Comparing the childhoods of Perry Smith and Dick Hickock, Truman Capote shows that although a strong family structure is the most important influence on a person's character , and ultimately it is up to each person to decide what their actions will be. Factors such as home structure, parental guidance, and socioeconomic background are often taken into consideration when trying to understand a killer's motive, but criminal behavior can come from anyone. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Many people believe that a stable family is the most important factor in raising a stable child, however, the contrast between Dick's secure family and Perry's broken home shows that both lives are capable of producing a criminal. Dick grew up in a “normal” home, with a mother, father and brother. Dick and his family, like the Clutters, had family meals and spent the evenings watching television together. Dick had everything he wanted as a child, and when he married, he and his wife continued to live their lives as if they could have everything they wanted. For this reason they were always in debt. To solve the problem, Dick began passing blank checks. If Dick had been taught that you don't always get everything you want, maybe he wouldn't have passed blank checks and ended up in prison where he met Floyd Wells and planned Clutter's murder. Perry's parents were rodeo stars, so he and his three older brothers traveled constantly. His mother became an alcoholic and his parents separated, his mother taking the children with her to San Francisco while his father remained in Alaska. Perry longed to be with his father, but when he went to live with his father in Alaska, things weren't as good as he imagined. He hated him because he didn't allow him to get an education and because he treated him like his slave. Perry turned to crime, perhaps as an act of rebellion, which landed him in prison where he met Dick Hickock. The way Dick's family never held him accountable for his actions, as well as the way Perry's family always gave him a hard time for his mistakes are both two extremes that could lead to the personalities of Dick and Perry when they committed the crime. Dick's family has always been supportive. The way Dick's family never held him accountable for his actions, as well as the way Perry's family always gave him a hard time for his mistakes are both two extremes that could lead to the personalities of Dick and Perry when they committed the crime. Dick's family always supported him, but never blamed him for his shortcomings. He was never held accountable for his actions. When Mr. and Mrs. Hickock tell Mr. Nye about Dick's childhood, they talk about how he divorced his first wife, Carol, for a woman named Margaret Edna. Regarding the divorce, Mrs. Hickock says: “Dick couldn't do anything about it. Remember how attracted Margaret Edna was to him.” (p.166) This shows that although they believed his first wife Carol was a lovely girl, they do not believe it is his fault for divorcing her and instead blame his second wife. They later observe that Dick has "a lot of good in him" and his father says he doesn't know what happened to Dick to turn him into a criminal. Dick's mother says, “That's what happened. (p.167) Dick's mother blames Perry for changing Dick from the good person he was, despite the fact that he gambled, wrote bad checks, and possibly cheated on his wife.