The story of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde could be seen as a warning to other societies around the world not to become so overwhelming and repressive and not to keep of all our emotions kept in. Jekyll says, “My Devil had long been caged, and now it came out roaring” about the murder of Sir Danvers Carew. This shows the consequences of not listening to your inner self. The novel was especially popular in Victorian times because it was relevant to the Victorian reader as it examines Victorian hypocrisy. It also places emphasis on the general sense of unease experienced by the reader, caused by the Victorian society which would have thought that trampling on a little girl was horrific whereas today we see a lot worse things on the television so it doesn’t have the same effect on us.
Unlike most stories this is not only written in one narrative; it is written from multiple viewpoints. It is written in the third person, and there are two narrators, Dr Jekyll and Mr Lanyon. Mr Utterson and Mr Enfield also provide the reader with different perspectives to the story. They are both caught up in the drama as it unfolds and give the reader secondary insight into the events surrounding Dr Jekyll. The amount of narrators could represent that Dr Jekyll keeps changing so we get a new view on the story. Stevenson may changes narrator to keep some of the story hidden from the audience such as the twist that the Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde are the same person.
The idea of evil hiding behind a mask is also portrayed by Stevenson in the novel. He represents this idea by using the two main protagonists in the novel, Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. We see Dr Jekyll using Mr Hyde as a mask to hide himself away from society so he does not get caught doing something that he should not be doing. However, this idea can be interpreted in another way. Dr Jekyll could be seen as representing the mask of society and Mr. Hyde could be the evil inner self we all fear. This would mean that Jekyll is the mask hiding his real self, Mr Hyde, from society. Whatever way you interpret it, both characters in the book are still hiding their truths behind a mask.
The story of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde was greatly influenced by Robert Louis Stevenson’s dream but could have also been influenced by his home town, Edinburgh. Edinburgh at that time had a split ‘character’ because the wealthy lived in the respectable part of town and the poor lived in the squalid part. The uptown half of Edinburgh was a respectable well thought of place to live and this was where Stevenson’s family lived. The down-town part, however was full of prostitution, drug use, and late night over-drinking. Stevenson might have taken advantage of this area in youth and possibly may have lived a double lifestyle, maybe under a false name, a similar idea to Jekyll and Hyde. Another factor to support this point is that drug use and abuse was increasing during Stevenson’s time, and an example of this in the story is the use of opium. This highly addictive drug was frequently prescribed, even to children to help them sleep. This displays Jekyll’s growing addiction to his potion in this story, which would turn him into Mr Hyde. The drug use also could show that Stevenson was trying to warn the Victorian society of the drug problem rising in their society. This is also why the story relates to today as thee are still drug problems in today’s society.
There is the idea that science is evil in “The Strange Case Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde” is debateable as we see that Dr Jekyll does manage to conjure up a potion which creates pure evil, but he also says that if, “I risked the experiment while under the empire of generous or pious aspirations, all must have been otherwise, and from these agonies of death and birth I had come forth an angel instead of a fiend.” This tells us that if he used the potion when he was in a good or religious mood, then Mr Hyde would be more like an angel rather than a satanic being. This shows that the potion could have been used for good so science can be good or evil depending on how and when you use it. Another example of this is with drugs mentioned earlier. The current relevance is the fact that people still get addicted to drugs, and go far out of their way, and character, to get these drugs once they have become addicted. Addictions, like Dr Jekyll’s potion, can easily become out of control and then take over your body. This quite clearly shows that drugs are bad however drugs are being used to heal and control major diseases that we see today.
Stevenson uses a lot of words relating to hell in the story especially towards Mr Hyde who is “like Satan” and “hellish”. He does this because almost all of the Victorian society believed in God, and if someone or something was possessed or described in that way, they were seen as the most pure, and hated evil. Victorians would not even talk about evil but would fear it from the depth of their hearts. Today, however, we take satanic references very lightly and the word “devil” can almost be seen as a compliment. The references in “The Strange Case Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde” highlight the sheer abnormality of Mr Hyde, and keeping the reader interested by making him so evil. Even though a Victorian reader would find Mr Hyde more evil than a reader of today’s society, but the book is still very relevant to today. The concept of “Good versus Evil” has always been around as a common occurrence, and is seen in many stories or television programmes today. Robert Louis Stevenson was raised in a very strict Presbyterian home where the concept of God and Satan was all around him. This may also be why he has been influenced by satanic references. Even today we see this in story lines such as “Lord of the Rings” where the reason we are so gripped to the edge of our seats and anxious to find out what will happen next is because we are concerned for the main characters and fear evil may take over. Stevenson uses this conflict between both sides of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde to maintain the reader’s interest and has managed to do so for years.
Stevenson also managed to make a pun out of two main protagonists’ names in the story which can be interpreted in many ways. The words, Jekyll and Hyde, when written as Hyde and Jekyll, show a resemblance with the term “Hide and Seek”. This pun is appropriate because the reader is constantly in search of the true meaning behind Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde but the mystery would “Hyde” itself. Dr Jekyll also “Hydes” his inner self, represented by My Hyde, from society. Jekyll also “Hydes” behind the mask mention earlier to protect him from the law and his extremely precious reputation. The word “Hyde” could also relate to the description “hideous”, which associates itself with what Hyde really is and shows physiognomy straight away even before you read the story.
