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American Tragedy 85%

Clyde's trial.  His defense team decides to present him as a moral and physical coward.  He won't do the right thing by Roberta--at least not at first.  He saves himself when she falls in the water, fearful  she might pull him down.

Dreiser very cynical regarding the trial.  Clyde is rehearsed thoroughly and lies fairly convincingly. He says, for example, that he didn't plan for what happened.  Technically correct.  It all happened in a  different way than he had planned, but he did plan on killing her.  The prosecutor wants to make a political name for himself.  Sondra's family heads way out of the area.  Sondra becomes Miss X so that her name is not besmirched in the press. Clyde's uncle pays for the lawyers, but he stays completely away as well.

So many problems with Clyde's story:  Two hats (one floating in the water; one for his escape . . . leaving her luggage and bringing his own . . . lying about owning a camera . . . going to an ugly part of the lake, but secluded . . . hiding the tripod . . . false names, etc.)  He will certainly be convicted.

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