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Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde Duality Analysis

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In the story The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson, an interesting duality is presented. Throughout the story, Jekyll and Hyde’s personalities clash, fighting for control, in turn exposing their true natures. Jekyll, a kind, well respected man is viewed by the town as being in an unfortunate arrangement with the nefarious Mr. Hyde. In actuality, Mr. Hyde may be the one getting the short end of the stick, as without being tied down to Jekyll, Hyde could be many times more powerful and wealthy than he already is. He may lack a key aspect to life that is the respect and kinsmenship that Jekyll receives, but because of his nature and that of 1880’s England, he hardly cares; old England was treacherous and strict, …show more content…

By his sheer drive, Hyde quickly becomes a very wealthy, well known, and infamous man in London. He pursues money and power ruthlessly, lacking empathy or courtesy, using any means to get what he desires. The effectiveness of Hyde cannot be denied, as he has already made what one could presume to be millions based off his lifestyle. Hyde’s reputation, however, has gone into the abyss, his profiting off the suffering of others does not sit well with any sound human within London, especially after the Carew murder, when the people were “crying it in the square” (Stevenson, 30) so loud that Jekyll sunkenly mumbled, “I heard them in my dining room.” (Stevenson, 30). Being as he is, Hyde does not mind the dislike from the people. His nature is heavily narcissistic, keeping his drive focused on his infamous status rather than his negligible respect. In a way, Hyde could be related to the drug, cocaine, as argued in the article “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Cocaine”. The drug was still somewhat new to England at the time and was widely frowned upon as it made abusers paranoid, spontaneous, and crazed, all characteristics associated with Hyde. This connection could also allude to his addiction for power, but not just social superiority. Hyde

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