How Does Stevenson Portray the Duality of Man in the Opening Chapters of ‘the Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’?
How does Stevenson portray the duality of man in the opening chapters of ‘The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’?
Stevenson writes ‘The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ with the intention of showing the reader the duality of man and explores this through the juxtaposition of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. In this novella, Stevenson also uses the environment and setting of the story to represent the contrast between Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
In the opening chapters of ‘The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’, the Soho area of Victorian London is described negatively and disapprovingly, compared to other areas of Victorian London An example of this is in the chapter of ‘The Carew Murder Case’, where the Soho area is described as “... a district of some city in a nightmare.” This shows that Soho is not an ideal place to live and using the word ‘nightmare’, Stevenson makes it appear scary to the reader as would a nightmare that a person has whilst sleeping. This also creates juxtaposition between Soho and Victorian London, as Victorian London was a very industrial city where the breakthrough in machinery and technology had just begun, whilst here, a part of this Victorian London is being described as a nightmare. Stevenson shows the reader that duality exists everywhere (not just within man) and introduces contrast and duality as the theme using the setting of the novella.
Additionally, another one of Stevenson’s intentions is to portray Mr. Hyde’s characteristics and features through his descriptions of the Soho area. In the chapter, ‘The Search for Mr. Hyde’, Mr. Utterson says, “... the man seems hardly human!” This suggests that he is perhaps a monster of some sort, just like those you hear of in the common ‘nightmare’ people experience. In ‘The Carew Murder Case’, Mr. Utterson says, “... and it’s lamps, which had never been extinguished or had been kindled afresh to combat this mournful reinvasion of darkness.” (referring to the Soho area) Here,
Stevenson writes ‘The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ with the intention of showing the reader the duality of man and explores this through the juxtaposition of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. In this novella, Stevenson also uses the environment and setting of the story to represent the contrast between Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
In the opening chapters of ‘The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’, the Soho area of Victorian London is described negatively and disapprovingly, compared to other areas of Victorian London An example of this is in the chapter of ‘The Carew Murder Case’, where the Soho area is described as “... a district of some city in a nightmare.” This shows that Soho is not an ideal place to live and using the word ‘nightmare’, Stevenson makes it appear scary to the reader as would a nightmare that a person has whilst sleeping. This also creates juxtaposition between Soho and Victorian London, as Victorian London was a very industrial city where the breakthrough in machinery and technology had just begun, whilst here, a part of this Victorian London is being described as a nightmare. Stevenson shows the reader that duality exists everywhere (not just within man) and introduces contrast and duality as the theme using the setting of the novella.
Additionally, another one of Stevenson’s intentions is to portray Mr. Hyde’s characteristics and features through his descriptions of the Soho area. In the chapter, ‘The Search for Mr. Hyde’, Mr. Utterson says, “... the man seems hardly human!” This suggests that he is perhaps a monster of some sort, just like those you hear of in the common ‘nightmare’ people experience. In ‘The Carew Murder Case’, Mr. Utterson says, “... and it’s lamps, which had never been extinguished or had been kindled afresh to combat this mournful reinvasion of darkness.” (referring to the Soho area) Here,