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What Are The Similarities Between Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde

1269 Words6 Pages

Natalie Thompson
Savannah Fisher
English 10 Honors
26 April 2023
The Influence of Reputation and Morals in Victorian Society With a story like Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, readers are dived into an account where they can see the perspective of a man who wants to defy ethics and morals and create a version of himself to do just that. In Robert Louis Stevenson’s book, we see the downfall and engulfment of evil that Dr. Jekyll takes after making such a person reside in his body with him. Three characters in particular⎯ Mr. Utterson, Dr. Jekyll, and Mr. Hyde show differences in what is acceptable in society at this time, and how people perceive them because of this. Dr. Jekyll is an honored scientist and an extraordinary man in terms …show more content…

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. Turning him into what the world would never expect him to …show more content…

A crucial era where reputation was held at the highest stake, accounting for money and popularity and nothing else to set your worth. This shows why the shock of what Dr. Jekyll turned into was so present. The book mentions, “There is something more, if I could find a name for it. God bless me, the man seems hardly human! Something troglodytic, shall we say? or can it be the old story of Dr. Fell? or is it the mere radiance of a foul soul that thus transpires through, and transfigures, its clay continent? The last, I think; for, O my poor old Harry Jekyll, if ever I read Satan’s signature upon a face, it is on that of your new friend.” (28) Showing the disbelief, this also showcases how the actions of Mr. Hyde are so obscene to the people during this time that he is accused of being Satan. Even so, Dr. Jekyll had money and popularity, as well as working in something so experimental at the time yet was a fundamental point in this age. The contrast and the public’s reactions to numerous actions from Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde show the standards that were imperative to teach at a young

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