The Devil In The White City Character Analysis

Throughout the course of his The Devil in the White City, Erik Larson describes Chicago’s 1893 World’s Fair through the eyes of two different main characters: Herman Webster Mudgett—a psychopathic serial killer who builds his famous “death castle” on the outskirts of the fairgrounds, and Daniel Burnham—the director of works for the World’s Columbian Exposition. Larson employs the use of many contrasting themes within his writing including success and failure, but perhaps most importantly, murder and beauty. In order to emphasize said themes, Larson juxtaposes the accounts of his two main characters: Mudgett and Burnham.

There is no doubt that the manner in which Larson portrays Mudgett is sketchy at best. Rather than introducing him with a concise description, Larson familiarizes the reader with Mudgett over the course of several chapters. Mudgett’s upbringing and early adulthood are explained with an ominous tone and diction, serving to foreshadow his fraudulent and horrific behaviors and character trait. Larson uses specific events that took place during Mudgett’s childhood—such as his first run-in with a corpse and his loss of fear towards anatomy, as well as his mostly solitary home

W. Mudgett. Extensive detail is included regarding the differences between each character—their personalities, desires, and behaviors—that allow the reader to synthesize information such as why Mudgett has psychopathic tendencies and why Burnham was raised differently from Mudgett, thus contributing to his contrasting actions and roles within the story. As the plot progresses, Burnham is blessed with success as the World’s Fair attracts thousands of visitors and provides humanity with a certain “pride.” Mudgett, conversely, uses the World’s Fair as an opportunity to fulfill his own sick interests. Burnham gives to humanity, while Mudgett drains his fellow