In this short story Hyde does not fundamentally exist, he is meant to be the embodiment of man’s primitive counterpart therefore his character is expected to behave like an animal, this is exhibited through the way in which he tramples over the ‘child’ and displays no guilt or remorse. In addition, Hyde provides no motives for his actions, since he’s not lead by rational thinking like his ‘better’ side Dr Jekyll or the logical Mr Uttersone, but inspired to act violently because he simply enjoys being immoral. His unprovoked assault on the little girl indicates that his cruelty extends to virtually anyone and foreshadows the deaths of other innocent characters such as Mr Carew. Hyde is repeatedly defined as a ‘figure’ and ‘human juggernaut’, …show more content…
this lack of identity makes it difficult for characters to pinpoint his abnormality and the vague physical description is purposely given by Stevenson to show that Hyde is a representative of any individual’s hidden malevolent side. This notion is further emphasised by the fact Hyde is walking on the back streets of the respectable middle class and even pervading Utterson’s nightmares which indicates that he’s constantly lurking in the back of the subconscious mind, at the root of everyone’s core personality. Mr Uttersone is the quintessential 19th Century Victorian intellectual and his reputation is an important part of his identity. This is clearly exhibited by the fact that he lives next to a church which indicates that he’s a God fearing man as he keeps the religion literally close to him, however, by adding the adjective ‘conveniently’ we’re made aware by Stevenson that Utterson’s holier than thou attitude might be based on keeping up appearances like Jekyll. Furthermore the notion of the church and its moral values are in direct conflict with the sinful indulgencies of violence that Hyde takes part in which highlights the fight between good and evil within this story. Utterson is loyal to Henry Jekyll and willing to protect his friend’s reputation even if it means ignoring the supernatural events and shadiness of Mr Hyde. This is show through the language of concealment he’s ‘asleep’ and ‘curtained’ symbolizes his unwillingness to learn the real truth and also alludes to the suppression of an individual’s real personality. Stevenson establishes a distinctive parallelism between the urban landscape of Victorian London and the sinister actions of Mr Hyde through the use of nightmarish and ghastly imagery, for instance the night is described as a ‘gross darkness’ due to the atrocious crimes that Hyde commits under its cover and it is also personified as if it were a part of him.
Indeed, Hyde appears to have a supernatural presence that changes the demure and respectable streets of the middleclass into a sinister landscape which is suitable for the sins he commits. Unlike the characters that live in the daylight such as righteous men Dr Lanyon, Uttersone or even Jekyll, Hyde is consistently obscured which supports the notion that dark sins lurk beneath the surface of the London landscape. The theme of hidden crimes is often repeated in the novel and even links to his name ‘Hyde’ as he is the repressed evil side that hides underneath the good-guy image of Jekyll and the entirety of London leading to an important point that no man is truly just virtuous. Indeed Uttersone even points this out in a moment of dramatic irony ‘If he be Mr. Hyde,’…I shall be Mr. Seek.’ Once again displaying the idea of dualism and two separate entities. The Night time gives him the perfect opportunity to do his evil sins as he is metaphorically and literally
concealed. Jekyll and Hyde adopts a third person limited point of view as we track Mr Utterson’s thoughts, as a result we don’t learn the full story until he does. But he’s not an involved narrator due to his character as a respectable Victorian gentleman that abstains from gossip and having an opinion on others. However in this dream sequence we’re introduced to Mr Utterson’s most private thoughts in this garish nightmare in which he depicts the streets of London as being an absolute terror to live in. If we had received Jekyll’s POV there wouldn’t be the dramatic build up or big revelation at the end to shock the readers. Hyde has no narrative voice simply because he does not an identity that exists without Henry Jekyll, however, we can argue that he does come into existence at the end of the novel as he gains more power.
Within the text of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Robert Louis Stevenson portrays a complex power struggle between Dr. Jekyll, a respected individual within Victorian London society, and Mr. Hyde a villainous man tempted with criminal urges, fighting to take total control of their shared body. While Dr. Jekyll is shown to be well-liked by his colleagues, Mr. Hyde is openly disliked by the grand majority of those who encounter him, terrified of his frightful nature and cruel actions. Throughout Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Stevenson portrays the wealthy side of London, including Mr. Utterson and Dr. Jekyll, as respected and well-liked, while showing the impoverish side as either non-existent or cruel.
