Dr.+Jekyll

__Synopsis__ The novel, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, begins as a story told from the point of view of a lawyer, Mr. Upperton. In his tale, Upperton addresses a curious situation that arose with one of his clients, Dr. Jekyll. Not only did Dr. Jekyll submit his very strange will, leaving everything to a man named Mr. Hyde who Upperton had never heard of before, to Upperton, but they also had developed a very close relationship with one another. While talking to another friend, Upperton finally hears his first account of this mysterious Mr. Hyde that Dr. Jekyll left his life to. From the account and a later meeting he has with Mr. Hyde outside Jekyll’s laboratory, Hyde is described as a strange, secluded man who just from his look, has a very negative persona surrounding him. After weeks of not seeing his good friend Dr. Jekyll, Upperton is able to get a hold of him and ask him about his relation to Mr. Hyde. Jekyll’s answer is very reserved and guarded, leading Upperton to believe that there is something more behind the two. Over time, a murder is committed by Mr. Hyde, and after this moment Dr. Jekyll seems to be normal again and no one hears from Mr. Hyde again. This lifestyle only remains for a month or two as Upperton is called to Dr. Jekyll’s laboratory to find Mr. Hyde dead and no sign of Dr. Jekyll anywhere. The loose ends of the story are solved through letters written to Upperton by Dr. Lampert, a close friend, and Dr. Jekyll himself. These letters tell how Jekyll’s suppressed dark side causes him to create a potion that will allow him to live both sides of his dual personality through two different men and therefore having no consequence pinned to his darker half. Eventually, the darker Mr. Hyde starts to consume Jekyll and causes involuntary transformations as he begins to permanently change into Mr. Hyde. When Hyde murders an innocent bystander, Jekyll cuts off his transformations completely, but nevertheless, Mr. Hyde begins to appear when dark thoughts creep into his mind. After the Mr. Hyde transformation becomes permanent, he kills himself in order to prevent being caught by the police. Dr. Jekyll’s actions show the major themes of this novel: the dangerous pursuit of unknown knowledge and the dual nature of man. __Archetypal Role__ Dr. Jekyll, whose actions present the theme of this novel, represents the tragic hero archetype. As a tragic hero, Dr. Jekyll fits five criteria that makes him fall into the tragic hero archetype: responsible for his own fate, has a tragic flaw, realizes he has made an irreversible mistake, doomed to make a serious error in judgment, and meets a tragic death. Jekyll’s fate, death was something that he was aware from the start. He writes in his letter to Upperton, “I knew well that I risked death; for any drug that so potently controlled and shook the very fortress of identity, might, by the least scruple… utterly blot out that immaterial tabernacle…” (Stevenson 48). As a doctor, he knew that toying around with untested drugs and elixirs was a very dangerous situation to get himself into. By taking this chance, he takes full responsibility for his own fate. Jekyll’s tragic flaw is not being able to express his true self, and by doing so suppressing and fueling his darker feelings and thoughts. These feelings are made worse by the fact that he is not willing to open up to others about his achievements or problems. Addressing this problem, Jekyll states, “…I found it hard to reconcile with my imperious desire to carry my head high, and wear a more than commonly grave countenance before the public” (Stevenson 74). Because he identifies this as a flaw within himself, this knowledge leads him to create an alter ego in Mr. Hyde, which in the end is the reason for his downfall and death. Realizing he has made an irreversible mistake when Mr. Hyde commits a murder, Jekyll claims, “I swear to God I will never set eyes on him again. I bind my honour to you that I am done with him in this world” (Stevenson 35-36). Jekyll knows that creating Mr. Hyde has been a mistake and that it has led to an innocent man’s death, so he dismisses Hyde from his life. From this point on, his dual personalities are at odds against one another and Jekyll realizes that one most leave. This is also the place in the story when the involuntary transformations from Jekyll to Hyde begin to occur, marking his transition to the permanent form of Mr. Hyde. Although he realizes his mistake, it proves to be too late as he has already doomed himself to make a serious error in judgment. His error in judgment occurs from the beginning when he finds a solution to his problem of not being able to express his dual nature. In his letter to Upperton, Dr. Jekyll reveals that, “I decided I would make a tonic that would exemplify the dual nature of man in two separate identities” (Stevenson 76). Jekyll makes the error in thinking that he will be able to control both Jekyll and Hyde. By believing that both will be content with coexisting and not having sole possession of a body, Dr. Jekyll dooms himself. This can be seen when Dr. Jekyll vows to not transform into Hyde anymore and stays true for two months until he divulges in his darker thoughts. Mr. Hyde comes back furious at being repressed for so long, and that is when real issues arise in the truly internal battle between Jekyll and Hyde. When all these other criteria for a tragic hero are added up, it can only end in one outcome; a tragic death. After breaking down the door to Dr. Jekyll’s laboratory, “Right in the middle there lay the body of a man sorely contorted and still twitching” (Stevenson 60). Although it is actually the body of Mr. Hyde and not Dr. Jekyll who is found, the fact that Mr. Hyde had taken over permanently marks that the softer, lighter side of Dr. Jekyll has died as well. The darker personality of Mr. Hyde was too overwhelming for Dr. Jekyll as it had been suppressed for too long and now that it was given the chance to have a body to itself, it was not going to let the opportunity slip away. Another literary example of a tragic hero is Hamlet from William Shakespeare’s play, __Hamlet__. Both these characters are cursed with a tragic flaw that leads to their own tragic death. The similarity in their personalities and flaws is that they are both very sheltered and reserved from others in regard to their own personal endeavors. Hamlet never conveys his true feelings unless he is alone or with a close personal friend, and when he is with others, he acts in very unorthodox ways to throw them off his trail. Although not as dramatic and planned out in his avoidance of his affairs, Dr. Jekyll also remains mysterious to those around him and really leaves the truth of his situation to only one person, Mr. Upperton. The major difference in these two heroes is the reason for their actions. The noble Hamlet tries to avenge his father’s death while Dr. Jekyll looks for an outlet for his dark and murderous nature.

