Why Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde Separates Good From Evil

In the book Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Jekyll creates a potion that separates good from evil. The potion evidently creates a whole counterpart of Jekyll, who is Mr. Hyde. Hyde overpowers Jekyll in a way, basically winning control over their body. Mr. Hyde was nothing but pure evil. Hyde only turns back into Jekyll, for fear of being captured after he kills someone. The quote “It is a man’s own mind, not his enemy or foe, that lures him to his evil ways.” comes to mind when thinking about this book. Especially at the end of the book when Hyde decides to take his own life, instead of facing the music. Jekyll knew what he was doing when he created Hyde, instead of focusing on what the outcome would be of bringing a being of pure evil into the world.

Jekyll making a using the potion to create is much like playing with the devil or playing with fire, in both cases you are going to be burned. In Jekyll’s case, it resulted in death.
“It was on the moral side, and in my own person, that I learned to recognise the thorough and primitive duality of man; I saw that, of the two natures that contended in the field of my consciousness, even if I could rightly be said to be either, it was only because I was radically both;”(Stevenson 65). This quote said by Henry Jekyll himself shows that he was aware that he had an evil side or rather persona to him. “Primitive duality of man;” duality meaning two, and that the two described in the book in Hyde and Jekyll. Essentially, good versus evil. He knew he had an evil side and instead of suppressing it, Jekyll wanted it to come out even more. “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 me” (Stevenson 64). Other words for duplicity can be fraud, deceitfulness, and deception. This could possibly mean that Jekyll was living a lie, and he knew it. Deep down he knew that he was possibly evil. This could have been what drove him to make the potion that created Hyde. “And yet when I looked upon that ugly idol in the glass, I was conscious of no repugnance, rather of a leap of welcome. This, too, was myself. It seemed natural and human” (Stevenson 68). Other than his appearance Jekyll seemed “natural and human”. Jekyll and Hyde shared the same conscious. Jekyll was responsible for Hyde’s actions, just as Hyde was responsible for Jekyll’s.
“That part of me which I had the power of projecting, had lately been much exercised and nourished; it had seemed to me of late as though the body of Edward Hyde had grown in stature, as though (when I wore that form) I were conscious of a more generous tide of blood; and I began to spy a danger that, if this were much prolonged, the balance of my nature might be permanently overthrown, the power of voluntary change be forfeited, and the character of Edward Hyde become irrevocably mine” (Stevenson 73).

Jekyll knew that if he continued taking the potion that he could permanently lose control over his body. He persisted into turning into Hyde. He even said himself that sometimes in the past he would have to double his dose, and one time he even risked his own life “to tremble the amount”. He knew that they were consequences to taking the potion and turning into Hyde. He disregarded those consequences, although the type of sciences which were required to make said potion was not experimented with and Jekyll thought of this as some sort of special power that he had. “It was on this side that my new power tempted me until slavery. I had but to drink the cup, to doof at once the body of the noted professor, and to assume, like a thick cloak, that of Edward Hyde.” (Stevenson 70). If somehow anyone else was to create this type of concoction they would keep it to themselves, but you would think that a scientist of all people would go to someone about it. The one person he showed was

Lanyon, just seeing his friend turn into Hyde was enough to make him turn sick and eventually die. It wasn’t for science progression, but it was in fact for boasting in a way.
Jekyll couldn’t have possibly predicted what could have happened when he made Hyde. Provided that he could not remember what happens when he turns into Hyde, but still, there is only a numerous amount of things that could happen if you bring a being of pure evil into the world. Hyde killed someone and trampled a little girl over in the middle of the night. Jekyll originally made that potion to return him to his original appearance. Each time he takes the potions he becomes more and more like Hyde. Meaning he became more and more evil, which leads one to believe that Hyde could possibly be the original version of Jekyll. Somewhere along the Hyde had turned into Jekyll, that push that Jekyll was receiving not to give up and keep on trying to make the potion could have been Hyde inside of Jekyll. Isn’t it a little strange that Hyde already has a name? He did not have to think what he should name himself, the book identified him as Edward Hyde. “Yet it was by these that I was punished. My devil had been longed caged, he came out roaring” (Stevenson 75). I took this as Hyde had been the “devil” inside of Jekyll long before Jekyll’s experiments started. Jekyll had somehow found a way to “cage” Hyde into their body. One could guess that it could possibly have been Hyde that suggested the idea of making the potion anyway. So that would mean that Hyde was slowly taking over Jekyll mind long before we even realized. It had started with Jekyll’s mind leading to his body.
Despite suppressing his evil side for quite some time. Jekyll was, from the beginning, always a combination of good and evil. It just so happens that taking the potion made his evil side stronger after years of suppression. “At the sight that met my eyes, my blood was changed into something exquisitely thin and icy. Yes, I had gone to bed Henry Jekyll, I had awakened Edward Hyde. How was this to be explained? I asked myself; and then, with another bound of terror--how was it supposed to be remedied?” (Stevenson 72). Hyde started to slowly take over the body of Jekyll. The evil in Jekyll was stronger than the good in him. “The powers of Hyde seemed to have grown with the sickliness of Jekyll. And certainly the hate that now divided them was equal on each side.” (Stevenson 81).
Jekyll’s entire mindset was disoriented, he believed that he was not responsible for the actions Hyde.

If he did not continue turning into Hyde, the entire thing could have been stopped. It was Jekyll who persisted turning into Hyde. There are multiple places in the book, where it said that Jekyll had some sort of pleasure making and using the potions. “I had learned to dwell with pleasure, as a beloved daydream; on the thought of the separation of these elements.” (Stevenson 65), “There was something strange in my sensations, something indescribably new and, from its very novelty, incredibly sweet.” (Stevenson 67), and “The pleasure which I made haste to seek in my disguised were, as I have said, undignified;” (Stevenson 71). If someone was turning into someone they do not like or something evil, I do not think there would a pleasure that comes along with it. Hyde is Jekyll and Jekyll is Hyde. Although Jekyll was described as a much bigger than Hyde. I think the Stevenson, the author of the book, did this to add to one of the points in the book. That is how looks can be

deceiving.
Jekyll tried to keep Hyde suppressed but he ultimately failed. I believe most, well almost everyone, has a good and evil side. Certain things happen to people and that would either trigger them to be a good person or an evil person. You can not force someone to be good the same way you can not force someone to be evil, it’s a path that they choose on their own. The one thing you can do is hold people responsible for their actions. Jekyll creates Mr. Hyde, that means whatever Hyde did is on Jekyll. It’s like having a dog. If you take your dog for a walk and it bites somebody, that person has a right to blame you. Why? well, you did not have your dog on a leash, and if you did have it on a leash then it is still your fault for not controlling it. The situation is much like Jekyll’s, he had Hyde on a leash but somewhere along the line his grip slipped or he became too comfortable and Hyde took over.