Perry Smith is one of the two Clutter family murderers. He is 31 at the time of the killings and of mixed Irish and Cherokee descent, with dark hair and eyes and a “perky nose” (18). Though short, Perry is powerfully built from the waist up. His legs, on the other hand, are “stunted” due to a motorcycle accident, and his feet are small enough to “[fit] into a delicate lady’s dancing slippers” (17).

Perry’s physical appearance functions as a shorthand for his personality, which similarly blends conventionally masculine and feminine traits. Perry is quiet, dreamy, and sensitive; he plays the guitar, sings, and entertains romantic fantasies about diving for lost treasure. These “feminine” qualities are particularly apparent in the context of Perry’s relationship with Dick, with whom he is generally passive and deferential, and for whom he possibly harbors romantic or sexual feelings. At the same time, Perry served in the Merchant Marine and Army and is capable of an aggressiveness that far surpasses any of Dick’s tough talk. Although Dick plans the robbery of the Clutter home and insists that they come prepared to kill any witnesses, it is Perry who actually carries out the murders.