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Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde Character Development

2010 Words9 Pages

Robert Lewis Stevenson uses character development and setting in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde to represent the duality from the Victorian society.

Character development in Robert Louis Stevenson's The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is one of the main themes that makes the book. Robert Louis Stevenson puts in spatial metaphors to show the theme of duality "provinces of good and ill which divide and compound man's dual nature", Jekyll communicates the vision that the duo might be "housed in separate identities" (78, 79). I like this quote because it shows how different they are but how they relate to each other. Dr. Jekyll was really fascinated with the supposition that a person has a "good" side and a "bad" side, and he decided to look …show more content…

One paradox is the double-consciousness with Jekyll and Hyde. Just as the contrasting appearances of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde play upon the ideas becoming visible from Charles Darwin's work, so their differing personalities explore modern debates about moral conduct and the attainable plurality of human consciousness. By precisely splitting the consciousness of Dr Jekyll into two, the good side that makes a effort, and mostly succeeds, in cracking down on desires that run contradictory to the dictates of the population; and the without morals side that runs lawless in an all out go to satisfy animal impulse. Stevenson takes a look in a addition to trends the fight played out in every one of us. As Dr. Jekyll likes to perceive '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' (ch. 10). Through Hyde, the well bred Dr. Jekyll is let loose from the self discipline saddled with someone by society 'my devil had been long caged, he came out roaring' (ch. 10). In his guilty plea at the conclusion of the book, Jekyll perceives that, when all is said and done, he will have to choose between being Dr. Jekyll or Mr. Hyde. To become the last mentioned would mean giving up on noble expectations and being 'forever despised and friendless'. (ch. 10) To become Jekyll, in spite of that, means giving up the physical and down at the heel appetites he can give way to as Hyde. In ill will of the out of the ordinary turn of events of his own case it is, as the gloominess Jekyll consents to, a breach of the peace and war of words 'as old and commonplace as man' (ch.

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Similarities Between Dr Jekyll And Hyde

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Interests in math and science. Mr Hyde had developed a potion that allowed him to turn into Dr. Jekyll. Jekyll found a way to separate his good side from his darker side, by transforming himself into a monster free of consciences. But he later found that he was turning into more and more into Mr Hyde. He started turning into Mr. Hyde in random places, the transformations got worse and worse.

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Theme Of Deception In Dr. Jekyll And Mr Hyde

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Deception in ‘The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ ‘The strange case of Dr.Jekyll and Mr Hyde’ is a novella by the scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson, first published in 1886. Stevenson, born November 13, 1850, is also the author of the well known book; ‘Treasure Island’. Robert L. Stevenson, who died December 3, 1894,, was said to be influenced by authors such as Charles Dickens and Edgar Allen Poe. This book is part of the gothic genre, a genre of literature that combines fiction, and horror, death and at times romance. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, or simply Jekyll and Hyde is about a London lawyer named Mr, Utterson who investigates strange occurrences between his old friend Dr. Jekyll and the evil Mr. Hyde.

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Theme Of Evil In Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde

546 Words | 3 Pages

Throughout the novella Jekyll would struggle to keep Mr. Hyde from “escaping” and taking over. This being said all of these things balance each other out to keep good and evil balanced. The first way that good and evil exists in all humans is like yin and yang. By balancing each other out it keeps both sides to work equally. The novella starts off when Mr. Hyde tramples a little girl—at night— and acts like it was no big deal, but when Dr. Jekyll wakes up he does not remember anything. “… and brought him back to where there was already quite a group about the screaming child.

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Knowledge And Consequences In Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde

1591 Words | 7 Pages

Dr. Jekyll is viewed as a smart man with a lot of knowledge, however, due to Jekyll not being satisfied with his life, he is determined to get more out of his live and is willing to do anything to fulfill his determination. Dr. Jekyll expresses this when he states, “[A] grinding in the bones, deadly nausea, and a horror of the spirit that cannot be exceeded at the hour of birth or death. Then these agonies began swiftly to subside… [t]here was something strange in my sensations, something indescribably new and, from its very novelty, incredibly sweet. I felt younger, lighter, happier in body within I was conscious of a heady recklessness, a current of disordered sensual images running like a millrace in my fancy, a solution of the bonds of obligation, an unknown but not an innocent freedom of the soul.” (Stevenson 57).

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What Are The Similarities Between Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde

1269 Words | 6 Pages

Jekyll and Mr. Hyde become the same person in the end, there remain many differences yet similarities between them. The stark contrast between the two symbolize the expectations of society for a man during this time and the exact opposite. Dr. Jekyll changes from the takeover of his body drastically, near the end craving what Mr. Hyde accomplishes inside of him. We see this even from the eyes of Mr. Utterson, as a main character, that Dr. Jekyll loses his humanity from Mr. Hyde’s plague on his body. This leads to the representation of Dr. Jekyll, on how his previous mindset changes completely to crave the ideals of a terrible man.

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Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde Compare And Contrast

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Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are different in their behaviors. Mr. Hyde can break out into a great flame of anger. This is evident because while a maid servant was getting ready for bed, she was staring out her window and saw what Mr. Hyde had done. Mr. Hyde was talking with someone and he was listening with an “ill-contained impatience,” and out of nowhere, Mr. Hyde broke out into a great flame of anger, stamping his foot, brandishing the cane, and carrying on, The maid servant described him as a madman. He then proceeded to break all of his victim’s bones and ended up killing him.

