Jekyll and Hyde
A gripping story of mans inherent duality according to Stevenson, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde goes beyond the horrorscience fiction genre and dives into the western concept of man having two sides good and evil and its constant struggle against each other in ones being. Dr. Jekylls efforts to rid himself of the evil in him by allowing it to manifest itself in a different persona contains a paradox in itself where evil is let loose in an effort to rid himself of evil. As Jekyll manages to separate his evil self from his dominant good self, he lives on feeling satisfied of the life he leads, without having to suffer from guilt and temptation into sin for though both beings share the same memory and Jekyll shares the pleasures and experiences from Hydes adventures, Jekyll feels he is not to be held responsible for Hydes actions. Eventually though, as Hydes notoriety grows, Jekyll gets word of Hydes or in this case, his other selfs actions, and feels guilty for having unleashed such evil. Doctor Henry Jekyll then decides he shall no longer resort to his transformation elixir, and continues to live on, content with just keeping his evil urges in check.
Edward Hyde, having already been released before, continues to struggle out of Doctor Henry Jekyll and one morning, Jekyll wakes up to realize he head already assumed the form of Edward Hyde even without having consumed his potion. He quickly proceeds to reverting his appearance to that of his true self respected and revered Doctor Henry Jekyll and decides that he would no longer transform himself into the monster that is Edward Hyde. Jekyll experiences a sense of freedom after this decision, with his friends and help noticing a pleasant change in the man. As time passed though, Jekyll once again gave in to the temptation of his dark side, brewing another batch of his elixir and transforming himself into the evil Hyde. This time, Hyde after being locked away for so long, grows wild with desire and lashes out, killing a member of Parliament, a Sir Danvers Carew. This act has left Jekyll begging for Gods forgiveness, convincing himself not to ever transform into Edward Hyde again.
After a time, Jekyll resorts to philanthropic deeds to somehow redeem himself from the murderous act. As he was contemplating this fact while sitting on a park bench, he is suddenly seized by the transformation and regains his consciousness as Edward Hyde. This unprecedented change caused Jekyll in his Hyde persona to reveal his secret to a former friend and fellow man of science, Dr. Hastie Lanyon, to help him revert to his Jekyll form. This spurns the problem of Jekyll transforming into Hyde without the slightest invocation from Jekyll, and eventually Hyde grows stronger and stronger, requiring Jekyll to consume even bigger batches of his potion to subdue this evil form he takes whenever he drifts into unconsciousness or sleep.
The tale ends in Jekylls futile attempts at recreating his formula, realizing that the first batch of a certain chemical he had used before probably had impurities in them. This meant that he can no longer revert to his Jekyll persona if he runs out of the ingredient unless he gets more of it, which he can longer do as the chemist from where he got the first batch of the ingredient powder had already replaced it with a new, pure stock. He stays cooped up in his lab for a week, plagued by unprecedented transformations, carefully using up the last of his potion ingredients while sending for the same ingredient he had been searching for from chemists all over.
Hanging on to the remaining ounces of his strength, Jekyll composes a letter explaining everything that has happened and how they came to be including the existence of Edward Hyde and the relationship between them. As he is now without any means to push back the caged beast Edward Hyde, Doctor Henry Jekyll is doomed to stay in Hyde form for the remainder of his life. Jekyll locks himself up in his laboratory, desperately trying to come up with a solution to his predicament, and as he eventually runs out of the will to fight back the transformation, he transforms for the last time into Hyde.
Hyde, however, has problems of his own, being a man wanted for the murder of Sir Danvers Carew. He himself trying desperately to escape a fate worse than being trapped in Jekyll again, stays locked in Jekylls laboratory. But Jekylls butler Poole grows suspicious and sends for his masters friend and lawyer, Mr. Utterson. Utterson and Poole break down the door despite Hydes trying to convince them that he was Jekyll and that all is well, and as they break through, they find Hyde dead with a vial of poison emptied in his hand.
Character Analysis of Doctor Henry Jekyll and Mister Edward Hyde
The main protagonist of the story, Doctor Henry Jekyll is a man who is widely known for his philanthropic work as well as for being a decent, respectable, and charitable doctor who remains in good standing in the public eye. Despite this respected facade he keeps, Jekyll has actually reveled in the adventurous folly of youth. Acting cautiously to cover up any scandalous doings he may have may have partaken in, Jekyll has led a life of secrecy with regards to his dark desires and deeds. He is a well-established doctor who is locked in a perpetual internal battle between what is right and wrong, what is good and what is evil.
