Anxiety around respectability and sexual disquiet.
Protective behaviours surrounding friendship and reputation
Sexual ambivalence and unease
Anxiety around reputation linked to blackmail and secrecy
Contaminating atmosphere. Poisonous nature of uncovered instincts.
Desire. Needs a hiding place. A veil. So invents Hyde. Gives Jekyll opportunity for self-expression. Adventure. Hyde’s energy defines him. Virility as opposed to effete behaviours of the respectable. Victorian gentleman.
Silence withholding of information. Deception. Protectiveness
The gentleman. Respectability linked to economic power and professional status.
The absence of women. Homosocial society. Strong male friendships. Patriarchal power
Sexual ambivalence. Homosexuality. Behaviours that are ‘ other’ to societal conventions.
Use of place and setting to create meaning.
Degeneration of Dr Jekyll reflected in his home. Personification
Animation of the world as an extension of human behaviours and concerns
Pathological attraction to sexual practices that outside the lawful at that time.
Hence use of euphemism. ‘End of the world’ may be an oblique reference to Soho?
Labyrinthine streets echo or reflect the sexual disquiet or anxiety at the heart of the novel.
Utterson an ironic name. The story is told despite his efforts to silence the narrative. His concern is to defend or protect his best friend Jekyll from the evil influence of his protegee, Hyde. Moral victory for Utterson as he regains the rights to the will and thus defeats the usurper Hyde.
Utterson takes the executive’s role in the novel. He is the reader’s representative in the narrative.
Heavy irony is that Jekyll is Hyde all along
The former hides in the shape of Hyde in order to evade censure. But Hyde sounds like Jekyll. Ventriloquises Jekyll at key moments proving that gentleman have the protection of society.
Hypocrisy. Doubtless standards. Duality. Nemesis.
The theatricality of Lanyon. A retired gentleman. Scientist. Rationalist. Sees Jekyll as dangerously out of control. Immorality when he is Jekyll and this is what kills him.
Maid witnesses death of Sir Danvers. She cannot grasp the full.meaning of the incident. Her innocence is a veil that offers moral protection. Deliberately veils the full significance of the scene as she is very naive and misconstrues what she sees. Clever device. Witness accounts are notoriously unreliable.
Poole solid, loyal representative of the lower class. His intervention with Utterson opens up the narrative to the truth. Breaks down the door to the laboratory of Jekyll. The threshold is crossed.
Why no utterance from Utterson at the end? Silence. Does he succumb to the same feelings as Lanyon or will he feel exonerated?
An atmosphere of secrecy and danger
Anxiety around respectability and sexual disquiet.Protective behaviours surrounding friendship and reputationSexual ambivalence and uneaseAnxiety around reputation linked to blackmail and secrecyContaminating atmosphere. Poisonous nature of uncovered instincts.Being at home with oneself or not being at home. Literal and metaphorical. The use of the uncanny linked to not being at home.Desire. Needs a hiding place. A veil. So invents Hyde. Gives Jekyll opportunity for self-expression. Adventure. Hyde’s energy defines him. Virility as opposed to effete behaviours of the respectable. Victorian gentleman.Silence withholding of information. Deception. ProtectivenessThe gentleman. Respectability linked to economic power and professional status.The absence of women. Homosocial society. Strong male friendships. Patriarchal powerSexual ambivalence. Homosexuality. Behaviours that are ‘ other’ to societal conventions.Use of place and setting to create meaning.Degeneration of Dr Jekyll reflected in his home. PersonificationAnimation of the world as an extension of human behaviours and concernsPathological attraction to sexual practices that outside the lawful at that time.Hence use of euphemism. ‘End of the world’ may be an oblique reference to Soho?Gentlemen display considerable loyalty to each other. Like an exclusive ‘club’.Labyrinthine streets echo or reflect the sexual disquiet or anxiety at the heart of the novel.Utterson an ironic name. The story is told despite his efforts to silence the narrative. His concern is to defend or protect his best friend Jekyll from the evil influence of his protegee, Hyde. Moral victory for Utterson as he regains the rights to the will and thus defeats the usurper Hyde.Utterson takes the executive’s role in the novel. He is the reader’s representative in the narrative.Heavy irony is that Jekyll is Hyde all alongThe former hides in the shape of Hyde in order to evade censure. But Hyde sounds like Jekyll. Ventriloquises Jekyll at key moments proving that gentleman have the protection of society.Hypocrisy. Doubtless standards. Duality. Nemesis.The theatricality of Lanyon. A retired gentleman. Scientist. Rationalist. Sees Jekyll as dangerously out of control. Immorality when he is Jekyll and this is what kills him.Maid witnesses death of Sir Danvers. She cannot grasp the full.meaning of the incident. Her innocence is a veil that offers moral protection. Deliberately veils the full significance of the scene as she is very naive and misconstrues what she sees. Clever device. Witness accounts are notoriously unreliable.Poole solid, loyal representative of the lower class. His intervention with Utterson opens up the narrative to the truth. Breaks down the door to the laboratory of Jekyll. The threshold is crossed.Makes effete Utterson into a hero. Saviour of morality and respectability.Why no utterance from Utterson at the end? Silence. Does he succumb to the same feelings as Lanyon or will he feel exonerated?
Very useful and provocative. Acts as a useful revision summary and guide to freshly engage with a familiar book in original and creative ways. Got me thinking and wanting to write about Jekyll and Hyde. Thanks, Sue
Thanks. Glad you found useful.