The final protagonist we meet in the novel is Dr Lanyon. Described as “a hearty, healthy dapper, red faced gentleman” the reader can see that he is Victorian society’s image. As a friend of both Dr Jekyll and Mr Utterson, we discover his relationship with both people. Later on in the book, the reader discovers that, although he is a good person, he gets punished for his curiosity. This can be seen in the chapter titled ‘Dr Lanyon’s Narrative’, when we discover the reason behind the “death warrant written legibly upon his face”.
Although we see the plot unveiling through the eyes of Utterson, we are aware, due to the third person reference that Utterson himself does not narrate. Two chapters are written in first person, and both, together fill in the gaps. These two chapters are the final two, when we hear the truth behind the death of Lanyon, and the whole case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is revealed. Stevenson’s use of multi-perspectives creates an atmosphere, as the reader can be part of the novel through the use of language. The use of multi-perspectives is quite typical of the horror genre, and most of the great horror writers use this form to involve the reader into the story. The narrative is in an achronological order. This means that the story is not written in an order, but jumps backwards and forwards. We can see this firstly in Lanyon’s narrative, as he starts at the beginning of the story again. We then see this in ‘Dr Jekyll’s full statement of the case’. In this chapter he not only goes back to the beginning, but goes beyond that, and starts his statement from before the beginning of the book.
Stevenson uses his ability to express his ideas, through writing, in the form of his language. Although old-fashioned terms and text is generally used, both Victorian readers and readers from the present can understand. His use of elaborate description to describe Jekyll as a “large, well-made, smooth-faced man, with something of a slyish cast” is also a very effective method of allowing the reader to become involved with the plot, and become aware of ambiguities. An example of his use of language is his personification of the “pale moon, lying on her back as though the wind had tilted her”.
In the novel, Stevenson describes only two incidents that reflect Hyde’s evil. The first is the incident with the girl, where he “trampled calmly over the child’s body and left her screaming on the ground”. As odd as it seems, the second incident was possibly even more ambiguous. This was the murder of Sir Danvers Carew.
The build up of the murder of Sir Danvers Carew begins off quite calm. We are told of the witness to the case, and her moods, feelings and that she was at the window because “never had she felt more at peace with all men”. She then notices “an aged and beautiful gentleman [Carew] with white hair drawing near along the lane”. Stevenson uses language to make the reader fall under a sense of false security, and also feel relaxed and calm.
This picturesque description is then abruptly shattered by Hyde. Hyde was holding “in his hand a heavy cane, with which he was trifling”. This could possibly mean that he is agitated, and therefore could fore-shadow that he wants to use this cane in some way, and is getting himself ready for it. Then, “all of a sudden he [Hyde] broke out in a great flame of anger…Mr Hyde broke out of all bounds, and clubbed him [Carew] to the ground”. Through this series of sentences, the perfection created at the beginning is destroyed, and we are drawn to the ferocity of the attack through the use of chaotic language and animal references. The chaotic language is the use of short sentences to demonstrate how quickly this is all happening. Also, the ferociousness of the attack is clear as “the stick with which the deed had been done, although it was of some rare and very tough and heavy wood, had broken in the middle under the stress of this insensate cruelty”. The animal reference is used to describe Hyde’s “ape-like fury”. This linked with Charles Darwin’s theory that man evolved from apes, and this would have caused uproar in Victorian society.
Victorian society would have found the death of Carew very controversial. This was as the representative of good was brutally destroyed by evil, where usually good triumphs. What made it worse was the chosen victim. Carew had been knighted, showing that he was a noble gentleman, and very patriotic.
Also, the “aged and beautiful gentleman with white hair” represented his distance, by social class, to Hyde. Carew is a proper gentleman, and so it makes the reader wonder why he is killed. His white hair symbolises his purity. He is the epitome of Victorian society, and this is another reason why Victorian readers would find his death inappropriate.
The events following this attack show its brutality, as “at the horror of these sights and sounds, the maid fainted”. As well as this, we see the hypocrisy in a few characters in the events. The police officer in charge of this case is an example. At first, he is shocked at the possibility that a person of such a high stature could be murdered. However, “the next moment his eye lighted up with professional ambition”. This shows that he has realised that he could be rewarded if he solves the case, possibly with promotion, as the victim has such a high social reputation.
Another sign of hypocrisy in the plot is the maid in Hyde’s house. She is said to have “an evil face” but her “manners were excellent”. She also has “odious joy” when she believes Hyde is in serious trouble.
A complicated part of the novel is finding and understanding Stevenson’s use of symbols throughout the novel. In the chapter ‘The Last Night’, we are told of windy weather. The windy weather signifies a disorderly atmosphere. This reflects the characters actions, as Poole, Jekyll’s servant says that he has “been afraid for about a week”. He is flustered as “his manner was altered for the worse…his eyes directed to a corner of the floor”. Poole’s terror is recognised by Utterson, and soon he too becomes anxious, and his nerves give “a jerk that nearly threw him from his balance”. Utterson is a calm and rational character, and so this behaviour is strange, especially as his distaste for disorderly and haphazard events is show by telling Jekyll’s servants that their “master would be far from pleased”.
The weather links with the description of London. It is nocturnal, and therefore is always dark or there is fog. Fog obscures vision, foreshadowing bad things happening. Fog also hints at the things that were hidden in Victorian society.
A symbol of secrecy is recognised strongly in ‘Dr Lanyon’s narrative’. In this chapter we are told that the door to Jekyll's cabinet is strong. It takes both a carpenter and a locksmith two hours to open it. The security of the door reminds the reader that all aspects of life were not welcomed in Victorian society, and so not all could be exposed.