Mister Edward Hyde, however, as the lead antagonist in the story, is a strange man who seems despicable in nature. He performs acts of cruelty and hatred, often described by those who have seen him as a man of striking deformity although none could seem to be able to place what deformity he actually possesses. This deformity is explained by Jekyll as due to the fact that Hyde is the personification of total evil, and this quality, although it may not be perceived in the physical sense, can be sensed in more supernatural way. As opposed to Doctor Henry Jekyll, Edward Hyde is a man of small stature, and was much younger in appearance, this is explained by Jekyll in theory that this was due to the fact that Hyde, being the embodiment of Jekylls dark side, was a being that was obviously not as developed as Jekyll since he had been repressing this facet of personality for the longest time.
Many see Jekyll and Hyde as two beings who are direct opposites of each other but the truth is that the relationship between Jekyll and Hyde is not quite as opposing as it may seem. This is due to the fact that though Edward Hyde was in fact a being of pure evil and darkness, Doctor Henry Jekyll is not the embodiment of good or the light side. Jekyll, just like any other person, is actually a being who has in him both sides of the equation. Good versus bad, right versus wrong, these conflicts go on and on in Jekyll and he only uses his Hyde persona to act out on the bad things that he wants to experience Hyde being a creature who is detached of anything that would resemble a conscience. Also, since it is socially accepted - if not actually encouraged - to perform deeds of good nature, Jekyll really has no need to create a persona that would embody the goodness in him. The social reaction to any good acts done by Jekyll himself would actually prove beneficial to him, as more people would hold him with higher respect and awe. As such, this shows that Jekyll and Hyde are not opposites, but rather that Hyde is just a portion of the whole of Jekyll. Despite the prevalence of good deeds in Doctor Jekyll, he is not an embodiment of true goodness as Hyde is to evil.
Borrowing from Sigmund Freuds views of psychoanalysis and his theories on the id, ego, and superego, The rational and in control Doctor Henry Jekyll relatable to Freuds theory on the superego, seeks to take control of and repress the Hyde aspect of him which is considered to be the id - that structure within ones personality that consists of mans primal urges of seeking pleasure while avoiding pain.
Character Analysis of Mister Gabriel John Utterson
A well respected lawyer who is well-known in the London community, Mister Utterson is a man of dignity and reservations. A tad skeptic, Utterson would much rather believe in scientific facts and rational thought, those that may be backed by physical evidence. This mind setting is what proves him to be a difficult character to ever work on the highly metaphysical if not supernatural - topic of the relationship between Jekyll and Hyde. Where the story turns on the titular characters Jekyll and Hyde, Utterson is the man on whom the perspective of the story comes from, making him one of the major characters in the tale.
A true friend to Jekyll, Utterson stands by him through thick and thin, proving his worth by keeping what he knows of Jekyll to himself and further investigating on them to try and save his friend. Although Utterson himself is not a man whos field of study was devoted to the sciences, his innate rationality and curiosity is what drives Utterson to see to the mystery of the relationship between his good friend Doctor Henry Jekyll . His relentless pursuit for an explanation to the strange case was eventually answered, in a letter from Doctor Henry Jekyll explaining everything that was addressed to him specifically, him having been the good Doctor Jekylls lawyer as well as a friend.
It is also obvious that Stevenson had portrayed the Utterson character as a sort of reflection for the era in which the story was set the Victorian era. Characterized as a man who makes sure to preserve decorum and orderliness, Utterson signifies the Victorian eras well-kept facade of the prim and proper, a true gentleman of his time. Also as with the Victorian era, Uttersons true self hides underneath a veil of orderliness, as he has his own dark secrets the knowledge of the ongoings in Jekylls life such as the suspicious will where Jekyll leaves all his fortune to Hyde. In Utterson, Stevenson attempts to show the Victorian societys attempt at having orderliness and authority triumph over the dark side of humanity. Although Utterson is not a man of science like Jekyll or their other friend Doctor Hastie Lanyon, he is devoted solely to rational thought and looks down on supernatural explanations, this quality shows all throughout the novella, as he bearing witness to the whole of the story maintains his standpoint on the supernatural and keeps true to the pursuance of logic and reason. To compensate for this trait of Utterson as to not let the story lose its horror facet, Stevenson allowed for Utterson to suffer from nightmares and premonitions concerning the case of his dear friend Henry Jekyll.
Character Analysis of Doctor Hastie Lanyon
A respected and reputable doctor who, much like Utterson, was one of Jekylls closest friends until they had a falling out of sorts. He and Jekyll fell into an argument years before the story setting takes place, scientific differences sparking a rift of the two minds, and has since only taken an interest in Jekyll and his works for old times sake. Lanyons scientific character was a foil to Jekylls which has since evolved into a man more concerned over matters of the metaphysical, even branding Jekylls works as unscientific balderdash (Stevenson 8).
