1. Introduction to In Cold Blood

2. Truman Capote ( )

3. Biography One of America’s most controversial and colorful authors
His personal life often overshadowed his work
Born in New Orleans
Troubled childhood
Had early success as a novelist with Other Voices; Other Rooms and Breakfast at Tiffany’s
In 1959, he decided to start a new literary project: the “nonfiction novel”

4. In Cold Blood
Capote read a short article in the New York Times that described an unsolved multiple murder in a small Kansas town
He had been searching for a subject to write about
Decided to go to Holcomb, Kansas
His good friend Harper Lee went with him.

5. Nonfiction Novel Capote coined the phrase describing In Cold Blood
Apparently, in the years before he began the novel, Capote trained himself to remember interviews verbatim
His goal was to take the literary techniques associated with novels and apply them to reporting on true events
He was a novelist who wanted to write about true events in the same style

6. “New Journalism”
A term used by Tom Wolfe that is interchangeable with the nonfiction novel
In the 1950s and 1960s, journalists began writing news stories with the literary elements of short stories and novels
Wolfe said “the extraordinary power was derived mainly from just four devices”
Write this

7. The Four Devices
“scene-by-scene construction”: telling a story cinematically or novelistically rather than through historic narrative
Dialogue: communicating events and describing people through what they say rather than using description
Third-person Point of View: presenting the scene from a particular character’s perspective and switching the point of view (often the reporter is absent from the story)
“the recording of status life”: noting the details of everyday life that are often significant and symbolic
Write These.

8. What does this mean?
Essentially, “New Journalism” draws upon the elements of realistic fiction. The irony is that the mold is quite old—the realistic novel came on the scene in the 18th century after all.
Fiction & novels abandoned realism and nonfiction filled the void
And nonfiction has the added advantage of claiming: “all of this actually happened”
Write this.

9. Implications In Cold Blood was a popular success when it was published
It continues to be assigned in college and high school classrooms in a number of disciplines: English, Journalism, Psychology, Law, Criminal Justice
It also solidified the place of “New Journalism” in publishing houses and opened the floodgates of nonfiction
Now, memoirs and nonfiction using literary elements are widely read

10. Limitations Subjectivity Credulity/ Veracity Narcissism/ Solipsism
Write these.

11. How do you read In Cold Blood?
Identify the Four Devices and try to decide their significance
Write characters’ names in the margin and underline description
Write brief phrases for plot
Underline memorable “gotcha” lines
Put ? next to items that you don’t understand
Circle page numbers when you want to return to something—you know there’s more to it or it may be significant

12. Warning
Stay off the internet! Don’t let someone spoil the book for you

13. Epigraph
(you know how I love epigraphs!)
It’s in French

14. Translation: write this!
“Ballade of the Hanged” (Villon's Epitaph)
Brothers that live when we are dead,
don't set yourself against us too.
If you could pity us instead,
then God may sooner pity you.