Extravagance of the Fair 5/30

Larson writes "In a great blur of snow and silvery glass the building's roof—that marvel of late nineteenth-century hubris, enclosing the greatest volume of unobstructed space in history—collapsed to the floor below." This quote portrays the magnitude and meaning of the structures the architects are building. After the Manufactures and Liberal Arts Building’s roof collapsed the architects felt that a piece of their pride was stripped away and that their goal to complete the fair seemed more impossible. Their motive to build something so extreme and unseen in the world propels them to continue this impossible task even when thrown more obstacles.

The entire fair itself is a true exhibition of American arrogance and superiority. The Columbian Exposition wanted to build the biggest fair in mankind and build a structure that beats the Eiffel Tower. They hired the best architects to design and build the extravagant structures and hired many cheap laborers for construction to meet the deadline time. One would think that this is a true sign of arrogance because they want to beat out other nations in construction and show off American national pride. Also, American architects wanted to show off their skills and superiority to other nation’s architects in construction by finding new and better methods to hold up structures and build them with speed. By demanding change and new solutions to problems, society always has an excess of pride. One person’s opinion may be different then another and this creates a clash between prides. This is very evident in building the Chicago Fair. Many proposals were considered when designing a structure to outmatch the Eiffel Tower. Eiffel also considered building another tower, but many times bigger. The architects declined his offer in a response of pride. They did not want the foreign replica of the Eiffel Tower, but something bigger and badder.

Such creative acts do create a darker, destructive parallel. Take for example the atomic bomb during World War II. Nuclear energy was a new and revolutionary technology during that time period. Research was conducted for the health, chemistry, and peaceful applications of nuclear energy. However, when the war broke out, the atomic bomb was created to kill a mass number of people instantly. Therefore, the application and pride taken in for researching nuclear energy was turned into a darker, destructive parallel. The Chicago fair was of similar fate as the atomic bomb. The creation of the fair was intended to serve people as a time for relaxation and fun, where they could get clean water and see extravagant things. The problem with the fair is that it brought a whole bunch of people together in a time period where security and safety were not big especially in Chicago. The police predicted a high rate of crimes at the fair for this reason, but the murders of H.H. Holmes were not considered. The expedition hoped for the fair to be a symbol of change and freedom in America, but their excessive pride towards the project brought evil. 

Extravagance of the Fair 5/30

Larson writes "In a great blur of snow and silvery glass the building's roof—that marvel of late nineteenth-century hubris, enclosing the greatest volume of unobstructed space in history—collapsed to the floor below." This quote portrays the magnitude and meaning of the structures the architects are building. After the Manufactures and Liberal Arts Building’s roof collapsed the architects felt that a piece of their pride was stripped away and that their goal to complete the fair seemed more impossible. Their motive to build something so extreme and unseen in the world propels them to continue this impossible task even when thrown more obstacles.

The entire fair itself is a true exhibition of American arrogance and superiority. The Columbian Exposition wanted to build the biggest fair in mankind and build a structure that beats the Eiffel Tower. They hired the best architects to design and build the extravagant structures and hired many cheap laborers for construction to meet the deadline time. One would think that this is a true sign of arrogance because they want to beat out other nations in construction and show off American national pride. Also, American architects wanted to show off their skills and superiority to other nation’s architects in construction by finding new and better methods to hold up structures and build them with speed. By demanding change and new solutions to problems, society always has an excess of pride. One person’s opinion may be different then another and this creates a clash between prides. This is very evident in building the Chicago Fair. Many proposals were considered when designing a structure to outmatch the Eiffel Tower. Eiffel also considered building another tower, but many times bigger. The architects declined his offer in a response of pride. They did not want the foreign replica of the Eiffel Tower, but something bigger and badder.

Such creative acts do create a darker, destructive parallel. Take for example the atomic bomb during World War II. Nuclear energy was a new and revolutionary technology during that time period. Research was conducted for the health, chemistry, and peaceful applications of nuclear energy. However, when the war broke out, the atomic bomb was created to kill a mass number of people instantly. Therefore, the application and pride taken in for researching nuclear energy was turned into a darker, destructive parallel. The Chicago fair was of similar fate as the atomic bomb. The creation of the fair was intended to serve people as a time for relaxation and fun, where they could get clean water and see extravagant things. The problem with the fair is that it brought a whole bunch of people together in a time period where security and safety were not big especially in Chicago. The police predicted a high rate of crimes at the fair for this reason, but the murders of H.H. Holmes were not considered. The expedition hoped for the fair to be a symbol of change and freedom in America, but their excessive pride towards the project brought evil. 

"Evils Imminent" Devil in the White City

          In the note "Evils Imminent," Erik Larson writes "Beneath the gore and smoke and loam, this book is about the evanescence of life, and why some men choose to fill their brief allotment of time engaging the impossible, others in the manufacture of sorrow" The authors purpose of including the note “Evils Imminent” directly at the beginning of the novel is to juxtapose the two main characters and establish that the story is non fiction and supported with strong facts and quotes. He also establishes that the novel takes place during the end of the nineteenth century, which is important because it was an industrial and dark time for struggling America. Larson directly compares and contrasts Burnham, an architect, and H.H Holmes, a serial killer. His compare and contrast in itself conveys the idea of good versus evil in the novel. Burnham is an architect faced with an immense challenge, to build the largest fair the world has never seen before. The challenges he faces could also represent evil such as union workers trying to prevent the exposition in protest to not hiring them, or the multiple building structure conflicts and domestic problems with architects. Burnham’s pursuit to build an almost impossible fair with a harsh deadline could symbolize good and America’s perspective to seek change.

         

            On the other hand, Holmes is established to be a serial killer. However, Larson notes that he was an archetype of the urban serial killer. Like Burnham, who left a strong impression on American architecture with his structures and the fair, Holmes left a strong impression on the typical murderer through his methods and wit. Larson further relates the two men by stating that Holmes did most of his killings at the Chicago Fair. Burnham intended the fair to be a symbol of American pride, where people in a dark time can go to have fun and relax. However the fair attracted such evil, especially in Holmes, because crimes were easy to commit there.

            Burnham and Holmes are similar in the way that they are very good at what they do although I wouldn’t consider Holmes to have a profession that is appropriate in society. Also, they have a very strong passion for their profession. They are different in a sense that Burnham pursuits his goal of building American structures for the good of mankind and the benefit of others. Holmes murders people for his self satisfaction and pleasure that he developed during his childhood years. Holmes is considered to be a charming, handsome guy who can talk his way out of anything. At first glance he is an ordinary man that is popular with the ladies and successful with his false business. He accumulates many debts by purchasing items through credit for his business and hiring workers then firing them. It is strange how police or other people could not catch his crimes any sooner. Maybe his actions represent how society tends to not get involved in the nasty actions of daily life. However, Burnham represents the portion of society that wants change and bigger and better things. The fair brings hope to a society that deals with evil forces everyday such as disease, murder, etc. Although critics claimed that his deadline was impossible, he still pursued to finish the exposition despite many challenges.