Dr. Henry Jekyll is an older gentleman of high moral and intellectual value. He also acts as the protagonist in the book by facing the hardest conflict, himself. Along with the man versus self conflict, he also faces a man versus man conflict of the same nature due to the circumstances involving Mr. Hyde. Although the reader does not know of the problems Jekyll is facing throughout the book, in the end when he is permanently turned to Hyde, the reader realizes his importance. At the climax, Dr. Jekyll kills himself as the only way to stop Hyde, and in so doing, resolves the conflict with himself and with others by writing the letter explaining everything to Utterson. As an unfortunate and inevitable alternative, Jekyll knew what he had to do in order to rid himself of Hyde and his diabolical ways. This obviously changes him by dying but also right before committing suicide, he understands that what he did by splitting into a good and an evil side was wrong. He also accepts that his efforts to again be normal were just an illusion. These …show more content…
Edward Hyde, a man morbid to look at and impossible to define, is the main antagonist throughout the novel. Described with such words as “hardly human” and “troglodytic”, Hyde commits felonies and sparks curiosity in the public. The conflicts that he starts grow popularity in the town as people now know him as an infamous character. The hardest conflict he creates is with Dr. Jekyll, acting against his good personality with that of his own evil. Since Hyde is only a personification of Jekyll’s worse side, Hyde’s ability to have a conscience is clouded and the only conflicts he faces are external. His appearance and posture set a mood of mystery and corruption. These problems cannot be solved through any means but with the reversal potion of Jekyll’s. The conflicts this very complicated character causes are resolve with the suicide of Dr. Jekyll but in a way Hyde has won by giving Jekyll the only choice of
Dr Henry Jekyll, the protagonist, is a reputable middle class gentleman born into wealth, with many male friends and a respectable profession. He is described as “a large, well-made, smooth-faced man of fifty, with…every mark of capacity and kindness.” Whereas, Mr Hyde, the antagonist, is first described, he is represented by Enfield as “a little man who was stumping along”. This is when the idea that
Jekyll escapes his life by becoming a different person. This can have some major consequences. In the book the consequences resulted in him doing some bad things also it caused him to also go crazy, but it finally led him to his death. When he did bad things, these “Bad things” were him murdering one of Utterson’s clients. This was a big deal because not only did he kill somebody, but it was also his friend’s clients. When Jekyll went crazy he started to change in to Mr. Hyde more often than ever. This was very unhealthy for him to be going through these changes frequently. Lastly it led to his death because all this changing did a number on him and led to his death. Because he was so badly hurt he needed to have the finest of medicine which no drug store had. Finally, he ran out of time and passed away. With how Dr. Jekyll escaped his life was not a very good way to do
If Hyde has been described as Hyde "savage, uncivilized, and given to passion…poorly evolved" (Shubh), then perhaps he represents the true, original nature of man, repressed by society, norms, and conscience. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde suggests that this restrained, amoral side of human nature, once given a chance to escape, cannot be controlled. Even in this 'height of western civilization', Victorian England, this tempting evil can overcome even the most virtuous of men. Jekyll is neither good nor bad, but a man whose deeply repressed urges motivated him to separate, but not remove, the evil parts of his nature. There is a misinterpretation that Hyde is an unwanted byproduct of trying to create pure good, that Jekyll is not in control as Hyde, and that Jekyll doesn't enjoy being Hyde. In fact, Jekyll loves being Hyde, he revels in the freedom that he brings him (Stevenson 54), but the problems with his dual personality starts when he has to face the consequences of his actions. Jekyll has a difficult time balancing Hyde's debaucheries and Jekyll's rational, refined side. However, Jekyll realizes too late that he has indulged in Hyde too much and has let him grow out of control. At the beginning of the novel, Hyde was the “smaller, slighter, and younger than Henry Jekyll” (Stevenson 57). His more youthful appearance represents how young and free Jekyll feels as Hyde, but also symbolizes how little his personality was seen before Jekyll drank his potion. Early in the novel, Hyde is easily controlled, Jekyll can use his potion to limit how often he transforms into Hyde (Stevenson 56). However, as he starts to morph back and forth, it starts to take more and more potion to control the switches until
Now this story does not follow Dr. Jekyll through his journey of creating his evil alter ego. Moreover he is not even the first initial character that we are introduced to in the novella; we are first introduced to a man named Mr. Utterson. He is actually the lawyer of Dr. Jekyll and he takes an interest in his newfound protégé who is referred to as Mr. Hyde. His negative feelings towards Mr. Hyde, beget a personal investigation into his life and his connection to Dr. Jekyll. Sadly he does not realize the truth behind the mystery of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde till the end of the novella, where he finally discovers the secret from reading Dr. Jekyll’s last words written in a letter addressed to him after Dr. Jekyll’s untimely death.
The story of Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde is a prime example of good versus evil as a man struggles with an experience that goes bad. Dr. Henry Jekyll is a man of science and he develops a potions that causes him to have two separate and distinct personalities. As time passes, Dr. Jekyll discovers that he is losing his ability to control the sinister side of his personality, Mr. Hyde. The effects of this scientific experiments will dramatically change his life and the lives of his friends.
