Is man completely good? Or is he good and bad? The nature of man is the theme of this psychological horror tale by Robert Louis Stevenson. Add the foggy streets of Victorian London, with narrow lanes, and a mysterious door, and you have a delightfully creepy tale for the hours around midnight.
Mr. Utterson and Mr. Richard Enfield are taking a walk through the roads of London. Their way passes a mysterious corner of London:
"Two doors from one corner on the left hand going east, the line was broken by the entry of a court; and just at that point a certain sinister block of building thrust forward its gable on the street. It was two stories high; showed no window, nothing but a door on the lower story and a blind forehead of discoloured wall on the upper; and bore in every feature the marks of prolonged and sordid negligence. The door which was equipped with neither bell nor knocker, was blistered and distained."*
Mr. Enfield has an unusual connection to this dark place. During one of his walks, he saw a terrible accident. A man and a girl ran straight into each other, but, unlike any civil gentleman, the man "trampled calmly over the child's body and left her her screaming on the ground. It sounds nothing to hear, but it was hellish to see."* Mr. Enfield chased after the man and demanded restitution for the girl to the amount of 100 pounds. To avoid a scene, the man agrees to the amount. He takes Mr. Enfield to this very door in question, enters, and then reemerges with some of the money and a cheque. Mr. Enfield tries to describe this horrible man to his friend, but "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."* His name is Hyde. And the name on the check is a Dr. Henry Jekyll.
It is Mr. Utterson's turn to reveal some information to his friend. He knows of this Mr. Hyde. His friend and client, Dr. Jekyll, has left this man everything in his will. Mr. Utterson, the lawyer, does not like the conditions of Jekyll's will. He finds the terms disturbing: "in the case of the decease of Henry Jekyll . . ., all his possessions were to pass into the hands of his 'friend and benefactor Edward Hyde,' but that in the case of Dr. Jekyll's 'disappearance or unexplained absence for any period exceeding three calendar months,'"* Mr. Hyde will also inherit.
Dr. Jekyll is a good, respectable man, and Mr. Utterson fears that Mr. Hyde may be blackmailing him for some youthful follies of years gone by. Confused and concerned, Mr. Utterson discusses the mystery with a mutual friend of Jekyll, Dr. Lanyon. Jekyll has been pursuing his own strange theories, and Dr. Lanyon has not seen him in a long time.
When Utterson visits Jekyll, the latter seems calm and unconcerned about Hyde. " '. . . I will tell you one thing: the moment I choose, I can be rid of Mr. Hyde. . . . this is a private matter, and I beg of you to let it sleep.' "*
The advice to let sleeping dogs lie, lasts for almost a year. Then a terrible murder is committed - and the murderer is Edward Hyde. Greatly shaken, Jekyll declares that he has rid himself of Hyde. The doctor's life changes suddenly. He becomes more sociable, donates to charities, and attends church. It appears that the doctor's life has changed for the better, and Mr. Hyde completely disappears. But only for a short time.
Although short in length, The Adventure of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is not small in literary stature. The story excites imagination and thought. The nature of man is a deep subject and controversial. Is man by nature fully good? If so, what causes him to do evil, commit horrid crimes, and completely disregard the people around him? Some may say society forces people to turn to crime and vice. However, what if man is both good and evil? If so, where did the evil and where did the good come from?
*Stevenson, Robert Louis. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Other Stories. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1925. Print. From the series "Everyman's Library."
Mr. Utterson and Mr. Richard Enfield are taking a walk through the roads of London. Their way passes a mysterious corner of London:
"Two doors from one corner on the left hand going east, the line was broken by the entry of a court; and just at that point a certain sinister block of building thrust forward its gable on the street. It was two stories high; showed no window, nothing but a door on the lower story and a blind forehead of discoloured wall on the upper; and bore in every feature the marks of prolonged and sordid negligence. The door which was equipped with neither bell nor knocker, was blistered and distained."*
Mr. Enfield has an unusual connection to this dark place. During one of his walks, he saw a terrible accident. A man and a girl ran straight into each other, but, unlike any civil gentleman, the man "trampled calmly over the child's body and left her her screaming on the ground. It sounds nothing to hear, but it was hellish to see."* Mr. Enfield chased after the man and demanded restitution for the girl to the amount of 100 pounds. To avoid a scene, the man agrees to the amount. He takes Mr. Enfield to this very door in question, enters, and then reemerges with some of the money and a cheque. Mr. Enfield tries to describe this horrible man to his friend, but "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."* His name is Hyde. And the name on the check is a Dr. Henry Jekyll.
It is Mr. Utterson's turn to reveal some information to his friend. He knows of this Mr. Hyde. His friend and client, Dr. Jekyll, has left this man everything in his will. Mr. Utterson, the lawyer, does not like the conditions of Jekyll's will. He finds the terms disturbing: "in the case of the decease of Henry Jekyll . . ., all his possessions were to pass into the hands of his 'friend and benefactor Edward Hyde,' but that in the case of Dr. Jekyll's 'disappearance or unexplained absence for any period exceeding three calendar months,'"* Mr. Hyde will also inherit.
Dr. Jekyll is a good, respectable man, and Mr. Utterson fears that Mr. Hyde may be blackmailing him for some youthful follies of years gone by. Confused and concerned, Mr. Utterson discusses the mystery with a mutual friend of Jekyll, Dr. Lanyon. Jekyll has been pursuing his own strange theories, and Dr. Lanyon has not seen him in a long time.
When Utterson visits Jekyll, the latter seems calm and unconcerned about Hyde. " '. . . I will tell you one thing: the moment I choose, I can be rid of Mr. Hyde. . . . this is a private matter, and I beg of you to let it sleep.' "*
The advice to let sleeping dogs lie, lasts for almost a year. Then a terrible murder is committed - and the murderer is Edward Hyde. Greatly shaken, Jekyll declares that he has rid himself of Hyde. The doctor's life changes suddenly. He becomes more sociable, donates to charities, and attends church. It appears that the doctor's life has changed for the better, and Mr. Hyde completely disappears. But only for a short time.
Although short in length, The Adventure of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is not small in literary stature. The story excites imagination and thought. The nature of man is a deep subject and controversial. Is man by nature fully good? If so, what causes him to do evil, commit horrid crimes, and completely disregard the people around him? Some may say society forces people to turn to crime and vice. However, what if man is both good and evil? If so, where did the evil and where did the good come from?
*Stevenson, Robert Louis. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Other Stories. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., 1925. Print. From the series "Everyman's Library."
I LIKE THIS STORY VERY MUCH GOOD JOB BY ROBERT STEVENSON.IT REMINDS ME OF ANOTHER STORY. ROBERT ELLIS SAINT MARTIN DE PORESS. DANSOMAN,ACCRA,GHANA.FORM 1B
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