Thank you for taking the time to read my post and form such an inviting question. I believe H.H. Holmes is the most intriguing character in DWITC for the following reasons:
- Who doesn't like the occasional psycho murderer, eh?
- The stark contrast between Holmes and the rest of the characters; granted, Burnham exhibits a form of cold, analytic evaluation of the workers, much like Holmes does with his laborers, but the extent to which the indifference reaches varies greatly between the two characters. Also....
- 2 Marriages: Holmes knowingly marries his second wife, fully cognizant of the fact that he still has a legal marriage in the books. Also, he essentially forgets about both women, only keeping up with the second - Myrna, to use her family's money for further diabolical plans. And lets not forget, Holmes planned to kill the same relative that lent him the money.. You mentioned Holmes obsession with women, and it is this extreme obsession with females, and people in general, that distinguishes Holmes from the rest. I think the obsession is out of necessity, Holmes needs constant contact with people to feed his desire for manipulation. He is social, to the point where people just cant help but like him, and then he ruins their lives. At the same time, there is the disregard for life, as he takes them willingly and without remorse.
- Treatment of workers: Holmes has blatant disregard for being fair to his workers. He constantly fires them, doesn't pay them, and even tries to convince one laborer to kill another.. (highly doubt he was joking). On the other hand, Burnham atleast takes into consideration building housing for the laborers, and other basic necessities. Burnham's view on the laborers is more analytic than cold, most likely due to his time constraint for the exposition.
- Nihilist? : Not really sure if this is the right term for Holmes, but I will try and explain. My evaluation of a Nihilist is one that has no regard for rules, social or legal. Holmes is a walking contradiction to the values of Americans at the time; blatantly breaking trust, manipulating, and killing many innocent people. Holmes is representative of what America was becoming; more dark, more sinister, more evil. Also, legal issues did not bind Holmes. Marriage and Adultery? Who cares?! Paying back loans? Who cares?! Selling proper medicines? Who cares?! And it is not as if Holmes is not capable of paying back loans or debts, he is rich! I think it is all a game to Mr. Holmes. As you can see... the man just does not care. After all, he can charm anything and anyone, so why would he need to follow rules?
Governor, I hope I have provided a decent outline as to why Holmes is the most interesting character in Larson's book The Devil In The White City.
President Mugwump
Jay Bahl
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