Compare And Contrast Burnham And The Devil In The White City
Isaac Shaw
October 9, 2014
Hist 2020 Dr. Paulauskas
Paper #1
In the 1890’s, America was starting to experience changes leading to new revelations in the way it functioned in mass communication, mass transportation, and urbanization. In Erik Larson’s The Devil in the White City, he brings the seemingly different stories of two men in this time period, one a mass murder, H.H. Holmes and, the other a grand architect, Daniel Burnham to explain how America was changing into a more modern era. First, both Burnham and Holmes used the popularity of urbanization to achieve their individual goals. In Burnham’s case, he needed to bring together large amounts of people into one place and have those people pridefully working towards one common goal.
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Burnham would have failed in building the World’s Fair without the use of modern building techniques that allowed him to build structures on a grand scale. He employed the use of his deceased partner John Root’s new floating foundation technique to build the World’s Fair structure to new heights and sizes (Larson 129). On the other hand, H.H. Holmes used modern stove techniques in order to efficiently burn the bodies of his victims in his kiln. He achieved this from enlisting the help of a furnace professional to assist in obtaining a sufficient internal temperature in the kiln to burn a human body without a trace (Larson …show more content…
In order to get the message out to the American people, one would need a form of mass communication in order to be effective. Holmes and Burnham exploited the fact that America had gained mass literacy and new exposure to mass media forms such as newspapers and telegraphs. Holmes ran a fairly successful business based upon customers sending and receiving medical orders through the mail system (Larson 92). He would have had to drastically alter his business model if people did not have the ability to read, write, and communicate to the business in the reasonable manner. Burnham, in a similar fashion, relied on the success of Frank Millet, his director of functions, to advertise and market to get more people through the gates of the fair (Larson 241). Frank Millet needed to get out a message to the people that the fair was the place to go, and he did this through promoting festive themed events and days such as the Midway Ball, which gained quite a bit a newspaper based press (Larson
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1335 Words | 6 PagesThinking logically, the fair would open up jobs to thousands of people. It brought many tourists from not only the country, but from around the globe. This improved the economy. This was also the case in The Devil in the White City with the characters Daniel Burnham and John Root. They were partners in architecture, and they took charge of the exposition’s architecture.
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The Devil In The White City Book Review
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861 Words | 4 PagesIn addition to educational exhibits, the fair also provided an opportunity for entertainment. The world 's first Ferris wheel performed on the fair 's Midway, as did a zoo, a fun house, and a swimming pool. Not only did foreign countries send authorized displays, entrepreneurs also accumulated displays depicting life in the villages of less prosperous countries. Many people who went to the fair took side tours to see shows, which had set up just outdoor the fair grounds. The fair made Chicago the nation 's informal capital in the summer of 1893, but by the spring of 1894 the city was again mainly known for its ongoing struggle between employers and workers.
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870 Words | 4 PagesErik Larson writes “Beneath the gore and smoke and loom, this book is about the evanescence of life, and why some men choose to fill their brief allotment of time engaging in the impossible, others in the manufacture of sorrow”(Larson xi). In the book The Devil and the White City, Erik Larson tells a story of 2 very determined men, Daniel Burnham and H. Holmes, using their talents and determination to create good results, but also bad results; one being a very successful and good spirited architect, the other being a witty evil serial killer. It reveals how in every good act or intention, there is some kind of evil, and also the other way around. Erik Larson explores the underlying difference between good and evil, while telling 2 tales of Daniel Burnham, and Henry H. Holmes Daniel Burnham and Henry H. Holmes are alike in many ways, as explored throughout the novel. Both of these men used their determination and skills to accomplish many things, good or bad.
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