Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde Good Vs Evil

Mencius declares that, “Evil exists to glorify the good. Evil is negative good. It is a relative term. Evil can be transmuted into good. What is evil to one at one time, becomes good at another time to somebody else.” In other words, the criteria for good and evil are subjective; they are determined by the moral and cultural standards of societies. Consequently, because each person perceives good and evil differently, no single point of view is the absolute truth. In Robert Louis Stevenson’s the Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the dichotomy of good versus evil torments Dr. Jekyll. Confronted by his darkness and the pressure of social expectations, Dr. Jekyll invents a potent drug that transforms himself into Mr. Hyde, his malicious

He finds it exceedingly difficult to “reconcile” with his “imperious desire to carry” his “head high… before the public” while hiding his darkness “with an almost morbid sense of shame” (Stevenson ch. 10). Naturally, Jekyll’s inner turmoil starts from an early age; albeit, it took him “years of reflection” before he actually realizes the duality of man (Stevenson ch. 10). However, despite his awareness, he is never satisfied. Because society pressures Jekyll to present himself as a respectable man, he is placed on a pedestal. Terrified to show his imperfect side, Jekyll’s shameful impulse simmer and intensifies as the years go by until they can no longer be suppressed. While it can be interpreted that good is more powerful than evil in this instance, it is Jekyll’s willpower and fear of the destruction of his idealized image of himself that overrules his inner demon, not

Through Dr. Jekyll’s struggle of the duality of man, Stevenson illuminates the fact that it is social expectations that establish a value system of good and evil. When Dr. Jekyll successfully disconnects from the good and the evil within, he is able to live in dual life that allows him to please society and himself simultaneously. Jekyll maintains his elite status and respectable role in the community, while Hyde engages in activities that society deplores of. However, Jekyll, consciously, cannot accept the outrages and negative responses from society on his innate desire so, he chooses to conform before ultimately dying. His death symbolizes that good and evil cannot coexist without each other: where there is good there is evil, without evil, there is no