Mr Hyde appears to get stronger and more secure throughout the novel. He starts out perpetrating his first felony at “three o'clock of a black winter morning,” when “there was literally nothing to be seen but lamps.” His second offence was in the “early part of the night” when people were still up as a maid saw him. The maid said “It seems she was romantically given” about the night. It is interesting that Stevenson uses the word “romantically” in this quotation as it was completely opposite to what happens next where a man was brutally murder with a very tough and heavy piece of wood. The second attack was clearly earlier and at a time where people are awake which proves he felt that he was not going to get caught therefore he was more confident. This makes the reader think Mr Hyde is getting a lot stronger and that he is going to get caught for what he has done. It also makes the plot thicken as the reader knows a big event will follow but doesn’t really know what.
Throughout the story there are many hints of the link between Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, which the modern reader would pick up on, because we already know the backbone of the story. The Victorian reader, however, would not be as understanding, and could be oblivious until the end of the book when the secret is revealed. This helps sustain the reader’s interest because they would want uncover the mystery behind Stevenson’s story.
The story of Dr Jekyll and Hyde is very cleverly planned and has an unexpected twist at the end. Stevenson cleverly presents good and evil throughout the story. He uses various intelligent techniques that affect the reader, drawing them into the story. One of these is physiognomy which would have been very relevant to the Victorian society as it was a common factor. Stevenson also uses hypocrisy which opposes the idea of physiognomy and questions the idea. Hypocrisy also makes the reader think about the good and evil part of a person and tries to show that every person has a good and evil side. Stevenson also refers to reputation in the story and makes it out to be a potentially evil thing. He gives the impression that reputation is so desirable that people would do something evil to have or keep it. The idea that science is also potentially evil if used in the wrong way is used in the “The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde” shown by the creation of Mr Hyde. This is also shown by drugs which are good if used for healing purposes but are bad as people get addicted to them.
From analysing the book I can see that the story Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is a well written and well thought out book. It begins strongly and sets the scene for disaster, then ending with a surprising and sickening twist which is that Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde are the same person. The story can be understood in two ways: As an individual person, Dr Jekyll represents the mask we prefer to present to ourselves, and Mr. Hyde is the inner self that we all fear. Alternatively, it can be interpreted as Dr Jekyll being the mask which hides Mr Hyde from society. Either way it is seen, the story is about the duality of man, where we all have a dark, wicked side within us, which we hide away, and pretend does not exist. This idea is used by Stevenson to great effect. The story can act as a warning to other societies not to become so oppressive, as Victorian society was, so that something similar to Mr Hyde does not happen. Stevenson presents good and evil in the story through Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. For this story evil is described as potentially more powerful than good, and controls Dr Jekyll who is portrayed as the good character. Stevenson immediately describes Dr Jekyll as a doctor, which the reader would associate to a trustworthy and moral person who would be well respected. Dr Jekyll would have taken an oath to help and save lives. Mr Hyde, however, did the opposite. He took lives instead of protecting them. Evil slowly triumphed, leaving Henry Jekyll described by Dr Lanyon as "...like a man restored from death."
What Stevenson is saying about good and evil
Good and evil is in all of us (some would say that Stevenson shows belief in the Christian doctrine of the original sin) so everyone has the potential to do bad things) so everybody has potential to do bad things.
Good and evil are linked to religion/ spirituality
Good and evil cannot exist without another person ying/yang
Pure evil cannot associate with others – it cannot have friends
No one is purely evil (Hyde is pure evil and the product of a scientific experiment – Jekyll always has some good in him, even where his evil/Hyde side gets stronger and stronger
Once you give in to your instinctive desires, you can never contain them - they will get stronger and stronger
People make choices about their behaviour
These choices may be influenced by personality
These choices are/are not influenced by upbringing (not everyone in the class agreed on the question of upbringing – what’s the evidence?)
People react to the same events in different ways – Hyde takes pleasure in violent action, Jekyll is “aghast”. What about the other character
Beauty = goodness, ugliness= evil but, does Stevenson present good and evil in this way for he purpose of his novella/ or because he believed it.
Humans being made assumptions based on the physical appearance of others
Society wants you to conform – moral code of a society represses you instinctive desires, suppresses our real characters; is this a necessary evil? Is Stevenson critical of the society in which he writes?