Another symbol of secrecy is closed curtains. Utterson “lay and tossed in the gross darkness of the night and the curtained room”. This shows he must keep secret information, possibly of the door that Enfield and he have noticed earlier in the book.
Jekyll’s house is another representation of symbolism in the novel. Being ‘L’ shaped, Enfield is not aware, from the start, that Hyde was entering Jekyll’s house through the back door. This back entrance “showed no window”, another symbol of secrecy. The door “was blistered and distained”. However, the entrance Jekyll uses is presentable. It wears “a great air of wealth and comfort”. The difference of the entrances, although only one house, could symbolise the duality of man.
An important symbolism in this novel is one of masks. Jekyll believes that Hyde is a mask which he can use whenever he wants to commit an evil act. He uses Hyde as he feels there is a mention of possible scandal, as his reputation would be ruined if it is realised that he associates with a murder. Jekyll feels that, although he is a mask for him, Hyde is responsible for his own actions. Jekyll feels there is no shame or guilt in committing evil, as long as he is sure he will not get caught as Jekyll.
Stevenson’s use of symbols links with the contrived aspects of his novel. He uses these ‘coincidences’ to help the story along. We can see these contrived aspects in ‘The Carew Murder Case’. We are not told it is eleven o’clock, a time that would have been thought of as quite late in Victorian society. However, this is when Carew is introduced. It is not explained why Carew was out at that time of night. Was he strolling along the lane because he was going somewhere, or was he summoned to this place as a meeting point with Hyde? Another unexplained incident is the letter he was carrying for Utterson. The reader is not told what the content of the letter was, or why it made Utterson shoot “out a solemn lip”. The final unexplainably aspect is Utterson’s head clerk, Mr Guest. During a bottle of wine, a conversation about a letter given to Jekyll from Hyde is begun. The letter is shown to Guest, who then asks for Utterson’s dinner invitation from Jekyll. Is it coincidental that guest happens to be a handwriting expert? Is it just by chance that he is introduced into the plot at a time when a written letter is given to the man we see the story unfold from? Or has Stevenson deliberately included this character? It is unknown to the reader, but whatever the reason, its aim is to move the story along much quicker.
Victorian society was heavily for the idea of religion. Being a strong protestant community, the Victorian reader would be against any references made to Satan, or if any blasphemies were made. We are aware of blasphemies within the novel, as Jekyll says “scrawling in my own hand blasphemies”. This is another hint at his hatred towards Victorian society. A reference to Satan is made by Utterson, to describe Hyde: “if ever I read Satan’s signature upon a face, it is on that of you new friend”. This links with the idea of physiognomy, and is also ironic as Satan is evil, as is Hyde. The Victorian reader would have been shocked by Stevenson referencing Satan to describe Hyde, although it reveals the true extent of Hyde’s evil nature.
In today’s society, the reader interprets Stevenson’s novel in both similar and different ways to that of a Victorian reader. The plot is relevant in today’s society due to an ongoing problem of evil. Society, as a present day reader, is full of evil. Someone somewhere is out committing an evil act upon a person, people, property or even themselves!
As well as this, we can still recognise the duality of man. It is obvious in some ill people, such as people who suffer from schizophrenia, but it is within everybody. One person could be rude towards you, but is very calm and friendly with their friends and family. The duality of man, although exists in different ways in today’s society, still has an impact on the social classing of people.
Another relevance is the psychological factor of addiction. Dr Jekyll was addicted to the potion. At first he took it in moderation, but eventually it took him over. In today’s society we see this in alcoholics. Although they are casually drinking a glass of wine for a special dinner once a week to begin with, they could eventually end up being dependant on alcohol. The same applies for other drugs. They can be controlled at first, but then they take over your life.
This novel is from the genre of horror. Horror works on many different levels. It is based on supernatural events, which represent our fears and anxieties. It works by placing an emphasis on a sense of unease within a person. We can examine the genre of horror fiction literally, but this would eventually lead us to live a life of cynicism which would lead us to become more sceptical and doubtful about life. The main reason horror works is due to the idea of NPPP.
NPPP is National Phobic Pressure Points. This is where an aspect of society is taken, and expressed in certain ways. Other novels such as ‘Dracula’ work in this way, because at the time it was written there was a lot of anxiety of women. Stephen king uses men’s fear of the rise of women in the book ‘Carrie’. ‘The strange case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’ works in this way because it examines the hypocrisy within Victorian society.
The writer of the novel, Robert Louis Stevenson does not expect nor want the story to be realistic. He wants to make it allegoric, so it can work in deeper contexts.
Sigmund Freund, the world famous psycho-analyst describes these ideas clearer. He believed horror worked on two terms, the homely and the unhomely. Homely was what the reader recognised and was accustomed to, and the unhomely related to the uncanny or supernatural that we are both afraid of and excited about.
Stevenson’s ideas were influenced through two paths. These were his background and other writers of the time. The story of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is echoed in Stevenson’s past. He became removed from his parents, who lived as staunch Presbyterians. Being of a high class in society, he was fascinated by the lower classes. This eventually led him to live a very unconventional life.
A great deal of his influence came from Charles Darwin’s ‘Origin of the Species’, in which Darwin said that humans descended from apes. This caused a controversial outbreak within society, and Stevenson used this to describe characters in the book. Another influence was Mary Shelley’s ‘Frankenstein’, in which we see another example of the duality of man.
From the novel ‘The strange case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’, we can see an obvious moral. It is that we should learn to control our anger. Even if we are totally against an act, we should refrain from evil actions, and resolve the manner in other ways. Also, we can learn that we should not give into addiction of harmful substances, as this will eventually lead to our downfall.
