Indledning
The duality of man is thematized in the novella “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” by the Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson, first published in 1886 through the main characters, Hyde and Jekyll.
The story is about Mr. Utterson, a respected lawyer, who is curious about a mystery involving his friend Jekyll and a mysterious man, named Hyde, who commits crimes.
Utterson gets troubled with the mystery and wants to unravel the truth. Later on he is asked by Jekyll to protect Hyde in case Jekyll disappears.
A year goes by, and Hyde commits another perplexing crime, which seems to have a profound effect on Jekyll, who refuses to speak to anyone. Afterwards, Hyde goes missing, and Jekyll’s mental and physical state fluctuates.
In the meantime Utterson seeks answers and goes to their mutual friend Lanyon, who gives him a letter which he must only open after Jekyll's death. After a while, Utterson finds Hyde’s dead body inside Jekyll’s home.
Indholdsfortegnelse
Summary:
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Uddrag
Edward Hyde is the embodiment of Henry Jekyll’s hidden evil and animalistic side, and he is portrayed as the repressed and lust-controlled part of the human mind.
Mr. Enfield, who recalls the first of Hyde's many cruel crimes, is the reader's first introduction to him: “‘He is not easy to describe. There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something downright detestable.
I never saw a man I so disliked, and yet I scarce know why. He must be deformed somewhere; he gives a strong feeling of deformity, although I couldn’t specify the point.
He’s an extraordinary-looking man, and yet I really can name nothing out of the way” (P. 10, L. 6-12) His appearance is characterized as inhumane and almost deformed, with an animalistic and devilish look, and his very presence awakens dread and revulsion in Mr. Enfield. In contrast to Jekyll he does not fit into society.
This highlights Hyde's detachment from Jekyll since the two personalities’ appearances are so different.
The immoral Hyde seems to be the polar opposite of the well-liked doctor, and his violent and daring appearance dispels any impression that the two are in fact one.
Even Utterson is unaware of the peculiar circumstance, and it is only when he reads Jekyll's narrative of the events that he realizes it.
The story uses a variety of strategies to increase the suspense in the plot. The novella is divided into three sections: the first eight chapters are narrated from the perspective of Utterson, the ninth chapter from the perspective of Dr. Lanyon, and the tenth chapter from the perspective of Jekyll himself, making the story a multiple narrative novella:
“Utterson ruminated a while; he was surprised at his friend’s selfishness, and yet relieved by it” (P. 34, l. 4-5[...] “the deadliest terror sits by me at all hours of the day and night”(P. 72, l. 9-10) [...]
“Hence it came about that I concealed my pleasures.(P.73, l. 10-11)” Utterson is an earnest individual who approaches events in a rational non-emotional manner, meaning that he does not impose many of his own opinions onto the mystery he unravels.
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