In The Devil In The White City, Erik Larson Tells The Story

In The Devil in the White City, Erik Larson tells the story of two men, an architect and a serial killer, operating in Chicago during the 1890’s This novel describes the years surrounding the building of the 1893 Chicago World s Fair, also known as The World s Columbian Exposition, which was designed to commemorate the landing of Columbus in America. It is divided into four parts with the first three primarily taking place in Chicago between the years 1890-1893. However, Part four of the novel takes the reader to Philadelphia circa 1895. In this novel, Larson helps readers make sense of what was new about big cities at the end of the nineteenth century—transportation, communication, electricity, anonymity—by showing how these aspects of†¦show more content†¦The irony that such a positive global statement could be at the same place at the same time as such terror as Dr. Holmes’s murders was daunting and it lured him to pursue this particular case. He says he would not have been interested in just doing a book about the Fair or just about Holmes. But together they made a unity of good and evil. Though Holmes is the obvious criminal in this novel, Larson doesn’t particularly characterize him that way. He is fairy neutral about taking sides, but he seems to lean more towards the side of holmes. He describes Holmes as a normal person, and he even gives him excuses for his actions and creates his persona as a gentle, kind man, which only emphasizes the battle between good and evil in his novel. In interviews, Larson has said that the most difficult part of writing The Devil in the White City for modern readers is explaining why Chicago wanted to host the World’s Fair so badly and only having the knowledge of it a person 108 years in the future could obtain. One reason for Chicago’s interest in hosting the World’s fair is that it wanted to prove itself to large established cities. Chicago was one of the largest cities in the country at the time, but it was established more than 200 years after New York City and Boston. Also, most of the wealthy families in Chicago made their money from slaughterhouses — not the most glamorous profession. By hosting the 1893 World’s Fair, Chicago wanted to show that it had its own uniqueShow MoreRelatedThe Book Thief And Erik Larson1639 Words   |  7 Pagesantivenin itself. It is all about perspective to how you view life. Markus Zusak, author of the Book Thief and Erik Larson, author of The Devil in the White City use perspective to show how people can personify an identity, treatment of others and never change regardless of time. In light of using perspective to identify, we see people in the Book Thief and The Devil in the White City that have a positive and negative attitude towards life because of events. In chapter the grave digger’s handbookRead MoreRhetorical Analysis Of The Devil In The White City764 Words   |  4 PagesDevil in the White City Rhetorical Analysis Essay How can two people be so different, yet so similar? The World’s Columbian Exposition was a major event in the 19th century. The fair was something that’s never been done before in history triumphing the famous Eiffel Tower. As spectacular as the fair was there were murders being committed without any signs of slowing down. The Devil in the White City tells a story between the architect Daniel Burnham and the infamous serial killer H.H. Holmes. ErikRead MoreThe Devil In The White City; Murder, Magic, and Madness At The Fair That Changed America1329 Words   |  6 Pagessuccess. In his book, The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair that Changed America, Erik Larson’s portrays Burnham’s obsession with grandeur as a key part of his persona to emphasize why he was the right man for the job. Larson includes examples of Burnham’s high opinions of grandeur and elegance, as well as his understanding of their greater effect on the general public to highlight why he was the right choice for lead architect. For example, Larson includes a scene aboardRead MoreAnalysis Of The Book The Devil Of The White City : Murder, Magic, And Madness At The Fair2200 Words   |  9 PagesBurnham. He led America to do great things in architectural design. These two are very different, but they are brought together in the turbulent and chaotic environment of Chicago in the late 1800’s. The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Changed America by Erik Larson is a Non-Fiction book, but it gives essential information necessary to understand where the concepts of architectural design and the depraved mind of serial killers began in the U.S.. The book reviewsRead MoreAnalysis Of Erik Larson s The Devil 1250 Words   |  5 PagesJournal Entry #1 Erik Larson has organized The Devil in the White City chronologically, alternating between the construction of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair and the evolution of a serial killer. In doing so, Larson is able to explore the details of the fair in-depth, while keeping the interest of the reader. By using this organizational structure, Larson is also able to tell the gruesome tale of a serial killer without scaring away his audience. Overall, the pairing of these two stories helps to balanceRead MoreDevil in the White City1839 Words   |  8 PagesEssay Erik Larson states, â€Å"The juxtaposition of pride and unfathomed evil struck [him] as offering powerful insights into the nature of men and their ambitions.† This quote relates to the premise of his book The Devil in the White City, which tells two different stories based around a central theme of the World’s Fair in Chicago in 1893. One tells of the adventures and horrors that came with being the important figures behind the production of something as great as the exposition. The story focusesRead More The Truth About Serial and Mass Murders Essay1033 Words   |  5 Pagesbook, The Devil in the White City, Larson says that â€Å"Holmes was warm and charming and talkative, he touched the women with a familiarity that while perhaps back at home would have been offensive, now seemed quite alright in the new city of Chicago† (Larson, 245). R.M and S.T. Holmes observe that â€Å"serial killers give themselves no discernible traits form the other people in socie ty; they walk into the lives of many, invited then fatally dispatched with little concern.† Just like Larson said HolmesRead MoreSerial Killers Nature Versus Nurture1843 Words   |  8 Pagesin their mid-twenties, and they like to murder their own color in the article, Serial Killers, they stated â€Å"Most serial killers are male between their mid-twenties to their thirties. Most murders of this kind do not cross racial lines; whites tend to murder whites and blacks murder blacks, etc. Most serial killers begin by hunting down victims close to home (Serial Killers).† The serial killer will try to understand the victim’s lifestyle and their habits, behaviors that will explain more about hisRead MoreBuilding the World Fair in The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson 2548 Words   |  11 PagesThe Devil in the White City, Erik Larson Prologue The prologue begin aboard the Olympic following a man named Daniel Burnham on April 4, 1912. Burnham is suffering of severe pain in his foot. Burnham tries to send a message to his friend Millet who is aboard the Titanic, but the message was not allowed to be sent. Burnham thinks back to the fair and reminisces of the people that helped with the fair and thinks about who is still alive from the fair. Part 1 The first chapter introduces ChicagoRead MoreAmericas First Serial Killers2909 Words   |  12 Pagesfor. Most of the rooms had gas vents that could let off lethal or sleep inducing gases, the vents could only be controlled from a closet in Holmess bedroom. [9] Many of the rooms were soundproof and could not be unlocked from inside. It was a three-story building with shops on the first floor and a bizarre labyrinth of windowless rooms, false floors, secret passages, trapdoors, a well-equipped surgery area as well as several instruments of torture, such as an elasticity determinator, a contraption