Hyde commits. Whenever Mr. Hyde is around in the story the weather is always bad. In the first story Mr. Enfield tells, it is “about three o’clock of a black winter morning” and silent (7). Stevenson purposefully uses the motif of weather to alert his readers of the impending appearance of one terrible Mr. Hyde. Mr. Hyde is appropriately given his name because of the way he hides in the dark, foggy nights of London. On the nights when Hyde commits his villainous acts, Stevenson utilizes the weather to make readers feel frightened of what is about to happen. When Mr. Utterson goes looking for Mr. Hyde he drives up to the address he is given “and the next moment the fog settled down again upon that part” at the home of Mr. Hyde (23). Again the fog is brought back to make a point of the mystery of Mr. Hyde. The fog represents the uncertainty that lies within Mr. Hyde. Since it is only nine o’clock in the morning, Mr. Hyde is nowhere to be found because during the day he hides behind the mask of Dr. Henry Jekyll. Only at night he comes out as his evil self, then retreats back to the door and once again hides in plain sight, behind Dr.
In Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Hyde becomes Jekyll's demonic, monstrous alter ego. Certainly Stevenson presents him immediately as this from the outset. Hissing as he speaks, Hyde has "a kind of black sneering coolness . . . like Satan". He also strikes those who witness him as being "pale and dwarfish" and simian like. The Strange Case unfolds with the search by the men to uncover the secret of Hyde. As the narrator, Utterson, says, "If he be Mr. Hyde . . . I shall be Mr. Seek". Utterson begins his quest with a cursory search for his own demons. Fearing for Jekyll because the good doctor has so strangely altered his will in favor of Hyde, Utterson examines his own conscience, "and the lawyer, scared by the thought, brooded a while in his own past, groping in all the corners of memory, lest by chance some Jack-in-the-Box of an old iniquity should leap to light there" (SC, 42). Like so many eminent Victorians, Utterson lives a mildly double life and feels mildly apprehensive about it. An ugly dwarf like Hyde may jump out from his own boxed self, but for him such art unlikely creature is still envisioned as a toy. Although, from the beginning Hyde fills him with a distaste for life (SC, 40, not until the final, fatal night, after he storms the cabinet, can Utterson conceive of the enormity of Jekyll's second self. Only then does he realize that "he was looking on the body of a self-dcstroyer" (SC, 70); Jekyll and Hyde are one in death as they must have been in life.
Jekyll is respectable man with a very good career. He is a doctor that is highly regarded in his community for what he does as far as charity and his manners. As young man growing up, he was secretly involved in weird behaviors that made him a bit questionable. Dr. Jekyll finds his other side to be quite bothersome and he decides to experiment so he could try a separate the good from the evil. He creates potions and other things that really do not help. After so many attempts of trying to restrain his evil side, he brings forth Hyde through his failed experimentation. Therefore, he only accentuates his evil self to come forth. Hyde is an extremely ugly creature that no one could stand the sight of. He is deformed, violent, and very evil. Throughout the story, he fights against Jekyll to take over his life eventually causing Jekyll to murder one of his good friends, Mr.
Stevenson’s most prominent character in the story is the mysterious Mr Hyde. Edward Hyde is introduced from the very first chapter when he tramples a young girl in the street, which brings the reader’s attention straight to his character. The reader will instantly know that this person is a very important part of this book and that he plays a key role in the story. This role is the one of a respectable old man named Dr Jekyll’s evil side or a ‘doppelganger’. This links in with the idea of duality. Dr Jekyll is described as being ‘handsome’, ‘well-made’ and ‘smooth-faced’. On the other hand, Mr Hyde is described as being ‘hardly human’, ‘pale and dwarfish’, giving of an impression of deformity and ‘so ugly that it brought out the sweat on (Mr Enfield) like running’! These words all go together to conjure up an image in the mind of an animal, beast or monster. During the novel...
