Where do you think he carried us but to that place with the door?
In Genesis, the first book of The Bible, which Stevenson was avidly interested in, in his youth5, the Scripture says that “sin lieth at every door,”6 which literally means that the sinner must avoid sin, and that the door to Hyde’s cellar therefore represents the literal path to evil.
Another interesting and effective allegorical representation is the key to Hyde’s symbolic cellar door. Edward Hyde, the villain of the novella, from the start has the possession of the key, and consequently, he holds the key to the mystery at hand. The symbolism is vastly significant throughout English literature: it represents both power and authority, especially when concerned with religion – indeed, we often use the idiom “the key to the mystery.” In the context of Jekyll and Hyde the key bestows satanic power, as Hyde is the one who can change back. The search for the key – and the failure to find it – represents the inability of Mr. Utterson and Poole, Jekyll’s butler, to overcome this demonic force and to save Dr. Jekyll. It also represents the fact that Utterson and Poole do not have access to evil in the story – indeed, throughout the novella, they do not commit a single sin.
The iron bars on Jekyll’s window in The Incident at the Window also have an allegorical significance: that Jekyll has literally imprisoned himself within his own house, and within his own desires and motivations.
One interesting clue to when Utterson is about to encounter evil is the presence of the bells that are “so conveniently near Mr. Utterson’s dwelling.” Before Utterson met Mr. Hyde, the “six o’clock struck on the bells of the church.” To the casual reader, this is probably irrelevant, but to Stevenson, the bells had a different meaning: in The Inland Voyage Stevenson wrote “there is often a threatening note, something blatant and metallic, in the voice of the bells, that I believe we have fully more pain than pleasure from hearing them.”7 and therefore the bells heard by Mr. Utterson are representative of the evil he is about to encounter.
Wine also has an important significance in the novel. Wine, in Victorian times, was often perceived as a symbol of status, and that drinking it was considered to be mannered – to be urbane. As one critic wrote, “every bachelor in the novel not only drinks wine excessively, but are also wine connoisseurs.” 8 I would take this further: it is evident that the drinking of wine in the novella id parallel to the occurrence of good events – e.g. in the opening paragraph Stevenson tells us that “when the wine was to his [that is, Utterson’s] taste, something eminently human beaconed from his eye,” which tells the reader that the wine causes Utterson to display his “human” (i.e. likeable) side. This contrasts with Jekyll’s potion, which exposes Hyde, his evil side.
Another subtle representation of evil Stevenson gives us is the name of the villain, Hyde, which derives from its more common English from, hide. This is significant, because throughout the text, the mystery of Mr. Hyde is hidden from the reader. Also, Dr. Jekyll unintentionally gives Utterson a clue that Hyde will be coming Lanyon’s way when describing Lanyon: “a hide-bound [italics mine] pendant for all that.” Indeed, Mr. Utterson says at one point “if he be Mr. Hyde… I shall be Mr. Seek.”
Another play on words involving character names is the name of the protagonist, John Gabriel Utterson. Gabriel is one of the four archangels, whose name literally means “Hero of God,” which implies that Utterson is carrying out God’s work, which instantly depicts Mr. Hyde as being an instrument of Satan, an aspect that was important, as I have discussed above, in Victorian England. Also, Utterson’s first name, John, is also the name of the John who wrote the last chapter of the Old Testament, Revelations, which can be seen to imply that Utterson’s role is to reveal the truth.
Interestingly, none of the major characters are female. In Victorian times, before the Suffragette movement, women had hardly any rights, and in the eyes of many people were considered evil – certainly morally misguided, and going against the natural order of God’s Kingdom. The Bible, the most-read book in those times, arguably had a major role in this (the reason for this being that according to the book of Genesis, Eve tempted Adam into eating the Forbidden Fruit, resulting in the Fall of mankind) – indeed, The Vatican once debated if women even had souls.
Cavendish Square is an area that often features in the novel. Originally built in 1848, and one major feature of the square is the arch which leads to the University of London’s Department of Theology – as this is a notable location in the book, where medicine is once delivered to Hyde, the positioning cannot be co-incidental: Stevenson intended it to highlight God’s role in morality, but also the fact that evil can happen under God’s nose, or generally under good – for example, Hyde flourishing under the skin of Jekyll. Also, the fact that a theology department and a square named after a famous scientist – “that citadel of medicine” as Utterson regards it – shows how religion (representing morality) and science can go together, and that therefore Jekyll is wrong by person, not by profession.
