'What method does R.L. Stevenson use to increase suspense in, 'The strange case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde? Is he successful in your opinion?'

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‘What methods does R.L. Stevenson use to increase suspense in, ‘The strange case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde? Is he successful in your opinion?’

Robert Louis Stevenson, one of the masters of adventurous writing during the Victorian era, he was born in Edinburgh on the 13th November 1850 into a strict and bourgeois, middle class family. His father, Thomas Stevenson, like many of his ancestors, was an engineer and built lighthouses on the coast of Scotland. His mother had come from quite a privileged background, and had descended from a family consisting of quite high religious figures. So not surprisingly Stevenson had a pretty stern childhood and was brought up following a strict code a respectability of Victorian elders.

                     Also throughout his childhood, he suffered many serious health problems, mostly due to faulty lungs, something which were to cause him pain for the rest of his life. Because a lot of the time his father was absent with business, and the fact that his mother carried the same medical burden, which made it next to impossible for her to look fully after him, he was assigned a person to do the job for her. This was to be Alison Cunningham, a fundamentalist Christian, who Stevenson would develop his closest relationship with.

                     Throughout the Victorian age, men’s lifestyles were shaped and ruled by a self-image of respectability and reputation. They were forced to live a life that was restrained from any enjoyment and happiness which included engaging themselves into drugs, prostitution and heavy drinking which would cause excessive emotions or spurring gossip, which was believed at the time to be one of mans greatest sins. So in order to maintain a respectable reputation, middle-high class men had to live a life of suppression and soberness. Understandably a very large amount of people could not cope with all the boundaries and so caused them to become rebellious. Because of this, a kind of ‘duality’ occurred both in society and the actual large cities such as London and Edinburgh. In London sections were created, the so called ‘West end’ was where the middle-class men, who followed the rules of formality, could/would show and set a example of order, while in the dodgier part of town, otherwise known as the ‘East end’ and man, with no prejudice could go and have the opportunities to seek the full pleasures and enjoyment which life had to offer.

                       This split of people was evidently clear at the time and I feel it was a huge influence to Stevenson, and in the end caused the birth of the character Mr Hyde who, in many ways, is Dr Jekyll’s counterpart, the Jekyll who is not bound by the laws of respect and honour. As well as stating the Victorian human personality, Stevenson intented to create a gripping story filled with violence, murder and drama while getting the reader involved in a mind of mystery and suspense before the final couple of chapters. We meet Mr Utterson, a well respected lawyer and Dr Jekyll’s friend. In this story he holds the significant role of being the narrator and it is with him we follow the events as they unfold and share the discoveries and misconceptions that he is led to believe.

           Stevenson's eagerness to sustain the mystery and suspense for as long as possible is illustrated in his choice of Utterson who seems to show an apparent lack of understanding of what’s actually happening, as the story unravels which will in turn, affect the reader’s view. Yet he is a trustworthy person and so we are forced to believe that the story which is being told will be honest and from an unbiased account.

                         Utterson has a close relationship with Mr. Enfield, a distant relative and likewise a respectable person. They seem to have little in common but despite that enjoyed each others company, and take a weekly walk together. The story begins with these two on one of their walks; they walk down a pretty wealthy street and come to an unfitting building, which seemed out of place in comparison to the surrounding area. This causes a little story to be revealed by Enfield… ‘‘At the ends of the world'' at about 3am when he witnessed a shrunken, misshapen man crash into a young girl. Nothing had appeared unusual about what had initial occurred but it was the man's reaction, in which Enfield described as, ''hellish to see'', for he ''trampled over the girl like some damned juggernaut''. Enfield collared the man before he could get away, and then brought him back to the girl, around whom an angry crowd had gathered.

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                       The man’s immediate reaction was mainly of shock and horror. The woman in particular, whom Stevenson had described ''as wild as harpies'', had responded in the same furious manner as Hyde's first behavior towards the girl showing that they too can reveal a savage side to their character. The captured man appeared calm yet he inspired loathing and hatred all around him. Enfield, looking around at the angry crowd surrounding Hyde, declared that he ''never saw a circle of such hateful faces''. Even the doctor, an ordinary man ''and ...

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