H. Holmes By Joseph Larson: An Analysis

In this passage, Larson officially introduces the character of H. H. Holmes as he roams around a Chicago train station. Larson’s purpose in this passage is to characterize H. H. Holmes’s persona as well as his tendencies around women in order to foreshadow his behaviors later in the book. According to Larson, Holmes possessed a sense of confidence that- in addition to his good looks- naturally attracted many women. He had, “dark hair and striking blue eyes,” and with his confidence as well as his sense of fashion, Holmes often created the impression, “of wealth and achievement.” Larson then employs a metaphor, connecting great murderers to having, “blue eyes,”- alluding that since Holmes has “striking blue eyes,” he is possibly a great murderer; he also uses a metaphor to compare Holmes’s eyes to those of a “Mesmerist,” connotating that he possesses a powerful sense of control over people- particularly over women.
He explains that Holmes used this appeal to attract countless women and break rules of casual intimacy by- standing too close, staring too hard and touching too much and too long- yet women, “adored him for it.” Larson uses these details to relate the passage to one of the central themes of the Devil in the White City- sanity and insanity. H. H. Holmes appeared to be the perfect man (sanity) to many young, naive, single women in Chicago and he played on their conceptions of him to get them to trust him, and eventually lure them into the basement of his Chicago building to brutally murder them (insanity). Furthermore, Holmes used his perceived persona to keep suspicions of his true personality and “private obsessions,” to a minimum and take advantage of countless people. Reading this passage made me feel