To sum up, Stevenson effectively represents evil subliminally through allegory.
* * *
One of the major themes in the book is that of good versus evil within the human and thereby the duality that humans – and other objects – can posses. Steveson makes use of it because firstly, dichotomy is an interesting topic, which has captivated the minds of authors from Virgil the modern philosopher Kant. However, another advantage of the theme of duality is contrast: it makes the black look blacker and the white looks whiter. Thereby, because Utterson is free of sin and Hyde possesses no admirable qualities, the former is perceived as an angel, the latter a devil.
The street in which John Gabriel Utterson and Richard Enfield walk through in The Story of the Door is an obvious duality: the street is described as “doing well… the shop fronts on that thoroughfare stood with an air of invitation, like smiling saleswomen” but that two doors from the corner “a certain sinister block of building thrust forward its gable on the street,” which shows that the two areas of the street contrast. Furthermore, we know Steveson has used this block to present evil because of the use of the word ‘sinister’, which means “to have an evil air.” This contrast shows us that the same street – possibly an allegory for a person – can be both good and evil.
As readers, we are later revealed that this block forms part of Jekyll’s house, which is an “L-Shape.” The house itself contains two dualities: firstly, the main part of the house, which Utterson speaks of having “the pleasantest room in London”, contrasts with the “tawdry neighbourhood” 9 he lives in, and secondly, its contrast with the “sinister black building” that forms the other part of the house.
The question of why Jekyll lives in such a “tawdry neighbourhood” poses an interesting question – perhaps Jekyll’s choice of residence reflects the insecure hold Jekyll has on decency and respectability before he released Hyde, as is revealed later. This re-enforces the theme of dichotomy and that everyone has the potential to do good and evil.
The Carew Murder Case is made more sinister by the theme of duality and the contrast presentation within it. The first long narrative - described as “a significant literary achievement”10 by one critic because of how it beautifully weaves its two strands of good and evil - re-enforces the duality of the book. In the foreground, we have the maid’s description of the murder, but contrasting in the background is the beautiful description of the setting: the soft, clear night; the “romantic nature” of the maid who “had never felt more peace or thought more kindly of the world;” the full moon; and the “sweet loneliness of the old man.” 11 The scene is thus contrasted and made more horrific by the use of duality – good versus evil, or the beautiful versus the ugly.
In The Story of the Door, Enfield refers to Mr. Hyde – Carew’s murderer – as “really like Satan.” A few lines later, Hyde says “no gentleman but withes to avoid a scene.” Obviously, both men are on separate sides, but the comments are interesting, as Hyde’s line can be seen as re-enforcing Enfield’s description of him: P.B. Shelly, the author of Ozymandias, once remarked “the devil is a gentlemen” 12+13 and thus both quotes reveal the satanic nature of Hyde – one explicitly, and one subtly.
Another interesting duality if in Jekyll’s lab when Utterson bursts in, and the contrasting order and disorder. This is the only place in the whole book where order and disorder meet: while the scientific notes are organised and tidy, the rest of the room is disturbingly unclean.
The final presentation of the duality are the inter-textual images: The Carew Murder Case reflects Keats’s poem The Eve of St. Agnes in which…, and the opening reflects Black House by Charles Dickens… Furthermore, the “startling blasphemies” in Jekyll’s lab could possibly refer to Darwin’s Origin of Species, a thesis that at the time was considered heretical, and remains controversial even today.
To sum up, Stevenson represents evil effectively by comparing it with good, and thereby re-enforces the evil by contrast.
* * *
Stevenson effectively represents evil through the hypocrisy of many characters, especially Dr. Jekyll. Hypocrisy itself if considered a sin by the Protestant Church, which was the major religious influence of the time, and therefore by presenting hypocrites, Stevenson is effectively representing evil.
Stevenson presents hypocrisy through the outward respectability of Dr. Jekyll, and his inward lust. Because of his social status, we see Dr. Jekyll as a respectable man, but, as the book reveals, he is a heretic, a liar and has an insecure hold on decency.
Firstly, we know that Dr. Jekyll is a heretic because of his ideas of the dichotomy of good and evil, and also because of the “startling blasphemies… annotated with great esteem.” Legally, and also morally, heresy was considered a major crime, and therefore, by making Dr. Jekyll a criminal, Stevenson also makes him a hypocrite, and thus the audience of the book perceives him as being more evil.
