Similarities Between Smith And Hickock In Truman Capote's In Cold Blood

In In Cold Blood by Truman Capote, the characters Smith and Hickock, while both criminals involved in the killing of the Clutters, are portrayed quite differently. It is clear that Capote favors Smith. Throughout the book, Smith is written in a way that could incite sympathy within the reader while Hickock is shown to be a remorseless, irredeemable killer. Nevertheless, there are moments in which Smith seems as if he doesn’t deserve sympathy, such as when he shows no remorse for his actions, but overall, Capote spends a majority of the book humanizing him while simultaneously antagonizing Hickock. Some could argue that this story is not established as that of victims and villains but that it focuses more on whatever is relevant to telling the

Hickock is ultimately the one character that is displayed to have the more evil nature, though. For example, Smith and Hickock both have thoughts of committing additional murders after the initial murder of the Clutters. Nevertheless, Hickock is the only one who actually acts upon these thoughts; while driving, he goes out of his way to hit and kill stray dogs. Moreover, Smith is depicted as a man with mental illness. Capote writes, “His present personality structure is very nearly that of a paranoid schizophrenic reaction.” Though this does not exclude him from punishment for his crimes, it can provide a better understanding of the workings of Smith’s mind. Another time in which Smith is criminalized is when he is shown to have no remorse for killing the Clutters. However, at the end of the book, right before his execution, Smith apologizes for his actions. Of course, his apology does not justify his actions, but it does show that he feels guilt and possibly regret. Though the evil nature of both Smith and Hickock are acknowledged by Capote, he clearly aimed to stress the corruption of Hickock more than that of