Sometimes, people don’t see the truth of what’s happening right in front. Concerning H.H. Holmes’s case, Holmes uses charm and lies to get people to believe him. This allows him to commit murder. Erik Larson’s The Devil and the White City has Holmes’ thoughts as his victims. This darkens the perfect Holmes image with the darker reality of Holmes’ true intentions.
Larson allows his readers to see inside Holmes’ head to help them compare what he says with what he really feels. Larson reveals that Holmes was aware of his power over Julia in the novel’s first murder. It is clear that Holmes believes that he has control over Julia and that she cannot stop him from doing what he wants to do. The audience is now scared to see Holmes as insane. Holmes does not see these women as his own, but also as an object. Larson has one chapter entitled “Acquiring Minnie”, (198) which tells how Holmes seduced Minnie for him to kill her. Holmes also uses the term “acquired” for how he acquired high-quality furniture (198) to furnish his hotel. This compares Minnie with an inanimate piece furniture. It shows Holmes’ view of these women as objects to buy charm, gifts, and fake love. Larson hopes his audience will see Holmes in a negative light because of how he views these women. He hopes they will be able recognize Holmes’ true intentions and not just his fake plays. Larson mentions some very disturbing details regarding Julia’s murder. He describes how Holmes found it “singularly stimulating” (148). Julia responds and Larson says that the sensation was “pleasing and induced in his a warm languor, similar to what he felt after spending too much time in front of a stove” (148–149). Larson lets his readers see how Holmes got this sexual relief from suffocating a poor woman that he falsified and lied about in order to kill her. This description will make Holmes seem unlikable to his readers, and they may be more inclined to see him as a villain. By letting the audience see what the women are thinking, Larson hopes to make them see Holmes in a negative light. He tells the audience that he was “uniquely like her”. He was attractive, articulate, well-off, and clearly very well-off” (Larson 307. They can see that Georgiana believes Holmes to be a great man. Larson presents this point-of-view to the audience. It allows them to compare it with Holmes’s and discover how easily Holmes manipulated the women. Anna, another girl was skeptical of Holmes until he met her and his warmth, smile and obvious affection towards Minnie made [her] suspicions quickly disappear” (Larson, 264). “Holmes had such charm. Anna had the opportunity to meet him and saw his charm (Larson 292). He had something that made her feel, just like others before her. She was able to relax and not be suspicious of his actions, regardless of how skeptical the reader might be. But, the audience quickly realizes that Holmes invited Ana to his hotel. He is planning on doing something horrible. When Holmes asks Ana to enter his vault, it is clear that he intends on killing her (294). Holmes is so trustworthy that she doesn’t even think about danger. They trust Holmes so much that they are able to let go and walk to their own deaths. But it isn’t like this. Larson’s view of Holmes is what allows them to see the danger. These women may be responsible for their own deaths, since they are aware of Holmes’ tricks. The women are not to blame for their deaths, however, because Holmes charms them and causes them to believe he is trying to trick them. Larson lets his audience see inside Holmes and his victims minds so that they can both see the truth.
Holmes’s actions are never suspected by anyone. Charles Chappell is Holmes’s narcissistically confident. He hires him to turn a murder body into a skull. The corpse on the table “looked like a jack rabbit” and was skinned using the same method as a jack bunny. Larson tells his audience that Chappell didn’t mind the body because he knew Holmes was a doctor (151). He was fooled into believing that Holmes was just dissecting the body to conduct research. Holmes, convincing though he may appear, was able for someone to enter his torture chamber, view a dead body without skin, and not suspect Holmes. Larson includes the details about Holmes’ body in order to make it clear to the audience. Chappell, however, did not see anything. Larson also explains why Chappell didn’t think anything about the body. Chappell had no idea Holmes was a doctor, so it was quite normal to find a dismantled corpse on a floor in the basement. Larson’s glimpse into Holmes’ mind allows the audience to see the truth. The murders are right in front them. It is difficult to see that she is about being murdered even to the victim. Anna’s case is similar. Holmes locks Anna inside the vault. She continues to doubt that Holmes is a bad person. She “guessed that Holmes, unaware she was in such a dire situation, had left the building and gone somewhere else” (Larson 295). She assumed that would help her understand why he hadn’t come despite her beating. (Larson 295). Holmes’ charm and sly seduction have hypnotized her, but she can’t comprehend the real story. Because they have a glimpse into Holmes’ mind, the audience is able to see what is going on. They might not have known that Holmes is about to kill her if they had not given them a glimpse into Holmes’ mind. Larson provided them with an alternative perspective and they can see that the woman is on her way to being murdered. The audience discovers how little Holmes knew about this woman and is shocked to learn that he didn’t suspect her of any crime. The readers see Anna’s panic subside and Holmes thinking about Anna. Holmes contemplates whether or no to open the front door to Anna. The reader can clearly see the sadistic thought process as they observe the situation from Larson’s outside perspective. However, Anna was completely blind to this. Larson hopes that his readers will see through Holmes and his victims so they can discern the difference between Anna’s utopian reality and Holmes’ mad reality.
Larson allows the reader to see both sides of the same story: Holmes’ perspective and those of his victims. They see firsthand what happens in Holmes’ head. Larson portrays Holmes’ psychopathic nature as one who tortures and murders young women. Larson, on one hand, shares with his audience the thoughts and feelings of Holmes’ victims. They view him as a handsome young man who is charming and trustworthy. They don’t suspect any actions the reader might doubt. Larson shows both sides of Holmes’s story so that the reader can understand how he might pull off these murders. The audience is able to see that Holmes seduces young women to make sure they trust him. He will take their lives and profit from their innocence to commit murder.
