Tragic Flaw
Scientific experiments and safety have always been considered conflicting ideas, and for a good reason. It is extremely difficult to guarantee a positive outcome when creating something, especially if what is created has never been created before. Without a guaranteed safe outcome, how can an inventor be sure what they have produced is without a flaw? The answer is simple; they cannot. This is why the monster in Frankenstein by Mary Shelley, and Mr. Hyde in The Strange Case of Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde by Robert Stevenson, is so unstable and causes so much trauma. These novels stem off the idea of a creator and creature relationship gone awry. Both creators were too entertained in creating things without a regards to the consequences that came with their creations. Along with these books similitude comes significant differences that make each book unique to the theory that a creature not created by god will more often than not have a tragic flaw.
There is a major reason why “It is one thing to mortify curiosity, another to conquer it” (Stevenson 42). That is because being curious usually ends in learning something new, and no one has control over the way new found knowledge affects them. The phrase ‘curiosity killed the cat’ is an underlying theme in both of these books: “How dangerous is the acquirement of knowledge and how much happier that man is who believes his native town to be the world, than he who aspires to be greater than his nature will
“Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” is a novella written by Robert Louis Stevenson, a Scottish author. Written and published 1886, this novella reflects on the individual, and societal behavior during the Victorian era. During the Victorian era people, were supposed to behave like a normal person. Certain behaviors were highly restricted for example, showing evil. Instead, they were expected to give respect for everyone. People who acted out against the norm during this period were usually sent to asylums because such behaviors were unacceptable. People in this society did just that, they behaved as if they were perfectly normal. This does not mean that their bad side did not exist. Instead, they hid their
with him again. Also in the later Dr Jekyll wrote that he was going on
In this essay I am going to look at Mr Hyde and Dr Jekyll, the first
This essay will focus on how Robert Louis Stevenson presents the nature of evil through his novel ‘The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’. Using ideas such as duality, the technique used to highlight the two different sides of a character or scene, allegories, an extended metaphor which has an underlying moral significance, and hypocrisy; in this book the Victorians being against all things evil but regularly taking part in frown able deeds that would not be approved of in a ‘respectable’ society. This links in with the idea of secrecy among people and also that evil is present in everyone. The novel also has strong ties and is heavily influenced by religion. Stevenson, being brought up following strong
He is in constant refusal of responsibility, and ends up essentially plaguing not only his life, but also the lives around him. After constructing and animating the creature, he’s in a flux never ending negative emotions. The creation gets turned into a monster both physically and mentally. Frankenstein describes the horrors that come along with scientific experimentation, and the pursuit of science unavoidably leading to tragedy. The novel presents insights that are just as valid today as when the novel was written in the 19th century. Dr. Frankenstein makes a scientific breakthrough in his creation of the monster, but at what cost? This novel shows us the dangers of attempting to find something we are simply unprepared to manage. Victor’s urges to truly learn the secret of making life completely blinds him to the consequences of achieving such a feat. This book also shows that our ethical (or unethical) actions have the potential to hurt not only ourselves, but also others around us.
Stevenson's Use of Literary Techniques in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
The Concept of Evil in Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Stevenson The substance of the Bible and Greek myths - the premise of the evil that is in man - sometimes lurking deep in the psyche, sometimes controlling and consuming like a wild beast, is explored in Robert Louis Stevenson's (1850-94) short Victorian novel of 1886. Rarely does the mere title of a novel have the myth-making depth to grip the imagination and ensure its place in our language for generations to come. Today everyone knows what is meant by a 'Jekyll and Hyde character'. A handful of other novels with this quality perhaps come to mind; including 'Frankenstein'.
to say that Dr Henry Jekyll is very much the best in what he does and
Good and Evil in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
Stevenson uses the characters of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde to expresses his beliefs about human duality by introducing them as two contrasting characters, instead of just one character. Using two completely different characters with different names and appearances gets his message of human duality across more effectively rather than using just one character that turns a different colour when its angry, for example.
The city of London proved to be the sole dominant location in the 1800’s during the Victorian era in this novel. As the story unfolds in the classic literature novel, “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” written by Robert Louis Stevenson, the magnificent city of London becomes a darker and mysterious location. The powerful city of London embodied the freedom and solitude required for the antagonist of the story, Mr. Hyde to hide his wicked behavior from the society as a whole. According to the history of the Victorian age, “Traditional ways of life were fast being transformed into something perilously unstable and astonishingly new” (1049). The population in England was growing at an astounding rate, illustrating the transition
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are two horrific tales of science gone terribly wrong. Shelley?s novel eloquently tells the story of a scientist, Victor Frankenstein, who creates a living monster out of decomposed body parts, while Stevenson?s novel describes the account of one, Henry Jekyll, who creates a potion to bring out the pure evil side to himself. Although the two scientists differ in their initial response and action to their creations, there are strong similarities between their raging curiosity to surpass human limitation, as well as their lack of responsibility concerning their actions. These similarities raise an
Stevenson's Use of Literary Techniques in The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
Dr. Jekyll being an eminent doctor, with a powerful social and educational background, has an extremely sophisticated and refined appearance “a large, well-made, smooth-faced man of fifty” (44). As the quote suggests Dr. Jekyll has a majestic and renowned persona. The charity he does for the society, and his living Standards are all visible through the appearance he manifests. On the other hand, Hyde being Dr. Jekyll’s contrivance, to carry out evil purposes has an unattractive appearance and a repellent demeanor. “There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something downright detestable” (35). As per the quote Hyde looks very ugly. His deeds are uglier and compliances suitably to his physical self. Dr. Jekyll is
Though the books were published almost seven decades apart the monsters in Frankenstein and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde share many similarities: They were both created in laboratories by European scientists for somewhat morally suspect purposes, both were outcasts of society, and murdered characters secondary to their creator. Even in their final days they followed a similar archetype by taking the lives of their creators before ending their own. One should ask the question why these stories have stood the test of time while countless others fall by the wayside.