Thursday, July 16, 2015

Theme, Part Two



Family
In this section, we get a closer look at the backgrounds of our killers. Especially with Perry. Perry had a fine early childhood. He travelled with his brothers and sisters to be with their parents, both of whom were rodeo performers. They eventually moved to Alaska, where Perry’s father dreamed of finding gold, and being set for life. His mother took the children to San Francisco, turning the children against their father, “all but Perry.” After their mother died, Perry and his siblings were put into various homes, including a Catholic orphanage, where the nuns used to physically and emotionally abuse Perry, and a Salvation Army orphanage, where one a caretaker tried to drown him.
The point is, neither one of the murderers had stable or happy childhoods. The Clutters were a close-knit family unit. Nancy and Kenyon both had a safe life and they never had to worry about not having enough food or an education. I think the reason we hear so much about Perry’s family life is so that the readers can see the stark contrast between them. It’s just another layer to the story, and it forces the audience to wonder if any of this would have happened if Perry and Dick had had normal, happy childhoods.

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