In The Devil in the White City, a novel published in the year 2003, Erik Larson describes the greatness of both the World's Columbian Exposition of 1893 and one of America’s first serial killers, H.H. Holmes. In the novel, Larson uses juxtaposition, imagery, and repetition to emphasize the characteristics of good and evil for the reader.
In his implementations of juxtaposition, Larson directly contrasts the characteristics of opposing elements. In his contrast between “the moral” and “the wicked, Larson describes the argument between “free love” and “divorce” to show the degradation of the boundary between the two for the reader (12). His use of juxtaposition strengthens the similarities between good and evil. Characteristically, the argument …show more content…
For example, by repeating the phrase “so easy” in his description of crime, Larson emphasizes the facile amount of effort in committing evil acts during the greatness of the surrounding events of the fair (12). Emphasizing how darkness is easily covered up in the midst of the darkness surrounding the fair, Larson contrasts the greatness of the fair with the evil that surrounds it. This causes the contrast to highlight how ambitions were used in different ways during the fair, thus adding to the characteristics of both good and evil. Some used it to create greatness; others used it to take advantage of the darkness that overpowered their darkness. Consequently, this causes the reader to understand the characteristics of both the goodness and evil that coexisted during the events of the Chicago World’s Fair. Larson characterizes Holmes’s, the embodiment of evil in the novel, as breaking societal rules; thus, he repeats the word “too” as a means of describing each of Holmes’s actions used during his manipulation (36). This repetition serves to emphasize Holmes’s habit of breaking all of the rules, yet doing it in such a way that compliments the character of his extreme deftness. Larson’s repetition creates a parallel structure that adds to this fact, as every rule is broken equally. This highlights the social inappropriateness of Holmes’s actions for the reader, emphasizing how Holmes’s actions are an anomaly from the societal expectations of the behavior of a gentleman. Another characteristic of the embodiment of evil described in the use of repetition is Holmes’s ability to have “power” over his those that he wishes to manipulate (146). His facade is undetected by most, and Holmes’s feeds off of this ability. This dominance over others gives Holmes a kind of joy that he craves. Larson uses this repetition to highlight for the reader
In his implementations of juxtaposition, Larson directly contrasts the characteristics of opposing elements. In his contrast between “the moral” and “the wicked, Larson describes the argument between “free love” and “divorce” to show the degradation of the boundary between the two for the reader (12). His use of juxtaposition strengthens the similarities between good and evil. Characteristically, the argument …show more content…
For example, by repeating the phrase “so easy” in his description of crime, Larson emphasizes the facile amount of effort in committing evil acts during the greatness of the surrounding events of the fair (12). Emphasizing how darkness is easily covered up in the midst of the darkness surrounding the fair, Larson contrasts the greatness of the fair with the evil that surrounds it. This causes the contrast to highlight how ambitions were used in different ways during the fair, thus adding to the characteristics of both good and evil. Some used it to create greatness; others used it to take advantage of the darkness that overpowered their darkness. Consequently, this causes the reader to understand the characteristics of both the goodness and evil that coexisted during the events of the Chicago World’s Fair. Larson characterizes Holmes’s, the embodiment of evil in the novel, as breaking societal rules; thus, he repeats the word “too” as a means of describing each of Holmes’s actions used during his manipulation (36). This repetition serves to emphasize Holmes’s habit of breaking all of the rules, yet doing it in such a way that compliments the character of his extreme deftness. Larson’s repetition creates a parallel structure that adds to this fact, as every rule is broken equally. This highlights the social inappropriateness of Holmes’s actions for the reader, emphasizing how Holmes’s actions are an anomaly from the societal expectations of the behavior of a gentleman. Another characteristic of the embodiment of evil described in the use of repetition is Holmes’s ability to have “power” over his those that he wishes to manipulate (146). His facade is undetected by most, and Holmes’s feeds off of this ability. This dominance over others gives Holmes a kind of joy that he craves. Larson uses this repetition to highlight for the reader