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Chapter 4: The Corner - Coggle Diagram
Chapter 4: The Corner
Main events
Defence makes its case, bringing a psychologist to testify
Judge doesn’t let psychologist continue (he would have diagnosed Perry a potential paranoid schizophrenic)
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Moved to death row - Dick writes appeals, P goes on hunger strike
One of D’s letters works and rep of Kansas Bar Association claims they didn’t receive a fair trial (bias jury as they knew or had relationship with Herb)
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After five years, D and P hanged on April 15th 1965 - Dewey watches
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Key context
Stanley Kauffman's interview - Capote's structural method is cinematic: using flashbacks, background detail (what the psychiatrist would've said), intense close-ups
Some critics described the experience as being like a voyeur - looking at events, powerless to intervene, others say it's like being on a jury - weighing up evidence to decide extent of the murderers' guilt
Despite Capote claiming it's all true, those involved know he changed and invented some parts (the ending is completely made up, for novelistic event o fa clean, rounded ending)
Embellishing Dewey and others (eg. Nye) felt side-lined - using Dewey as a protagonist in the trial and stand-in for himself so as not to include himself
Despite having strong objections to the death penalty, he didn't help their appeal process, C needed them to hang for a better ending
He refused to pay for defence lawyers for them even though he was so close
One journalist at the time said 'Capote got 2 million and his heroes got the rope'
Capote's biographer wrote Capote saw Perry as being like a mirror of himself "his shadow, his dark side, the embodiment of his own accumulated angers and hurts" - could explain closeness and attempt to create sympathy, more so than with Dick
Key quotes
"the same childish feet, tilting, dangling." p341 - imagery - creates a disturbing image, creates sympathy
"Perry possessed a quality, the aura of an exiled animal, a creature walking wounded" p341 - metaphor, alliteration - creates sympathy for Perry
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