“How to Speak (or Write) Like Dr. Jekyll” __Step 1: Be very vague when addressing your situation__ Nothing is worse than when you have created an irreversible mistake and some nosy person is getting all up in your business. When asked about your situation by this person, be as vague as possible when addressing the “what”, “where”, and “when” of your predicaments. __Example:__ “Think of me at this hour, in a strange place, labouring under a blackness of distress that no fancy can exaggerate, and yet well aware that, if you will but punctually serve me, my troubles will roll away like a story.” (Stevenson 68). As you can see from the example’s use of phrases like “in a strange place”, it is better to be vague. Not letting a friend know exactly what has been going on, Dr. Jekyll perfectly uses the vagueness to describe his situation and further lead his friends to confusion. Smashing. __Step 2: Use a lot of personification__ The use of personification will give inanimate objects human-like qualities and by doing so will further confuse the person who has addressed your situation. __Example:__ “I had already sealed this up when a fresh terror struck upon my soul.” (Stevenson 69) Jekyll uses the personification of “terror” to emphasize the importance of what he has done, but also by giving a feeling personal qualities, he is further able to dance around the subject of his experiments when pushed. __Step 3: Describe your situation using negative tone words__ By using negative tone words, you don’t have to specifically tell your peers what you have been up to, but you can convey how serious and dangerous your work is. This step comes resourceful when your burning conscience forces you to give up some information. __Example:__ “…labouring under a blackness of distress…” (Stevenson 68) “…when a fresh terror stuck upon my soul.” (Stevenson 69) These examples from Dr. Jekyll himself show his extensive use of negative tone words like “terror” and “blackness of distress”. These words convey to the listener (or reader) that he is indeed in trouble, and he knows it but he will take matters into his own hands by not allowing them to know the exact details.

__Step 4: Use long, complex sentences to make your points__ The long complex sentences will help you lose the reader from time to time, greatly increasing the confusion they are feeling at these moments. Most of these sentences should be periodic with the occasional loose sentence thrown in, just to keep them on their toes. __Example:__ “I was the first that could plod in the public eye with a load of genial respectability, and in a moment, like a school boy, strip off these lendings and spring head long into the sea of liberty; but for me, in my impenetrable mantle, the safety was complete.” (Stevenson 82) Jekyll uses the complex sentences often in his speech and letters as he tries to hide his true feelings from others, but quarrels internally with himself over what he has done through his experiments.

__Step 5: Put the blame onto other people__ This is probably the most important step, as this will allow you to cleanse yourself of blame for the incident that is clearly your fault. Not only will you convince others that you were not responsible for your disaster, but if you try hard enough, you will be able to actually convince yourself that it was the fault of another. __Example:__ “It was Hyde, after all, and Hyde alone, that was guilty. Jekyll was no worse; he woke again to his good qualities seemingly impaired.” (Stevenson 83) Although Mr. Hyde’s existence, and therefore his actions, are directly caused by Dr. Jekyll, he makes a point of putting the blame solely on Hyde. This will allow for Jekyll to get the satisfaction of rebelling and acting out against society through the actions of Mr. Hyde, but have others put the blame on only the latter.

You may ask yourself, why would I want to speak like Dr. Jekyll? Speaking like Dr. Jekyll could become very resourceful when a horrible mistake needs to be covered up from the police or even just some close friends. By following the steps listed above, you too can also hide your errors long enough for them to get out of control and lead to tragedy in your neighborhood. Steps recommended for kids and adults of all ages.

Also, these steps would most likely come to be resourceful in situations like the one presented below in the video link. VIEWER DISCRETION ADVISED.

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