Comparing Dr Jekyll And The Picture Of Dorian Grey

When it comes to many Victorian novels, there seems to be a fascination with the struggle of good and evil that is either internalized or externalized throughout the story. Many novels play off of the a character’s psychological struggle as a way to promote this and even delve deep into what truly in good and evil within the confines of the human mind. Whether the author consciously or unconsciously meant to exploit the doubles within the characters, it seems to a relatively present theme. I feel this is especially true for the novels, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and The Picture of Dorian Grey. Both novels use themes of good and evil as the main struggle and plot within their stories. They also both show the main characters succumbing to their darker halves due to poor choices and actions throughout the novel.

Both the novels help to define “good” and “bad” during the times in which they were written, and give an inside look at the moral and immoral traits associated with the Victorian era. It seems the public’s fascination with these novels shows how many people of that time had a morbid fascination with the darker aspects of the human character. Jekyll and Hyde shows the struggle within the mind of one character, while Dorian Grey contrasts two character’s actions. Despite the slight difference, both novels hold many similarities and seem to speak on the context of morality in a darker setting and plot. Overall, both novels speak about the human struggle, contrasting beliefs, and the psychological battle of