Mother-Child Relationships In Truman Capote's In Cold Blood

On pages 307 to 308 of Truman Capote 's novel In Cold Blood, Mrs. Meier is conversing with a friend right after Dick and Perry are guilty of the murder. Mrs. Meier was discussing her relationship with Perry and after the verdict she isolates herself from having to see him. However, Perry becomes “embraced by [his] shame” (308) and cries in front of her, and Mrs. Meier helps comfort him. Perry becomes vulnerable, and she holds his hand like a mother trying to console her child. After Mrs. Meier forces herself to leave Perry alone, she felt heartbroken since no one was there to comfort him. The next day Perry feels standoffish as if he never broke down the day before, and the guards take him to the penitentiary. Right before Perry left, he thanks

Meier’s maternalism towards Perry shows compassion throughout the passage. She treats Perry as her child caring for him and comforting him when he cries, by her holding his hand, and saying she will “make him Spanish rice”(308). That helps Perry open up to Mrs. Meier about his feelings and lets him be himself without judgement from anyone else, just like a mother would not judge her child. In Mrs. Meier’s circumstances it’s most likely she had kids; however, they must be older and do not need that mother-child relationship so she fills that relationship with Perry. This comforts Perry since he never had a mother figure throughout his childhood, so when he receives compassion Perry becomes vulnerable and in return acts like Mrs. Meier’s child. She encourages him to be himself and express how he feels about his actions without anyone judging

It starts off with regular sentence structure describing the trial and her relationship with Perry; “how Perry and [Mrs. Meier] got to know each other real well”(308). Leading up to Perry 's breakdown, it transitions to choppy fragmented sentences describing every detail, when she did not want “to hear him. But [she] could. Crying like a child.”(308) creating a contrasted syntax in the passage. Capote tried to dramatize this breakdown by going from long, detailed to fragmented sentences, increasing the reader’s sympathy for Perry; since it describes him crying in his cell and reaching out his hand for Mrs. Meier to comfort him. When Perry becomes vulnerable towards Mrs. Meier, it humanized him creating more of a sympathetic character that is more understandable and relatable to a certain extent. It creates a softer side to Perry showing that he isn’t a heartless killer, Perry is a convict with a traumatic childhood that shapes his