After being questioned by Utterson regarding concerns for their common friend Jekyll, Lanyon, receives a request from Jekyll to fetch a drawer from Jekylls laboratory, the drawer, unbeknownst to Lanyon, contains the items necessary for Jekylls transformation. This after Jekylls having transformed into Hyde after his murder of Sir Danvers Carew in public, which meant that he could not hope to access his laboratory without the help reporting him over to the authorities. Upon helping Jekyll in this case, in his Hyde form recover the drawer, Hyde then proceeds to mix up his elixir, asking Lanyon if he would wish to have Hyde drink the potion and reveal to him the knowledge of his and Jekylls secret, or to allow himself of his innocence on the matter. Lanyon chooses to accept the knowledge, having gone out of his way to help Jekyll. Hyde then transforms back into Jekyll, and the information proves too much for Lanyon to handle, having lived his life based on skepticism, materialism, and rationalism and caused him to experience great shock. Lanyons body and mind eventually deteriorates rapidly from having experienced great shock, and Lanyon eventually dies, leaving behind a letter that documents the experience to Utterson, with instructions only to be opened upon his and Jekylls deaths. Lanyons death is symbolic in Stevensons narrative as it shows how the supernatural aspect in the story overcomes Lanyons representation of the rational.
Character Analysis of Mister Poole
Mister Poole is Jekylls loyal butler. A servant who has worked for the doctor for two decades, Poole has proven genuinely concerned about the overall welfare of his master. In the time that Jekyll had shut himself in his laboratory, Pooles concern grew more and more. Finally, after having seen Hyde sneaking into the laboratory and not having heard his masters voice for some time, Pooles fears grew into the suspicion of his masters murder. He then gets help from Utterson, and they proceed to break down the door to Jekylls headquarters,Poole knowing fully well that he is putting himself in danger as he does so. Their suspicions were allayed by the confessions they found in the laboratory, near Edward Hydes dead body.
Character Analysis of Sir Danvers Carew
A minor character in the story, Sir Danvers Carew is a kind old man who is a key member of the British Parliament. Sir Danvers Carew was a nobleman who was also a client of Utterson. One fateful morning, as he was taking a leisurely stroll, Sir Danvers Carew was suddenly and savagely murdered by a recently unleashed Edward Hyde, who was wilder than ever. Hyde had clubbed Sir Danvers Carew with a heavy cane, bones loudly crunching under each savage blow. (Stevenson 18)
The character of Sir Danvers Carew serves as the ultimate example of the evil that is Edward Hyde. A lovable old man of import to the country, Hyde easily killed him without so much a hesitant thought. This leads to Jekyll ultimately deciding to no longer transform into Hyde, but the being that is Hyde can no longer be contained.
Character Analysis of Mister Enfield
Mister Enfield is a distant relative and a constant companion to Utterson. He was Uttersons companion in the novellas opening scene and Enfield, much like Utterson, is a well respected gentleman who detests gossip and other forms of activities that may sully anothers reputation. Enfield was the first to bring the character of Hyde into the story, as it was on that walk with Utterson in the beginning of the novel that they chanced upon the door that leads to Jekylls laboratory. He tells Utterson of a story of that door where Hyde saved his reputation from being tarnished when Enfield caught him trampling a little girl. Hyde had paid off the little girls family with a cheque signed in the name of Dr Jekyll. Enfield being the noble man that he was, withheld the name of Jekyll from the story.
Another testament to the formality and outward reservation of the Victorian culture, Enfield is a character that further builds up on the establishing of the storys setting. By showing how most honorable people are and how they act towards unsocial behavior, Stevenson is able to set why Jekyll was motivated to create a potion that birthed Edward Hyde.
Character Analysis of Mister Guest
A man skilled in the art handwriting analysis, Mister Guest was the one who was able to discern the similarities between Jekylls and Hydes handwriting. A good friend to Utterson, Guest was also Uttersons clerk. He proved his expertise in handwriting analysis by noting examining the handwriting specimens provided to him by Mister Utterson from Doctor Henry Jekyll and Mister Edward Hyde and they would have been identical had the writer not inverse the way the letters slanted another work of deception thought of by Jekyll that was good enough to throw suspicion off of him from the evil deeds of Hyde, but not from the well-trained eyes of Mr. Guest.
Analysis
Jekyll and Hyde is a story that maintains its focus on the concept of man having a two-sided nature. Despite this, it is not until the last few pages of the novella that the truth behind the relationship between Jekyll and Hyde is revealed. Although it is similar in some ways to Freud Psychoanalytical concepts of the Id, Ego, and the Superego, the novel Jekyll and Hyde actually preempted Freuds concepts on the Id, Ego, and Superego by 37 years, Freuds book on his structural analysis The Ego and the Id only coming out in 1923 ( Freud 1923) while The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde was first published 1886 (Stevenson 1886). Meanwhile, the novel also predated Freudian psychoanalysis by 15 years, the idea first attaining publicity in 1900 in his work The Interpretation of Dreams (Freud 1900). The novel is actually a portrayal of both good and bad that reside within a person in equal parts. That which is deemed good is the part which is socially accepted, and therefore uninhibited in public and seeks to balance that of the idealistic side of man and the primal urges without having to suffer from any moral consequences.