When the book The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert L. Stevenson and the play, Trifles by Susan Glaspell were written both literary pieces dealt in depravity. The two main genres engage in violent acts with no remorse. Both genres reveal emotional turmoil, that’s the battle within their mind and soul, taken pleasure in immoral behaviors. Although The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Trifles are genres depicting male and female depravity, they are alike and different in social issues, such as violence, murder and justice for all.
Jekyll is tempted to do bad things and he uses Hyde to overcome his temptations. Jekyll gets his satisfaction of doing bad deeds by becoming Hyde. Jekyll says “If each, I told myself, could be housed in separate identities, life would be relieved of all that was unbearable; the unjust might go his way” (Page 105). He states that he wants to do bad things but knowing he cant and still live the life he has, he uses Hyde as an escape from his temptations. Once Jekyll is able to control his temptations but still do bad as Mr. Hyde he says “I felt younger, lighter, happier in the body” (Page 106) Mr. Hyde is Jekyll’s way of escaping his sophisticated lifestyle and entering a totally separate way of life. Jekyll then didn’t feel any guilt for Hyde’s actions.
French philosopher Michel Foucault once said “If repression has indeed been the fundamental link between power, knowledge, and sexuality since the classical age, it stands to reason that we will not be able to free ourselves from it except at a considerable cost,”. This quotation is saying that repression is the reason why people are not free to express themselves and explore new things. According to Foucault, the only way to be free involves consequences. In The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Robert Louis Stevenson discusses the consequences of repression through his characters Jekyll and Hyde. In this story, Jekyll attempts to live the suffocating expectations of Victorian society, but he ultimately creates an alter ego in order to deal with his suffering. This alter ego, Hyde, was created at a “considerable cost” to Jekyll.
The repression of homicidal desires, as shown by Dr.Jekyll, forges a plight for himself when he creates a distinctive criminal persona, such as Mr.Hyde. As Hyde’s immoral deeds
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was published in 1886 as a 'shilling shocker' novella written by the young novelist Robert Louis Stevenson. At that time there was a surfeit of cheap horror novellas. Stevenson's novella was different because it explored the evil inside human kind. I will look into Victorian attitudes and how these influenced Victorian life.
In the Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde it is regarded that these identities are two different persons but this is not the case, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are one in the same. There is much confusion when reading this literary work by Robert Louis Stevenson; this piece is regarded as horrific and disturbing in many ways. But the biggest twist is when it is reveled to the reader that these two people are the same and that below the surface of Dr.Jekyll is an evil man who enjoys committing evil acts. Mainly that Dr. Jekyll believes he has no choice but to commit these horrid acts because he has no control over is evil side. I don’t believe this is the case, Hyde isn’t a real person and doesn’t exist, nor is he someone who commits
Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde This novel is more than just a traditional horror story as it has many hidden and complex meanings and explanations, of what seem and would have normally before this book, been simple events. Stevenson has very strong opinions and some are expressed in the book. A traditional horror story would either be a super natural
of Jekyll to Hyde, in the sense that Hyde is more "Ape like" than man.
Jekyll and Mr. Hyde not only conflicting forces but also affected by each other and dual natures. The book is written in only Dr. Jekyll’s perspective, so this paragraph will going to explain about Dr. Jekyll. Existence of Hyde provokes to know him more or to have a hard time (Suffered, wanted to destroy Mr. Hyde). In the story, Mr. Hyde couldn’t control himself and committed a crime. “Well, sir, the two ran into one another naturally enough at the corner; and then came the horrible part of things; for the man trampled calmly over the child’s body.” (Stevenson 3). Through this, Dr. Jekyll was suspected to blackmailed by Mr. Hyde, which decreases his social status and it could bring him big influence during Victorian era. Not only negative effect, but also positive effect exists. For instance, in beginning of the story, Dr. Jekyll has a lot of inner conflict, and due to that conflict, he seems always unorganized. “The thoughts of his mind, besides, were of the gloomiest dye; and when he glanced at the companion of his drive he was conscious of some touch of that terror of the law and the law’s officers which may at times assail the most honest.” (Stevenson 22). The narrator reveals this in chapter ‘The Carew murder
Being a respected doctor, Jekyll is tied of chains by his social status in the society, for instance if a child is restricted to do something, by his parents. He will eventually find a secretive way to fulfill his needs. In the same manner Jekyll finds Hyde as a solution to satisfy his simple need like drinking. “His every act and thought centered on self; drinking pleasure with bestial avidity from any degree of torture to another” ().As the quote demonstrates Hyde enjoys drinking, which he cannot do as Dr. Jekyll, living in an oppressed Victorian society. The small and harmful temptation like drinking leads to more serious offences. As this boosts, Jekyll’s confidence, he ends up indulging into violent acts, “With ape-like fury, he was trampling his victim under foot, and hailing down a storm of blows” (). The simile in this quote delineates Jekyll’s unexpressed desire that erupts through Hyde. His small desires manifests into bigger crimes. Stevenson uses this theory to showcase temptation the evil cause of problems in mankind.