In his analysis of Hamlet and Oedipus Rex, Freud concludes that the behaviour of the protagonists from each play is driven by their inability to repress certain sexual and violent desires. The origins of which, stem from their childhood relationship with their mother and father, respectively. At the same time, in the Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the two titular characters execute a plot similar to the aforementioned plays. Therefore, I will argue that the behaviour of Edward Hyde is ultimately driven by the same repressed desires outlined by Freud, resulting in the downfall of his creator, Henry Jekyll. I will begin by highlighting the key components of the relationship between Jekyll and Hyde. These points will be used to establish …show more content…
These connections will allow me to interpret how the creation of Hyde is a factor which plays towards the eventual death of Jekyll. Finally, I will apply Freud’s theory derived from Oedipus Rex to the character of Hyde, as both characters display strong emotions towards their parental figures. This analysis will be used to further deepen my argument that the fate of Jekyll is ultimately derived from Hyde. I can use my findings, along with Freud’s deductions, to uncover the impact Hyde had on Jekyll’s fate. By applying Freudian logic to the case of Jekyll and Hyde, I hope to further examine the effects that repressed desires may have on one’s …show more content…
I was able to argue that Edward Hyde’s behaviour towards Henry Jekyll is driven by the behaviour theory Freud outlines. Hyde, a personification of the evil tendencies Jekyll feels, eventually is driven by the same force as Oedipus, and seeks to carry out the murder of Jekyll, who acts as Hyde’s father figure. Jekyll, who becomes aware of his growing inability to control his other half, struggles with searching for the motivation to ultimately kill Hyde before Hyde does so to him, as he both loves and hates Hyde, similar to the struggle Hamlet had with the task of killing his uncle. By observing the behaviour of both characters, I believe that acting to fulfill repressed childhood wishes is inevitable, although constricting, and establishes a potential explanation for the factors that drive human
...hat he can finally recognize the severity of his weakness to his drug. Dr. Jekyll's plight, therefore, could be an exploration of the destructive behavior brought on by addiction, and an underlying moral message is embedded in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - the implication that addiction will inevitably lead to evilness and the destruction of productive lives.
In this essay I am going to look at Mr Hyde and Dr Jekyll, the first
“The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde” is a novella written in the Victorian era, more specifically in 1886 by Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson. When the novella was first published it had caused a lot of public outrage as it clashed with many of the views regarding the duality of the soul and science itself. The audience can relate many of the themes of the story with Stevenson’s personal life. Due to the fact that Stevenson started out as a sick child, moving from hospital to hospital, and continued on that track as an adult, a lot of the medical influence of the story and the fact that Jekyll’s situation was described as an “fateful illness” is most likely due to Stevenson’s unfortunate and diseased-riddled life. Furthermore the author had been known to dabble in various drugs, this again can be linked to Jekyll’s desperate need and desire to give in to his darker side by changing into Mr Hyde.
According to Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytic theory of personality, personality is composed of three elements. The three elements are the Id, Ego, and Superego and they work together to create complex human behaviors. Freud believed that human beings are powerfully influenced by impulses of which they are not aware of. Dr. Jekyll: a law-abiding doctor, who was raised and who lived like a nature and religion lover in its true perspective was the good character. Mr. Hyde was evil unleashed, and in that he goes to slums and does criminal acts and even commits murder without fear of any apprehension Hyde represented Dr. Jekylls subconscious desire to be freed from his society’s restrictions. These desires come from within man and they represent the Id in Freud’s theory. Mr. Hyde is the outlet for Dr. Jekyll to express his primal desires. Dr. Jekyll learns to give into his inner desires when he is transformed into Hyde. The rational, controlled, civilized part of Jekyll attempts to repress the Id, and make Hyde controllable. Jekyll even states
Within the text of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Robert Louis Stevenson portrays a complex power struggle between Dr. Jekyll, a respected individual within Victorian London society, and Mr. Hyde a villainous man tempted with criminal urges, fighting to take total control of their shared body. While Dr. Jekyll is shown to be well-liked by his colleagues, Mr. Hyde is openly disliked by the grand majority of those who encounter him, terrified of his frightful nature and cruel actions. Throughout Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Stevenson portrays the wealthy side of London, including Mr. Utterson and Dr. Jekyll, as respected and well-liked, while showing the impoverish side as either non-existent or cruel.
Hirsch, Gordon, and William Veeder, eds. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde after One Hundred Years. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1988.
... man. Society in the Victorian era was consisted of two classes, trashy and wealthy. Jekyll was expected to be a gentleman, but he wanted to have fun. This was the reason he created Hyde, so he could both be respected and have fun. He was delighted at the freedom he now had. Lanyon was overly contolled, but Utterson knew all men had both good and bad within them and could control it. In Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson, the dual nature of man is a main theme.
In Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel, Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Dr. Jekyll, in grave danger, writes a letter to his good friend Lanyon. With Jekyll’s fate in Lanyon’s hands, he requests the completion of a task, laying out specific directions for Lanyon to address the urgency of the matter. In desperation, Jekyll reveals the possible consequences of not completing this task through the use of emotional appeals, drawing from his longtime friendship with Lanyon, to the fear and guilt he might feel if he fails at succeeding at this task. Through Jekyll’s serious and urgent tone, it is revealed that his situation is a matter of life and death in which only Lanyon can determine the outcome.
Stevenson focuses on two different characters Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, but in reality these are not separate men, they are two different aspects of one man’s reality. In the story, Dr. Je...
As Jekyll reached adult hood, he found himself living a dual life. He had become more curious in discovering his other side. Jekyll insists, “Man is not truly one, but truly two” (125). This eventually led Jekyll into the scientific interests of separating his good and evil side, and he finds a chemical concoction that transforms him into a more wicked man, Edward Hyde. At first, Hyde was of pure impulse, but in the end, he became dominate and took control over Jekyll. Jekyll had never intended to hurt anyone, but he was aware that something could potentially go wrong. Jekyll presumes, “I knew well that I risked death, for any drug that so potently shook the very fortress of identity… utterly blot that immaterial tabernacle which I looked to it to change” (127-129). One could say this makes Jekyll equally as menacing as Hyde. Jekyll couldn’t control the imbalance between the two natures. Jekyll foolishly allowed his evil side to flourish and become stronger. This is shown when Jekyll has awoken to find that he has turned into Hyde without taking the solution. Jekyll says, “But the hand in which I now saw, clearly enough in the yellow light of a mid- London morning…It was the hand of Edward Hyde” (139).
Henry Jekyll’s innermost vices, but since he held himself to an extremely high standard of moral excellence, he needed to find another way of releasing. He creates Hyde as his way of getting these primal urges out. During this time period, the focus on reputation and credibility was huge, and this is how men were judged. He had many urges that he was internally repressing, as a result of existing in the Victorian era, which was well known for how incredibly stuffy and repressed it was. Jekyll was widely respected in the community as a doctor and he had many friends, so it is understandable that he didn’t want to lose his reputation, which came first for men of his social standing in this time period. He went to great lengths to create and cover for Hyde, including renting a place for Hyde to live, and making a bank account for his alter ego. The creation of Hyde turns out to be way more sinister than Jekyll initially imagined. Hyde’s own name is a pun, as he is the part of Jekyll that he must keep hidden away for fear of
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is novel written by Robert Louis Stevenson primarily to portray the ‘dual’ nature of man and presented in numerous perspectives and point of views. These various methods of presenting a story all have particular uses and benefits which Stevenson exploits to the full in presenting a story that seeks to establish the fact of the duality of man and argues how if not properly harnessed and controlled, one of the ‘parts’ would ultimately subdue the other and collect more authority on the life and actions of the person whom they interplay. However there are 3 major types of narrations that are clearly indicated in the story of Dr.jekyll and Mr. Hyde. These are the third person narrative, framed narrative, and the personal narrative.
Benjamin Franklin once said, “It is much easier to suppress a first desire than it is to satisfy those that follow.” This is certainly true in the situation of Dr. Jekyll, as the temptation of becoming Mr. Hyde becomes stronger as he continually surrenders to the wickedness that is constantly misleading him. Mr. Hyde is never contented, even after murdering numerous innocents, but on the contrary, his depravity is further intensified. The significance of the repression of a desire is a prevalent theme throughout the novella The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson, as the inability to repress one’s curiosity can lead to a fatal end, whereas the repression of a desire that can no longer contain itself, or the repression of confronting a guilty conscience, will conclude in a tragic ending and in this case specifically,
In this short story Hyde does not fundamentally exist, he is meant to be the embodiment of man’s primitive counterpart therefore his character is expected to behave like an animal, this is exhibited through the way in which he tramples over the ‘child’ and displays no guilt or remorse. In addition, Hyde provides no motives for his actions, since he’s not lead by rational thinking like his ‘better’ side Dr Jekyll or the logical Mr Uttersone, but inspired to act violently because he simply enjoys being immoral. His unprovoked assault on the little girl indicates that his cruelty extends to virtually anyone and foreshadows the deaths of other innocent characters such as Mr Carew. Hyde is repeatedly defined as a ‘figure’ and ‘human juggernaut’,
In conclusion, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, represents many themes of duality in human nature. This is represented by the characters of Henry Jekyll, Edward Hyde, Hastie Lanyon, and John Utterson. Some themes represented are the duality in conforming to societal conventions, curiosity, and temptation. Stevenson utilizes significant events including the deaths of Lanyon and Jekyll, and the transformations of Jekyll into Hyde to prove “that man is not truly one, but two” (125)