Blog due last Wednesday ****ABSENT****

In the note "Evils Imminent," Erik Larson writes "Beneath the gore and smoke and loam, this book is about the evanescence of life, and why some men choose to fill their brief allotment of time engaging the impossible, others in the manufacture of sorrow" [xi]. What does the book reveal about "the ineluctable conflict between good and evil"? What is the essential difference between men like Daniel Burnham and Henry H. Holmes? Are they alike in any way?

The Devil in The White City describes how wherever there is good, there is evil. The Chicago World Fair was being built out of good reasons, mainly to show the world the greatness and power of America. However, while the World Fair was being built, a serial killer had other plans on how to use it to his own advantage. As Larson begins his story of the two men in Chicago, he uses the intro to tell the reader that this novel will contain the good of men (Burnham), and the evil that will both show in Chicago (Holmes). In The Devil in the White City, Burnham is the creator of a magnificent, seemingly impossible feat- the creation of an entire town of epic size and architectural genius. The most important difference between these two men is that Burnham chooses to create beauty, while Holmes chooses to destroy it. Through the concept of light and darkness, Larson shows Chicago as how the city will be perceived by the rest of the world. With Burnham, the symbol of goodness, Larson turns Chicago into the White City, filled with structures that are attempting to gain worldwide glory for America at the World Fair that year. But Larson then ruins Chicago’s image by introducing the devil, Holmes, to the White City. Both have a continuous battle for the prize of Chicago and its legacy, and each man attempts to achieve their goals because they have their eyes on the prize and have to be the best at what they do. They both become well-known by pursuing their passion and by living their lives in the ways they wanted too. Both men, Burnham and Holmes, are blue eyed and passionate. Each of their respective passions is beheld in very different ways to each man; the passions are murder and architecture. Holmes believes in murder as perfection while Burnham believes in perfection through building. Every chance Burnham gets he is working, thinking, visualizing the fair.

These two men are the perfect examples of “the ineluctable conflict between good and evil.” Burnham was an honest man working for an honest and good cause. He came to the White City with the desire to live the life of the American dream. He fulfilled his goals and was chosen to be the leader of designing the Columbus Exposition. He was in charge of the important project to not only make his city, but also his country a symbol of honor, achievement, and pride.  Through this task that was bestowed upon him, he engaged the impossible and succeeded; the pressure that his world bore down on him turned him into the hero of the White City, Chicago. Where Burnham sought nobility, Holmes sought sorrow. While Holmes had the tools he needed to become anything or anyone because he had unmatched charm and humor that stood second to no one.  Astonishingly, he had no enemies whatsoever, because even they were subject to the influence of Holmes’ charm. Henry Holmes decided that the only challenge to him was the challenge of a human’s humanity.  Murder was the only true stimulant that this man had, killing was his only stimulation. Holmes is the antithesis of our hero Burnham.