Duality in Jekyll and Hyde

Point >> whilst Jekyll represents good Hyde represents the pure embodiment of evil.

• "Every mark of capacity and kindness"
  • Jekyll is good and respected man
  • Being reputable was a key part of Victorian society (C)

• "Like Satan"
  • Pure evil
  • Religious
  • Juxtaposed to Jekyll who is reputable compared to Hyde's psychotic ways

Overall >> Hyde is the complete opposite if Jekyll because he is a representation of pure evil in comparison to the good reputable man of Jekyll yet they are the same as revealed in the full statement - "man is not truly one, but truly two"

Extra detail - J "smooth faced man of fifty" and H "the man seems hardly human" (appearances)

Point >> The motif of light and dark is used to present shifts in mood and tone.

• Carew Murder Case
  • "The early part of the night was cloudless" - this is before the murder
  • "Dark like the back-end of evening" (simile) - after the murder
  • The direct juxtaposition between the two scenes show the shift and rise in tension 

• "Toiling in mere darkness"
  • Creates a nightmarish image
  • "Carried him to the great, dark bed on which he tossed to and fro" - repetition of darkness creates an atmosphere of claustrophobia

Overall >> The duality between light and dark is used to build tension in the novella throughout suspense filled events.

Extra detail - "although a fog rolled over the city in the small hours"

Point >> Science and religion were very prominent during the Victorian era (C) and is presented throughout the novella to convey different views between characters and explain why Jekyll uses the potion.

• "Unscientific balderdash"
  • Lanyon is very critical of Jekyll's experiments and their views on science and religion are juxtaposed
  • Lanyon keeps science and religion separate where as Jekyll uses his research for transcendental and mystic uses - potion

• Science goes against religion (C)
  • Tension between science and religion in Victorian society because Darwin's theory of evolution (1859) disproves the fact that everything was created by God
    • Links to Hyde who is described as "ape-like" which suggests he is not evolved due to his primitive and atavistic behaviors - dehumanizes

Overall >> Science and religion are used to covey contrasting beliefs and express Victorian ideologies.

Point >> Through mystery and realisation Stevenson reveals secrets to the reader and they find the truth behind Utterson's assumptions.

• "One of those affairs that cannot be mended by talking"
  • Jekyll telling Utterson that his situation can't be fixed - mystery because we don not know why
  • Realisation - because he is stuck between himself and Hyde "man's dual nature"

• "The change which had taken place in the doctor's appearance"
  • Utterson sees Lanyon very ill - mystery because it was sudden and we do not know why
  • Realisation - his illness is due to what happened between him and Jekyll "I must die"

• "In case of his predecease to be destroyed unread"
  • Mysterious documents - secrecy
  • Realisation in Lanyon's narrative that they explain the strange circumstances of Jekyll

Overall >> Through the final two chapters and other key events mysteries are solved and the truth is displayed in the delayed reveal and the novella is pulled together.

Duality of human nature:

• "Man's dual nature" - HJ's full statement
• "Man is not truly one, but truly two" - HJ's full statement
• "I was radically both" - HJ's full statement
• "I was cursed with my duality of purpose" - HJ's full statement
• "Jekyll's own confession, known by the name Hyde" - L's narrative
  • Revealed that Jekyll indirectly killed Carew

(Use to back up points on good and evil.)

• Through the character of Jekyll, Stevenson presents good and evil and the scientific and religious conflicts within Victorian society. (C)
• The prominence of science and religion is shown through the contrasting views of Lanyon and Jekyll and presents the opinions of the time.
• The duality between Jekyll and Hyde adds mystery to the novella and builds tension for the delayed reveal.
• The duality between different motifs (e.g. light and dark) helps to show shifts in mood and rises in tension.