Basing the novel on these structural points by Freud, we can say that since Doctor Jekyll is a being composed of all these structures, the separation of Hyde is the embodiment of his Id since Hyde is a being that seeks to satiate his primal urges without giving any thought to his actions consequences. Examples of this behavior in Hyde is the first time was brought up in the story, he ran into a little girl and proceeded to trample her before he was collared by Mister Enfield. Hyde is giving in to his desire of hurting the child, his concern that of his own urges. Another example is when he proceeded to ruthlessly slaughter Sir Danvers Carew. On both instances, Hyde was neither wronged nor given much attention by both of his victims before he proceeded with his evil acts.
On the other hand, despite the separation of Jekylls Id in Hyde, he himself is still a combination of the Psychic apparatus according to Freud the Id, Ego, and Superego. As most people are, his ego remains in control to pursue that of the aspirations of the Superego while still tending to his primal urges as per his Id. Although his way of dealing with his Id was more of allowing it to think and decide for itself, which led to his demise, as a being of pure Id would only act upon its instincts as Hyde did. The irony in the story lies where Jekyll, who upon acting on his Superego of wanting to be able to achieve a life without sin by ridding himself of his Id, ends up suffering even more of the consequences of having his Id run loose rather than Indulging it in a calculating manner as he did before he was able to create his elixir.
Another interesting facet of the novel is the vagueness of the said evil acts being committed by Hyde. Only those important to the story were specified. This is seen by many critics as part of the facade that that the Victorian era keeps to hide its underlying ugliness. Stevenson having wrote the novel in the same time the story was set, he himself must have been compelled to keep to this veil of secrecy. As in the story, the characters themselves paid a lot of concern to the importance of ones reputation. Th preponderance of this system of value is immediately addressed in the opening scenes, where both Utterson and Enfield refuse to have their conversation sullied by gossip for they deem it the root cause of the demise of ones reputation. A perfect example would be upon Uttersons suspicion that it was Jekyll who had signed the cheque Hyde paid the little girls family with, despite this, he made no mention of it to Enfield, who in turn also refuses to name Hydes benefactor. In this manner we get to see how Victorian society as a whole deals with its very own collective structural apparatus.
Where the hustle and bustle of the daily thoroughfare lies, so does the Victorian eras Ego is. People going about their daily lives, earning to make ends meet, striving for a higher goal while keeping to their needs as well as their wants. In front of it, a mask the bright lights and the shiny trinkets that adorn the well-dressed and formal face of Victorian high society. The superego striving for perfection amongst themselves, often turning a blind eye to the true state of things. And underneath everything, the uncontrollable fixation on the primal needs of man - the Id, which completes this riveting social commentary on the hypocrisies of the 19th century.
At the time of the novels writing, Stevenson was actually creating a tale that was suited to then contemporary times. If we were to liken The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde to a novel that our generation would most easily relate to, a good example would be Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk, where the unnamed main protagonist meets a free spirit named Tyler Durden, and they set off to start a fighting circle that ends up as a terrorist cell. It ends with the narrator finding out that he and Tyler are the same, with the narrator acknowledging that Tyler Durden is my hallucination ( Palahniuk 124).
Where Fight Club is set with a grittier, more action-focused setting, the overall atmosphere of the The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is that of a Gothic nature, much of which became popular in the 1800s with classic novels such as Carmilla by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu and Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. Where Le Fanu depicted vampires as undead creatures who use supernatural powers to stalk their prey such as transforming into a sooty black animal that resembles a monstrous cat (Le Fanu 26), the telling of the tale of Jekyll and Hyde focuses more on the going-ons in the mind of a person, dredging up the horrors from within a person, as opposed to other monster titles where the evil is from without the protagonist. This actually proves to be far more scarier, as it tells people that lying dormant in each and every one of us is a Hyde just waiting to be let out. Despite this Stevenson still paints a haunting picture of Victorian London. Streets swimming in murky shadows, twisting and turning into uncertainty beneath a tattered blanket of chilling fog. This description of the London landscape allowed for Stevenson to connect the darkness between the characters, the story, and the narrative itself into the setting of a sprawling, chilling, urban landscape of murky, stone cold London. This frightening description of the land is not limited to the waking life of the characters, as Utterson himself had suffered from creepy depictions of the surrounding areas of his nightmares, and seated at the heart of all the horror is the creature Hyde, perfectly at home in his surroundings.
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