ster abandoned his missionary parents and wandered, working anywhere he could, until he met Grace Brown. They had an affair. When she became pregnant, she moved into her parents' house. After she begged him to marry her, he took her on a "honeymoon" to the Adirondacks, where he planned to murder her. He caught before he began; he left her trunk and hat -- valuable evidence in public places. After registering under an obvious alias, they went boating, and he drowned her. He fled and stayed at the Arrowhead Hotel until his arrest three days later. During his trial, Chester said his girlfriend had committed suicide to escape public humiliation. The DA proved that he hit her with a tennis racket (which numerous people saw him carry). Chester was found guilty of first degree murder and electrocuted (newpisgah.keene.edu 1). Gillette's trial and An American Tragedy have surprising similarities. Chester's attorneys, girls, rich uncle, and settings were identical to Clyde's, albeit with minor name changes (www.albany.edu 1). Both Clyde and Chester had poor parents, fell in love with a garment-factory employees and a good-looking upper-class girls, botched their girlfriends' drownings, and were electrocuted. So, while Dreiser's theme was not original, his flair for using details to create involving, vivid novels is unparalleled. Dresser's most famous character is Clyde Griffiths. Clyde, the main character in An American Tragedy, is an attractive, morally weak, stupid 20-year old in the 1920s. His parents, a source of constant humiliation, are destitute preachers who force him to sing gospel hymns. Clyde knows that he has poor clothes, little education, and a blacklisted family, and is determined not to live his life in squalor, as his parents have. To do this, he must reject their beliefs and morals, which are certain to make him a failure. He begins his downward spiral while working in a malt shop. When girls are not attracted to him, Clyde, lon...
