Use Of Syntax In Truman Capote's In Cold Blood

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Imagine staring at a breathtaking landscape, where it feels like time could go on forever. Now, imagine being late for an important event where it feels like the clock will not stop ticking and the numbers move with every glance. With the sentiments of these two emotions in mind, Capote exemplifies both of the essences of these situations throughout In Cold Blood through his use of syntax. He can take the reader through his long and drawn-out syntax to describe settings or characters extensively, creating a timeless and descriptive scene; however, he also creates a change of pace at the climactic moments of the book by modifying his sentences to become shorter. Therefore, the syntax that Truman Capote uses throughout In Cold Blood is used to change the tone and pace of the story to help elevate the significance of the plot. Throughout the first part of In Cold Blood, “The Last to See Them Alive,” the reader can find extensive descriptions of the characters and setting. Much of the first forty pages is Capote giving elaborate descriptions of the Clutters and of the Holcomb area. For example, Capote gives us insight on Nancy’s personality when one of the …show more content…

The first example of this would be as early as the second part. Jonathan Daniel Adrian and Dewey broke into the Clutter home to investigate the murder case; however, the length of the sentences shorten dramatically at this point to place significance during this moment. Adrian says to Dewey at this point, “Well, mister, seems like we’ve got something to discuss” and afterwards Capote writes “Because, inside the car, what they’d found was a .12-gauge shotgun. And a hunting knife” (Capote 123). During this scene, the reader can see the decreased sentence length followed by an abrupt ending to cut back to Dick and Perry’s adventures in

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