More handpicked essays just for you.
Mystery and tension in dr jekyll and mr hyde
Danger and tension presented in dr jekyll and mr hyde
Mystery in dr jekyll and mr hyde
Don’t take our word for it - see why 10 million students trust us with their essay needs.
Robert Louis Stephenson uses many different themes in his novel, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Although there are other themes, such as science, your mind goes straight to duality. With duality being the main theme, Stephenson portrays it through human nature and irony as well as literary techniques. In The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Robert Louis Stephenson says, “All human beings... are commingled out of good and evil.” (50) In a Victorian society, one is supposed to be only one person or have one side. However, Dr. Jekyll did not agree with this formality. Jekyll believed that every man has two sides whether they wanted to believe it or not. Similarly, in William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet, Friar Lawrence says, “For nought so vile that on the earth doth live/But to the earth some special good doth give” (II iii 17-18). With this, he explains that even though something is unpleasant and atrocious, there is always a good side. Through these thoughts, Stephenson and …show more content…
Shakespeare show the reader the theme of duality. Stephenson also interprets duality through literary techniques such as motifs.
Mr. Enfield said, “There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something downright detestable” (Stephenson 5). Responses made by anyone who tried describing Mr. Hyde were similar to this. This repetition throughout the story shows the importance of his appearance in the theme of duality. Shakespeare also uses motifs in Romeo and Juliet similar to those in Stephenson’s novel, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. For example, the consistency of an individual against society. Romeo and Juliet deals with two lovers whose love is an abomination. Juliet says, “My only love sprung from my only hate” (Shakespeare I v 138) which shows that she is in love with a boy who she has been taught to hate, and society would not approve of their love. Dr. Jekyll is in the same situation. He is battling society and has to keep Mr. Hyde hidden in order to be
respectable. Along with techniques, Stephenson also reveals duality through irony of Mr. Hyde. Because Jekyll and Hyde is the same person, Hyde is hiding inside of Jekyll. He is the side the Dr. Jekyll has to keep hidden from society in order to fit in. This also connects with the motif on individuals against society. He is forced to hide Mr. Hyde because society would not approve of him. In The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, duality is also depicted through symbolism. The repetition of Mr. Hyde’s appearance is also symbolic. His grotesque appearance symbolizes the evil in people. It shows that no matter how respectable a person is, there is always a side that brings out the worst in people. Two more symbolic structures are Dr. Jekyll’s house and laboratory. Jekyll’s house is described as “a great air of wealth and comfort” (Stephenson 12) but his laboratory as “dingy, windowless structure” (Stephenson 20). Stephenson makes these descriptions to show both sides of human nature through Jekyll. As one side of it may be grand and beautiful, the other is dark and uninviting. Through human nature, literary techniques, and irony, both Robert Louis Stephenson and William Shakespeare reveal duality to their readers. They show that everything always has two sides. While trying to fit in with society’s understandings of a respectable man, Dr. Jekyll has to hide the side that society would not approve of. Though Stephenson uses science as a theme, the main one is duality portrayed through Dr. Jekyll as he says, “Man is not truly one, but truly two” (Stephenson 47).
In both The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and the 1941 movie adaptation, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, a strong representation of evil is present. Both the film and the novel are surrounded with sense of immorality and sin. The text and the film have economical and historical characteristics that help define evil. While the film alone has a strong representation of evil surrounding gender and relationships.
In Robert Louis Stevenson’s, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Dr. Jekyll’s struggle between two personalities is the cause of tragedy and violence. Dr. Jekyll takes his friends loyalty and unknowingly abuses it. In this novella, Stevenson shows attributes of loyalty, how friendship contributes to loyalty, and how his own life affected his writing on loyalty.
Despite being published in 1886, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson remains to be recognized and referred to as one of the initial studies of the duality of human nature and mans struggle between two natural forces – good and evil. The story takes place during the Victorian Era in which society is already somewhat constrained and cruel and explores the human struggle between being civilized and facing the more primitive aspects to our being. According to author Irving S Saposnik, “Henry Jekyll’s experiment to free himself from the burden of duality results in failure because of his moral myopia, because he is a victim of society’s standards even while he would be free of them.” Henry Jekyll, an English doctor faces duality when he comes into battle with his darker side. Creating a personification under the name of Edward Hyde in order to fulfill his desires, Dr. Jekyll feels as if he will be able to control the face that he wants seen to public vs. the one in which he wants to keep more private. “Hence it came about that I concealed my pleasures; and that when I reached years of reflection, and began to look round me, and take stock of my progress and position in the world, I stood already committed to a profound duplicity of life.” (10.1) The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a story about how people are scared to acknowledge personal duality so they keep silent and in this case, create a personification in order to fulfill evil desires without thinking through the consequences of such actions.
In Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel, Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Dr. Jekyll, in grave danger, writes a letter to his good friend Lanyon. With Jekyll’s fate in Lanyon’s hands, he requests the completion of a task, laying out specific directions for Lanyon to address the urgency of the matter. In desperation, Jekyll reveals the possible consequences of not completing this task through the use of emotional appeals, drawing from his longtime friendship with Lanyon, to the fear and guilt he might feel if he fails at succeeding at this task. Through Jekyll’s serious and urgent tone, it is revealed that his situation is a matter of life and death in which only Lanyon can determine the outcome.
The definition of a hero is subjective. Accordingly, Robert Ray believes the hero is able to be divided into three categories: the outlaw, official and composite hero. In most cases, a hero can be categorized into one of these categories. Through the examination of Jekyll and Hyde, the Batman movie from 1943, and film of Batman in 1989, qualities of the hero will be depicted as a function of time.
The reader is drawn to the plot of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde through the literary devices Stevenson employs. Foreshadowing displays the sense of mystery throughout the novel, the foreshadowing of the actions of Mr. Hyde leaves the reader wondering what will happen next. The ironic nature of Dr. Jekyll relates to the reader as a person, no person is completely perfect and Dr. Jekyll exhibits the natural wants and desires of humans. The irony behind Mr. Hyde adds an enigmatic side to the plot. These two devices expose the readers to the complexity of the novel and reveal the inner meaning of the hidden details.
Addiction is a behavior that leads to actions that not only hurt others but is ultimately a path to one’s own self-destruction. From the beginning of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson, it is clear that Dr. Jekyll never had complete control over the drug or Mr. Hyde; however, once Hyde commits suicide in order to dodge punishment, we know how awful Jekyll’s addiction to Hyde had been. Jekyll was so far out of control of Hyde that Mr. Hyde had the ability to end both of their lives simply because Hyde did not wish to be punished.
In duality, the evil comes from good things. In Dr.Jekyll and Mr.Hyde, Dr.Jekyll’s project to separate his side which was evil and good was meant to be good. Dr.Jekyll was trying to be accepted by his society. His society only accepted one thing. the experiment was meant to be good, but evil became ruling. Hydes malicious actions and how much of an evil person he has taken over Dr.Jekyll overwhelming him with all the evil. Dr.Jekyll knew what he was signing himself to do, he knew that
Stevenson uses Jekyll and Hyde to show the duality of human nature because by reading about the two characters separately, you would’ve never realised that they are the same person until Stevenson describes how Jekyll make a potion to separate good and evil, but as he drinks the potion it awakens a hidden character insi...
In the novel “The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” a number of
In Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson, the dual nature of man is a main theme. Jekyll says: "Man is not /truly one, but truly two"(125), meaning all people have both a good and a bad side. Dr. Jekyll creates a potion to fully separate good and evil, but instead it awakens a dormant character, Mr. Hyde. Throughout the novel, Stevenson uses society, control, and symbolism to tell the reader about human nature.
In Robert Louis Stevenson’s the Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde a scientist, Dr. Jekyll, creates an alter ego using a draught in order to escape the harsh views of society. As Mr. Hyde, he commits heinous crimes against citizens and becomes addicted to the perception of freedom from Victorian laws. Best stated by Norman Kerr about addiction, “there is an inebriety derangement of the mental faculties, so that the consciousness, perception, reasoning, power, and conscience are impaired” (Kerr 138). The character Dr. Jekyll illustrates the condition of addiction in the Victorian era through the motifs of the obsession with appearance and duality.
In The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the author Robert Louis Stevenson uses Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde to show the human duality. Everyone has a split personality, good and evil. Stevenson presents Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde as two separate characters, instead of just one. Dr. Jekyll symbolizes the human composite of a person while Mr. Hyde symbolizes the absolute evil. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, who are indeed the same person, present good and evil throughout the novel.
“One thing you learn when you’ve lived as long as I have - people aren’t all good, and people aren’t all bad. We move in and out of darkness and light all of our lives.” This quote, spoken by Neal Shusterman, is exemplified so much throughout daily life. Whether the difference between the dark and light be good and evil or simply private and public, it’s inevitable to have two sides as a human being. Also, in the works of fiction Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck, and The Book Thief written by Marcus Zusak, many characters follow this theory that as human beings, there are two sides that exist in a person. Many people would like to contradict this theory however, saying that people are good natured and only possess one side. Realistically though, this is false. In the world of literature, many texts depict duality among people and support Robert Stevenson’s statement that duality exists in everyone.
Robert Louis Stevenson’s Gothic 1886 novella The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde can be read in a number of ways through any number of different lenses, which makes for a versatile novella, and an interesting read for just about anyone. It also makes for a great novel with which to learn literary analysis. Using The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde one can see how Freudian psychoanalysis, though it had not been so developed at the time of the novel can intersect with homosexual undertones, and how the manifestations of the repressed can come to light when the subject of homosexuality is not properly addressed.