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Role Of Writing The Body In Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde

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Dr Jekyll’s identity is apprehended in relation to the performance of the social role of a reputed doctor. Being Dr Jekyll is being a person with normative body with good self that conforms to social and moral codes. Hence, being Dr Jekyll is being a respectable doctor who renders valuable services to the society. On the contrary, being Dr Jekyll is being a hypocrite hiding in the mask of a reputed doctor secretly indulging in sensual pleasures. Dr Jekyll is not purely good even before the emergence of Mr Hyde.

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The Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde

2943 Words | 12 Pages

Stevenson’s Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde follows the decline of Dr Henry Jekyll’s social standing and mental wellness after he is introduced to a monstrous stranger, Mr Edward Hyde. While Jekyll is portrayed as an upstanding and wealthy doctor, Hyde is his antithesis; a creature that rejects Victorian puritanical restriction. Due to this, Hyde is often interpreted as an allegory for addiction, temptation, mental illness, immorality, or changing social norms. Yet despite being the central figures of the novella, the story is told from the perspective of Jekyll’s friend and peer, Gabriel John Utterson. Although it limits the reader’s insight into Jekyll and Hyde’s internal motivation, Utterson’s position as the narrator illuminates Victorian

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Jekyll And Mr Hyde Human Nature Essay

813 Words | 4 Pages

In the novel, Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Robert Louis Stevenson explores the complexity of human nature. He uses characters and events in the novel to present his stance on the major theme: “man is not truly one, but truly two” (125). Branching from this major theme are many more specific views on the idea that human nature is divided into good and evil. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are two very different people who occupy the same body. Human beings struggle with good and evil and Stevenson goes to the extreme to to show this relationship.

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Duality In Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde

855 Words | 4 Pages

So, perhaps Jekyll’s experiment reduces his being to its most basic form, in which evil runs freely without his reputation as Jekyll being tarnished at all. Jekyll and Hyde are not the only examples of duality in this novel. The city of London is also portrayed in contrasting terms as both a foggy, dreary and ‘nightmarish’ place, and a well kept, bustling center of commerce. Indeed, just as men have both positive and negative qualities, so does society.

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Examples Of Alter Ego In Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde

655 Words | 3 Pages

Dr. Jekyll is known as his normal or content side, but matters get worse when he lets his alter ego “Mr Hyde” roams free, since this alter ego is his evil side. Mr Hyde commits many ill things but this was only a matter of him controlling his emotions. He didn't, and now he

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460 Words | 2 Pages

Robert Louis Stevenson’s literary work, “Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”, is one of his most notable works. It was written during the Victorian era when there were huge emphasis placed on social morality. He sets out to understand the differences between dual personalities, good and evil (evil definitely not being within the social norm). He sums up his story by stating: “All human beings, as we meet them, are commingled out of good and evil: and Edward Hyde, alone, in the ranks of mankind, was pure evil.” Robert explains his reasons for writing the book that he did, while talking about the time and era.

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Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde Research Paper

1065 Words | 5 Pages

Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" brings the double personality theme, but, the story itself is about the mystery behind Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde's connection. The whole story goes around Mr. Utterson - a decent lawyer - trying to find out what is wrong with his dear friend, Henry Jekyll, and what is his relationship with the devilish man, also known as Mr. Hyde. On the end of the story, the reader finds out that Mr. Hyde is Jekyll's evil side: the doctor was fascinated by the duality of human nature and decided to do some experiments to separate his two sides, the good one and the evil one. Henry Jekyll wanted to do things that he couldn't because of his reputation and social morals, therefore, the best and only way of doing what he really wanted to was to have another side that no one knew. On the other hand, he didn't know how evil his other side could be: Mr. Hyde was purely evil and Dr. Jekyll wasn't purely good.

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A Comparison Of Scientists In Mary Shelley's Frankenstein And Robert Louis Stevenson

2180 Words | 9 Pages

Representation of Scientists in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Towards the end of the 19th century, the portrayal of science in literature became more frequent than before; science has been progressing and it began to spark the interest of the readers of fiction. Supernatural elements in stories have been ascribed to scientists and experiments rather than God and miracles. However, since science still covered much of the unknown and inexplicable, the characters of scientists have occasionally been given almost godlike powers, thus prompting the readers to consider the question of morality. The scientist characters in both Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein and Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde have initially been successful with their scientific experiments and achieved groundbreaking discoveries, but have ultimately been punished for having gone too far with their experiments on humanity.

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This distinct use of visual imagery creates a stark contrast between two seemingly different personas who will later be revealed to be different sides of Dr. Jekyll himself. The use of environment and setting also aids in distinguishing the two characters. When Mr. Utterson visits Hyde in his home, the surrounding environment is portrayed as a “dingy street” and “a gin palace” with “many ragged children huddled in the doorways” (Stevenson 1689). These images are symbolic of vice and poverty, all of which emphasise the perverse and deviant nature of Hyde as he commits several sins in the novel and is lacking in morals. On the other hand, Dr. Jekyll’s home is often depicted as “warmed by a bright, open fire”, “large”, and “comfortable” (Stevenson 1685), an embodiment of the Victorian outward respectability and “moral”

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