocious murders. Four of your fellow citizens were slaughtered like hogs in a pen. And for what reason? Not out of vengeance or hatred, but for money. Money. It was the cold, and calculated weighing of so many ounces of silver against so many ounces of blood. 6. Sentence/ punishment / exact justice jurys deliberations Count one, we the jury find the defendant, Richard Eugene Hickock, guilty of murder in the first degree, and the punishment is death. seven counts followed: three more convictions for Hickock, and four for Smith, -and the punishment is death The M Naughten Rule ruled in Holcomb/ United States recognises no form of insanity provided the defendant has the capacity to discriminate between right and wrong- legally, not morally Other states abide by the Durham Rule which is simply that an accused is not criminally responsible if his unlawful act is the product of mental disease or mental defect.

Which aspects of the rubric does the text illuminate? Scrutinises a crime and its investigation Extending, reimagining, and challenging How changing contexts and values have brought about changes in the traditional crime stories What constitutes a crime What justice means Account for the increasing popularity of different forms of crime writing The scrutinisation of a crime and its investigation Whodunit murder mystery What constitutes a crime Who plays the role of the detective? reader/ viewer works alongside the detective trying to solve the case and discover who in fact committed the crime- the community represents us as we question and guess- the police- detective, lawyers, judge, jurors What justice means!!!!!! The detectives have to prove that the murderers actually set foot inside the clutter house link to rear window???in having to prove that a murder had happened