The Devil in the White City: Murder, Magic, and Madness at the Fair That Transmuted America is a 2003 non-fiction book by Erik Larson. Mr. Larson relishes to embroider the past. So he relentlessly fuses history and regalement to give this nonfiction book the dramatic effect of a novel, consummate with abundant cross-cutting and foreshadowing. Mundanely these might be alarming tactics, but in the case of this material they do the artifice. Mr. Larson has indicted a dynamic, enveloping book filled with haunting, proximately annotated information; it does not hurt that this truth genuinely is stranger than fiction. Larson’s purport in inditing this book is to show how concrete qualities are present in greatness, whether it be good or deplorable.
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Larson’s use of alternating structure helped create contrast between the two characters. It showed that their lives ran parallel to one another, but each had very different goals in mind. This technique allowed the reader to notice key similarities and differences between them by characterizing them one after another. The alternating structures for each character show’s different diction. In Burnham’s story, a more formal language is put in place, it is very set in stone. This word choice exemplifies that Burnham is a stable character. For Holmes the language is more unpredictable and sporadic, this naturally makes the reader more engaged in Holmes’ story. A metaphor that Larson uses throughout the book is the Hotel that Holmes constructs, which represents Holmes himself. The Hotel is beautiful on the outside, but inside it is actually a place corrupt with murders, which is similar to Homes since on the outside he is very handsome, but in reality, he is mentally unstable and a psychopath. The figurative language present throughout the book helps Larson show the distinct difference between Burnham and Holmes, it also helps to engage the audience more into the story. His style of language helps achieve his purpose, in showing how power and motivation can either benefit or corrupt oneself. Erik Larson’s intended audience is young adults and beyond that have an interest in Chicago’s history, who prefer reading about it in novel form rather than textbook form. The famous/historical people of this time period may appeal to an older audience while descriptions of Holmes’s murders may upset or make the younger crowd
Larson’s use of alternating structure helped create contrast between the two characters. It showed that their lives ran parallel to one another, but each had very different goals in mind. This technique allowed the reader to notice key similarities and differences between them by characterizing them one after another. The alternating structures for each character show’s different diction. In Burnham’s story, a more formal language is put in place, it is very set in stone. This word choice exemplifies that Burnham is a stable character. For Holmes the language is more unpredictable and sporadic, this naturally makes the reader more engaged in Holmes’ story. A metaphor that Larson uses throughout the book is the Hotel that Holmes constructs, which represents Holmes himself. The Hotel is beautiful on the outside, but inside it is actually a place corrupt with murders, which is similar to Homes since on the outside he is very handsome, but in reality, he is mentally unstable and a psychopath. The figurative language present throughout the book helps Larson show the distinct difference between Burnham and Holmes, it also helps to engage the audience more into the story. His style of language helps achieve his purpose, in showing how power and motivation can either benefit or corrupt oneself. Erik Larson’s intended audience is young adults and beyond that have an interest in Chicago’s history, who prefer reading about it in novel form rather than textbook form. The famous/historical people of this time period may appeal to an older audience while descriptions of Holmes’s murders may upset or make the younger crowd