Also, Dr. Jekyll’s lying in the chapter Dr. Jekyll was Quite at Ease makes him hypocritical because doctors should be, and are usually perceived as being, under the Hippocratic Oath they all must swear, “kind… helpful and trustworthy” 14.
Finally, we can see Dr. Jekyll’s hypocrisy because of the way he is presented in having an insecure decency – that he lives is a very “tawdry” neighbourhood, but also from his own comments: “many a man would have blazoned such irregularities… but I hid them with a morbid sense of shame” which tells us that Dr. Jekyll is insecure about his decency.
* * *
Stevenson also represents evil through his discussion of morality. Morals, in modern times and Victorian times, are often the foundations of actions and reactions. As a friend of mine, Matt Tabinor once said, “morals and religion are what makes us people, ” and by this motto, we can analyze the characters by their morals.
It is interesting how, throughout the entire novel, Hyde only attacks two people: a helpless young girl and a weak old man. To both Victorian and modern audiences, the fact that both victims could not have defended themselves makes the crime much worse. Furthermore, it also reflects the Satanism within him: as Rick Warren, pastor of Saddleback Church says, “the devil prays on the helpless… it is our responsibility to defend them” (Paraphrase). Therefore, by his choice of victims, we can identify that Hyde is a Satanic man of low morals.
Finally, Stevenson carefully chooses the target of his evil: he links it to humans and not come other creature (aliens, a kraken, etc.) By doing this, Stevenson creates a bridge between the villains, their victims and the readers.
It is interesting how Hyde’s physical features are never described – we are only told that he is “short” and “disgusting looking,” by the author, by Enfield and by the maid. This implies that all decent people have the ability to recognise evil simply by glancing upon the person, which links not only to Stevenson’s idea that within us all is good and evil, but also to the nocebo effect15, in which negative thinking is harmful to the bodies immune system and appearance – for example, how constant depression weakens the muscles used in a smile, how frowning can lead to premature wrinkles, and how moods manifest themselves in pupil dilation. Though this scientific, it also links to psychology, in that humans “judge people by body language… like a sixth sense”16 and that “the psychological interaction between two humans over an hour will take the lifetimes work of half the population of the Unites States.”17 Therefore, it is evident that Stevenson believes that appearances can inform us of evil, and thus he represents evil through appearance.
We are often told that it is important for us to control ourselves, and this is reflected by Jekyll in Dr. Jekyll Was Quite at Ease when he says “I can be rid of Hyde at any time” – which implies that he has control over Hyde. However, as readers, we know that this isn’t the case – and that Hyde can reveal himself at any moment, such as in the park, as he does once, without Jekyll even taking the potion. Jekyll’s comment can be compared to that of a smokers, or a drug addicts: “I can quit any time” – however in reality, this is rarely possible – as highlighted by his two month spiel when he “came out of seclusion, renewed relations with his friends… [and] that evil influence had been withdrawn.” However, as is later revealed, Hyde still manages to take control of him. Thereby, by doing this, Stevenson effectively represents evil through the lack of control.
In conclusion, Stevenson effectively represents evil through allegory, duality, hypocrisy, morality and by linking it to a common audience.
Notes:
1 Introduction, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, 1994
2 See: God Hates Fags [www] http://www.godhatesfags.com/ and God Hates Globes [www] http://www.godhatesglobes.com/
3 See: Stafford News
4 Mike Wolfe, Lord Mayor of Stoke-on-Trent
5 Wikipedia [www] http://www.wikipedia.org/
6 Genesis 4:11 – The Bible (The King James Version)
7 The Inland Voyage, Robert Louis Stevenson
8 Classic Notes [www] http://www.gradesaver.com/ClassicNotes/Titles/jekyll/
9 Essay Crawler [www] http://www.essaycrawler.com/viewpaper/55322.html/
10 Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Criticism [www] http://www.enotes.com/dr-jekyll/7417/
11 The Carew Murder Case
12 Wikiquote [www] http://www.wikiquote.com/
13 Peter Bell the Third, P.B. Shelly
14 Wikipedia [www] http://www.wikipedia.org/ and Dr. Mumtaz Pardhan
15 The Placebo Effect: Harnessing Your Mind’s Power to Heal [www] http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2003/12/031231084101.htm.
16 Leil Lowndess, Relationship Psychologist