The more repressive society is, the more extreme people become
Science is neutral – It depends on how it is used as to whether it is going to be used for good or ill
How Stevenson shows good and evil
Characterisation portrayal of Hyde – physical appearance, animal imagery, explicit references to hell and Satan, Utterson’s nightmare, repeated ideas/ descriptions of his deformity and his effect on other people, use of vocabulary to show his delight in awful acts
Characterisation Jekyll and Hyde are the same person – Hyde was always “lurking” within Jekyll
Characterisation portrayal of Jekyll – physical appearance of character of high status (why?) 1st person narrative gives insight into his thoughts – why does S do this? Jekyll suddenly starting to be religious, his addiction to the drug, contrast with Lanyon in his scientific interests
Setting/ Symbolism at first, evil acts committed at night, in the fog, etc – as Hyde gets stronger, he emerges on a beautiful sunny day – Stevenson overturns literary conventions to shock the reader and show how powerful Hyde has now become – look at the language used
Setting/ Symbolism the two sides of Jekyll’s house (front door/door to laboratory) and streets symbolises his two sides and reflect each one of appropriately – look at the language used
Contrast between what happens to Hyde’s/ Jekyll’s physical appearance and health
Contrast between Hyde’s appearance and that of MP Sir Danvers Carew - look at the language used
Structure
Narrative
Hyde offers him the chance to live in ignorance without the knowledge of what is truly happening between Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, however at the risk of death Lanyon watches as Jekyll drinks his potion. Lanyon is so horrified and disgusted that he can not come to terms with what he saw and then dies two weeks later.
It focuses on the dual personality of one man who is fighting to sustain the moral half of his personality, due to the effects of an oppressive society. The super-natural side of his character represents the repressed fear we all have within us.
Another factor which would have influenced Stevenson in his writing was Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution which was published in 1857. Interestingly Stevenson describes Mr Hyde as “apelike” and as moving “like a monkey” in the novel.
The language that is used in this story would have been used in the 18th and 19th century. It now seems old-fashioned and archaic in comparison to that of today. He uses brief and precise description, and long words showing an advanced level of English. Stevenson also uses a number of literary techniques.
There is also the use of similes in the story, for example where Hyde is described as “like some damned Juggernaught”. This simile adds emphasis to the description of the inhumane being and helps the reader understand what the creature really looks like because he/she can compare it to something else. Stevenson also uses metaphors in the story, such as when Hyde is called “Something troglodytic”. A “troglodyte” is an ugly, one-eyed, lizard-man creature in Greek mythology. These metaphors act in the same way as a simile does by providing an improved image in the reader’s mind of whatever is being described. The author also uses personification a number of times in the book. He says fog sleeps on window sills, personifying the London fog, to give it an alive quality, emphasising that this fog is allot worse and thicker than the ordinary. In the book Stevenson uses various different symbols representing certain aspects of the story. Jekyll’s house is built in an L shape, as was the Victorian style. His side of the house was very presentable and orderly, whereas Hyde’s side of the house was “blistered”, rundown and derelict. These two differences in appearance act as reminder of the duality of man. Another symbol showing the differences in character is that on Hyde’s side of the house there are no windows. This echoes the theme of secrecy used throughout the story and suggests that Mr Hyde prefers the darkness. He often appears at night and this could, also associate itself with the theme of secrecy because darkness conceals things, acting as a blanket over our eyes. In addition the idea of shut doors is used, “The door was shut again on the Lawyer”. This is significant because it shows that Jekyll is trying to close everyone out of his life as he is scared that they will discover the truth. Also Stevenson frequently describes London as being hidden with smog or as foggy. These two features act in the same way as the darkness just mentioned. Windy weather mentioned in the story too, relates to the confusion and disorder of events surrounding Mr Hyde.
At the point in the book where Mr Hyde is filled with rage and about to commit his second serious sin, after trampling the girl, Stevenson uses language to a great effect. Before the murder of Sir Danvers Carew, Stevenson describes the murder-scene as “cloudless” and “brilliantly lit by the full moon.” and how peaceful everything seemed. The maid, a witness, explains that she had never “thought more kindly of the world.” and there was tranquillity. Then came Mr Hyde “brandishing a wooden cane” at his victim, an innocent old man happily walking down the street. The old man had white hair, a symbol of innocence and purity. The settings for this murder are described so positively and picturesque to place emphasis on the dreadfulness of the murder. Stevenson builds up an upbeat image inside the readers head so that when it is smashed to pieces and destroyed by the murderer we know how wicked and criminal Mr Hyde really is. Stevenson does this to eliminate any sympathy the reader might have previously felt for Dr Jekyll and his caged up emotions caused by the repressive Victorian society. Therefore by building up to the murder in such a way Stevenson has gained further impact and emphasis of the evil of Dr Jekyll’s inner self.
Another factor which aids in the books contemporary relevance is the fact that people still get addicted to drugs, and go far out of their way, and character, to get these drugs once they have become addicted. Addictions, like Dr Jekyll’s potion, can easily become out of control and then take over your body. Today there are constantly news stories, pictures and bill boards telling you what drugs can do and in Victorian times drugs use and abuse was increasing, especially the use of opium. Lastly, mentioned before was Mr Hyde being described as ape-like, this can show contemporary relevance because of how Charles Darwin brought up the theory of the “origin of man” in Victorian times. There was an outrage in the 19th century and not many would believe Charles Darwin’s idea, because most people were strict Christians and “Adam and Eve” was from where they originated. Today in the southern states of America strict Christians still feel very strongly about their faith and still put down this theory. For these few reasons the story Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is still very relevant in the modern world of today.
