Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde Essay

Stevenson writes ‘The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ with the intention of showing the reader the duality of man and explores this through the juxtaposition of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. In this novella, Stevenson also uses the environment and setting of the story to represent the contrast between Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

Dr. Jekyll is benevolent and pleasant in his social interactions. He attempts to cover up his darker self by creating a courteous public persona. Everyone has a different persona when they are outside in the eyes of the public and when they are inside. Through Mr. Hyde, Dr. Jekyll reveals his destructive side. Transforming into Mr. Hyde gives Dr. Jekyll a freedom to act and behave without caring about the public’s opinion or about the consequences of his actions. Dr. Jekyll is captured and locked up deep inside, he appears reasonably appropriate on the exterior but his inner reflections drives him towards immorality. As Dr. Jekyll privately turns into Mr. Hyde, not only is his appearance transformed, but also his behavior. This can be a similar caparison on people in today’s society. People with high status or popularity are always being watched with every move they make. If they make one small mistake, then that will look bad on

The Victorian public referred to Dr Jekyll in the novella to Jack the Ripper from their understanding of duality of Dr Jekyll as rumours aroused in period of the murders of Jack the Ripper that he may be greatly educated and qualified or may even be of royal birth. The contrast between his identities clearly expresses his duality which highly reflects to Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.

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.

In the novel, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson provides insight into the inner workings of the duality that exists within humans. Dr. Jekyll is a well-respected doctor in his community while his differing personality Mr. Hyde is hideous and considered by the public as evil based on appearance. As the novel progresses Dr. Lanyon begins to investigate Mr. Hyde, he begins to realize similarities between both Mr. Hyde and Dr. Jekyll such as their handwriting which results in the discovery that they are the same person. Dr. Jekyll is able to transform himself into Mr. Hyde by drinking a serum he has created which was intended to purify his good. Stevenson stresses the duality of good and evil that exists

Hyde. He is a dark sinister personality. One that tramples a young child, seriously injuring her, and acts as if it was nothing. Mr. Hyde is totally opposite of Dr. Jekyll in both appearance and public status. Mr. Hyde has a deep desire to push the limits of public acceptance by indulging in activities that would bring negative attention to him and even public scorn and shame. He lack any sense of remorst and could careless if he is not accepted by others.

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.

“Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde” is a gothic novel written by Robert Louis Stevenson that was first published in 1886. It’s about a lawyer from London named G.J. Utterson who explores strange events that involves his old friend Henry Jekyll and Edward Hyde. The novel’s influence on language is extraordinary, with the phrase “Jekyll and Hyde” coming to the meaning of a person of diversity in moral character from one situation to the next (French literature).

     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.

Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde consists of reputation, good vs. evil and damage control. In other words, Utterson tirelessly works to prevent his good friend Dr. Jekyll from being dragged into the horrid affairs of Mr. Hyde, and Dr. Jekyll goes to the greatest of lengths to prevent his Hyde identity from being discovered, in order to avoid anyone knowing of his somewhat questionable scientific work and morally despicable behavior. Much of the novel is based on the characters reputations and how they have to maintain a good public image, as they are upper class people. The novel takes place in Victorian England and the main characters are all male members of upper class London. Enfield, Utterson, Lanyon and Jekyll are all aware of social

To begin with, Dr. Jekyll is a well-rounded, well-respected man descending from a highly intellectual and respected Christian family of doctors and lawyers. He is nothing short of the ideal Victorian gentleman: tall, polite, honorable and refined, physically portrayed as being “a large well-made man of fifty,” and as having a “large, handsome face” (Stevenson, 19). Opposed to this seemingly impeccable man is none other than Mr. Edward Hyde, a short, hairy, ‘troglodyte’ man with a horrific

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a novel written by Robert Louis Stevenson in 1886. The novel is set in Victorian England and follows a man by the name Dr. Jekyll, a respected doctor. Dr. Jekyll is a revered man in society and has every intention of remaining that way. However, one day he goes too far with one of his experiments and he creates a draught that unleashes a split personality within him. This personality goes by the name of Mr. Hyde. Dr. Jekyll does not seek a cure at first because he enjoys having an outlet for all of his desires that are deemed unacceptable by society. Hyde commits evil deeds, such as murdering an old man and trampling a young girl, which Dr. Jekyll could never normally let himself go through with. Dr. Jekyll believes that he can remain a good, reputable man even when a part of him is doing wrong. However, he soon learns that this is impossible. Soon after, Dr. Jekyll loses control over his ability to transform into Mr. Hyde. At first, he would only change during the night. Then, he started transforming during the day as well. Dr. Jekyll finally admits that the problem is starting to get out of control. However, he cannot create a remedy any longer. Dr. Jekyll is eventually completely overtaken by Mr. Hyde and the reader does not hear from him again. In this novel, Dr. Jekyll illustrates the duality of human nature through his struggle to choose between good versus evil, societal expectations versus unacceptable desires, and

Doubleness in gothic literature often explores the duality of humanity. It asks whether there was inherent goodness and evil within a person. In The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Robert Louis Stevenson engages with the idea of an individual being comprised of two separate entities—a double in one body—the evil Mr. Hyde and the good Dr. Jekyll. This split person of Jekyll and Hyde talks back to the optimistic ideas about humanity, such as Ralph Waldo Emerson. He writes in his address “The American Scholar” that “They did not yet see... that, if the single man plant himself indomitably on his instincts, and there abide, the huge world will come round to him”. However, in Stevenson’s novel, the world does not “come round to him” in Jekyll’s pursuit to a better self by indulging in his worse self, instead he was consumed by his own evil and harms others in the world. In Stevenson’s language, he continually emphasizes the advancement of self by using terms like “prison-house of [Jekyll’s] disposition” that encapsulates the inner turmoil Dr. Jekyll faces because of Mr. Hyde’s horrifying actions (1678). In this paper, I will argue that Jekyll’s inability to indulge into his darker desires without any stain on his consciousness is merely an illusion. Dr. Jekyll believes his “instincts” will stay grounded within himself when in reality, he is unable to maintain his status in upper society and thus he succumbs to Mr. Hyde’s reckless freedom. Not only does this reflect the

The book of “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” was written nearly over a century ago. The fictional novella was written the year of 1885 in England, by Robert Louis Stevenson. The author wrote a gothic mystery story, told by a narrator that follows Mr. Utterson’s point of view. Mr. Utterson is the attorney of Dr. Jekyll, and his point of view comes from the outside of the home. Stevenson accomplished tremendous success, ensuring his fame as a writer for his previous works and, for “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”. Moreover, decades later, a successful writer known as Valerie Martin wrote the novel “Mary Reilly”. Author Valerie Martin’s ‘Mary Reilly’ is retelling of Robert Louis Stevenson’s ‘The strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ from the trusted housemaid, living in the home. The books have different insights, but also similarities. These stories portray a good and evil character, who lives a double life. Stevenson and Martin distinguish distinctive perspectives in each book; in addition, the loyalty the narrators acquire to Dr. Jekyll is described through their characterization.