High School Massacre In Columbine, By Dave Cullen

On April 20, 1999, Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold left the world in a state of shock when they embarked on one of the most perilous school shootings in American history. The Columbine High School shooting left thirteen dead and a total of twenty-two injured. After this massacre took place, many wondered what triggered these boys to attack their own school, and if there was any way it could have been prevented. The novel “Columbine” by Dave Cullen illustrates why this may not have been possible. The attack on Columbine High School was inevitable because of the deranged behaviors of Eric Harris and Dylan Klebold.

Dylan and Eric had experienced previous encounters with law enforcement. Together they had been caught breaking into school lockers,

In fact, they had originally planned their attack for April 19, 1999 but pushed it back a day. Eric chose to postpone the attack in order to procure more ammunition (Cullen 35) so that it would be more spectacular. They boys even planned out their massacre in three separate acts, similar to a film (Cullen 33). During Act I, they hoped their bombs would detonate. Act II was when they planned to enter the school and open fire (Cullen 33-34), and Act III was designed almost as a fallback plan if they had not already taken their lives. To conclude their “performance”, they designed Act III, during which Eric and Dylan intended on driving their cars into the massive crowds that they expected to fabricate around the school. Their cars were equipped with bombs that would then explode, wiping out the crowds (Cullen 34). Eric referred to the public in his journal as their “audience”. Eric also wrote that he hoped their attack might “start a little rebellion or revolution” and that he wanted to “leave a lasting impression on the world” (Cullen 236). The boys knew exactly what they hoped to accomplish; their main goal was to leave an imprint on society. Knowing their desired outcome, Eric and Dylan’s efforts would have been nearly impossible to

This was because of how talented Eric and Dylan were in the art of manipulation. Nobody, not even the boys’ parents could have predicted what they were planning. Both boys appeared to have their futures planned. Eric was working on becoming a member of the Marines in order to please his parents, who were frustrated by his lack of consideration for his own future (Cullen 208). He even lied to a coworker, telling him that he planned to quit his job at Blackjack Pizza when he graduated. Eric told him that he wanted a job that better suited his future plans (Cullen 16). Dylan, on the other hand, planned to attend the University of Tucson for computer engineering. This acted as an illusion to prevent anyone from discovering where the boys truly hoped to be in the future: dead. Eric was especially deceptive, an almost pathological liar. He had the ability to make anyone believe anything he wanted. The two boys were able to pass a juvenile Diversion program after their van break-in arrest. They managed to convince their supervisors and a judge that they were deserving of their records being expunged (Cullen 219). Because of the fraudulent behaviors displayed by Eric and Dylan, the Columbine shooting was impossible to anticipate, and therefore, impossible to