Society dictates the behavior of the creature and how individuals react to that society. Within both Victor and the creature, another situation would abide how nature and nurture is in Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel “Dr. Jekyll and Mr Hyde”. In the story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr.Hyde, there are many instances of foul play. Now the question is, where do these acts cause a born child to become evil? They may be evil but not because of man. In many instances in the book, the characters use the term “creature” a lot and not man. For instance after first meeting Mr. Hyde, Mr Utterson says, “God bless me, the man seems hardly human!” (Stevenson 40). This isn't the only instance of this though, many times in the story, Hyde is addressed as a “creature”
Benjamin Franklin once said, “It is much easier to suppress a first desire than it is to satisfy those that follow.” This is certainly true in the situation of Dr. Jekyll, as the temptation of becoming Mr. Hyde becomes stronger as he continually surrenders to the wickedness that is constantly misleading him. Mr. Hyde is never contented, even after murdering numerous innocents, but on the contrary, his depravity is further intensified. The significance of the repression of a desire is a prevalent theme throughout the novella The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson, as the inability to repress one’s curiosity can lead to a fatal end, whereas the repression of a desire that can no longer contain itself, or the repression of confronting a guilty conscience, will conclude in a tragic ending and in this case specifically,
Mr. Hyde was pale ad dwarfish; he gave an impression of deformity without any nameable malformation, he had a displeasing smile, he had borne himself to the lawyer with a sort of murderous mixture of timidity and boldness, and he spoke with a husky, whispering and some what broken voice,—all these were points against him; but not all of these together could explain the hitherto unknown disgust, loathing and fear with which Mr. Utterson regarded him. (10)
Everything in this story has a Dual side, including the setting in London, London had streets that were respectable and others that were made of squalor and crime. In the story of Dr.Jekyll and Hyde characters hid their side and showed only one certain side, as a matter of fact a quote from the book that says “an ivory-faced and silvery-haired old woman opened the door. She had an evil face, smoothed by hypocrisy: but her manners were excellent..” (Stevenson Chapter 4 P 54). This quote is trying to convey a message of Mr.Hyde's keeper being oh so well mannered, but don't let her fool you she was an evil person. That quote was also trying to demonstrate good versus evil and how it is conveyed through the book. Hyde was taking control completely over Dr.Jekyll , Dr.Jekyll was sure that there was no way for him to regain his identity, and his only option was to flee. “I lingered but a moment at the mirror; the second and conclusive experiment had yet to be attempted; it yet remained to be seen if I lost my identity beyond redemption and must flee before daylight from a house.” (Stevenson Chapter 10 P 112) Dr.Jekyll’s
Jekyll plays man as a whole, good and bad, he was “wild” and also “smooth-faced” at the same time. Both characters lack vital emotional outputs that make humans socially, even though the psychopath is more cunning than the sociopath. “…lack of conscience, remorse or guilt for hurtful actions to others….There may be an intellectual understanding of appropriate social behavior but no emotional response to the actions of others” (“Psychopath vs. Sociopath” -- http://www.diffen.com/difference/Psychopath_vs_Sociopath). Both are social defaces, and cannot be helped; however to the naked eye, these two characters are savage. Both victims of anti-social disorder are lacking factors that make humans acceptably sociable, one lacking empathy while the other lacks sensibility. Diffen, a website, tells us, “Psychopaths…lack of empathy; no conscience…sociopaths…high impulsivity” (“Sociopathy versus Psychopathy” -- http://www.diffen.com/difference/Sociopathy_versus_Psychopathy). Dr. Jekyll shows no empathy by using and manipulating people close to him, and Mr. Hyde, as intended, has no sensibility to act with caution resulting himself in trouble for barbaric actions. This, in turn shows the comparison and contrast of the psychopathic creator and his sociopathic creation which in reality are two halves to a whole.
Hyde. Just as Darwinism claimed, the weak will eventually be taken over by the fittest. In this scene, the girl represents the weak and Mr. Hyde represents the latter. Through the perception of Darwinism, the novella is constructed to express how Dr. Jekyll ultimately gets dominated by Mr.
... man. Society in the Victorian era was consisted of two classes, trashy and wealthy. Jekyll was expected to be a gentleman, but he wanted to have fun. This was the reason he created Hyde, so he could both be respected and have fun. He was delighted at the freedom he now had. Lanyon was overly contolled, but Utterson knew all men had both good and bad within them and could control it. In Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson, the dual nature of man is a main theme.
Dr. Jekyll is a symbol of both the good and the bad in mankind, while Mr. Hyde represents pure evil. For instance, when Dr. Jekyll is himself, he is seen as a respectable man who is adored by his colleagues: “he became once more their familiar quest and entertainer; and whilst he had always been known for his charities, he was now no less distinguished for religion” (Stevenson 29). However, when Dr. Jekyll transforms to Mr. Hyde his morals are quickly disregarded. An example of this occurs when Mr. Hyde murders Sir Danvers, shortly after Dr. Jekyll submits to the temptation of changing to Mr. Hyde: “instantly the spirit of hell awoke in me…with a transport of glee, I mauled the unresisting body, tasting delight from every blow” (Stevenson 56). Even though the carnal side of Dr. Jekyll enjoys the incident, this event also illustrates the conscience side of Dr. Jekyll because in the mist of this brutal murder, he begins to feel guilty for committing the crime.
The novel ‘Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ was written by Robert Louis Stevenson in the Victorian era, which had a very different culture from today. The book was first published in 1886 in England and it brought success to the author. The Victorians had strict moral codes to live under as middle class people and had to be well respected to be considered as a good person. The character’s reputation emerges throughout the novel as an essential tool to success in the society of the era. Another Victorian value expected of them was to live a life without any sin and to obey the Bible as literalists. However, this only prompted people to keep certain thoughts secluded, behind closed doors instead of eliminating them.
We know now that it wasn't just the lower class individuals committing sins, but they weren't individuals either. Robert Luis Stevenson explorers this very well and shows that the upper class can be evil too. Stevenson used 'Hyde very well to hide Dr Jekyll's evil side well. Even the name is ironic. The upper class society had seemed to 'Hyde' all this very well.