Summary Dick and Perry are incarcerated and await trial. Dick is put into the county jail, but in order to keep the two separated, Perry is put into a cell usually reserved for women at the home of the undersheriff, Wendle Meier, and his wife. Perry befriends the couple, who […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 4 – The CornerSummary and Analysis Chapter 3 – Answer
Summary Floyd Wells, a former cell mate of Dick Hickock, hears about the Clutter family murders and is struck with the realization that he knows who killed them and why. A former employee of Herbert Clutter, Wells remembers that he had told Dick about the Clutter family, revealing details about […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 3 – AnswerSummary and Analysis Chapter 2 – Persons Unknown
Summary Herbert Clutter’s three closest friends arrive at the Clutter home after the bodies have been removed and the police finish their initial investigation. They clean up the home and scrub it of all of the unpleasant reminders of the crime itself. Perry and Dick have gone to Mexico, as […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 2 – Persons UnknownSummary and Analysis Chapter 1 – The Last to See Them Alive
Summary The Clutter family is introduced on November 15, 1959, the day they were murdered, through the eyewitness accounts of friends and neighbors who spent time with them before the Clutters met their fates. They are a tight-knit, all-American family unit. Herb Clutter spends his day running the ranch, supervising […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 1 – The Last to See Them AliveCharacter List and Analysis Minor Characters
Willie-Jay A friend of Perry’s from a previous incarceration. Perry considers Willie-Jay to be a true kindred spirit, a smart man. Perry’s desire for a relationship like the one he had with Willie-Jay leads him to begin his journey with Dick. Floyd Wells A former cell mate of Dick Hickock […]
Read more Character List and Analysis Minor CharactersCharacter List and Analysis Alvin Adams Dewey
Head of the Clutter murder investigation, Al Dewey had been a sheriff of Finney County and a Special Agent of the F.B.I. He becomes completely obsessed with the Clutter case, spending all of his emotional energy — sometimes at the cost his family — on solving the crime: The clues, […]
Read more Character List and Analysis Alvin Adams DeweyCharacter List and Analysis Dick Hickock
One of the two murderers of the Clutter family, Dick is motivated by carnal impulses: lust, greed, vanity, and indulgence of any kind. He is the mastermind and instigator of the murders, having heard about a “big score” at the Clutter ranch. He is further motivated by the fact that […]
Read more Character List and Analysis Dick HickockCharacter List and Analysis Perry Smith
One of the two murderers of the Clutter family, Perry grew up under difficult circumstances. He was abandoned by his family and severely abused by nuns (who he develops a life-long aversion to) and other caregivers. He has a reoccurring dream about a large bird that saves him from bullies, […]
Read more Character List and Analysis Perry SmithCharacter List and Analysis Kenyon Clutter
The youngest of the Clutter children at 15, Kenyon is a loner. He has one friend, who he no longer sees often because the friend has recently taken a girlfriend. Kenyon is highly intelligent and likes to build and modify electronic gadgets and other machines.
Read more Character List and Analysis Kenyon ClutterCharacter List and Analysis Nancy Clutter
Daughter of Bonnie and Herbert Clutter and described as the “town darling,” Nancy is smart and beautiful, and she involved in the community. She is the class president, a leader of the 4-H program, a musician, and an excellent student. She is generous and kind to her friends and neighbors.
Read more Character List and Analysis Nancy Clutter