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Duality in literature meaning
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The Notion of Good and Evil in Stevenson's Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde The book entitled 'The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde' was published in 1886. Although in the book Stevenson does not ever state the exact year, it was at the time recognized immediately as a grand work. The main theme running throughout the book is about the duality of human beings and the battle in all humans between good and evil. This book is very allegorical because the characters and events are representing other things and symbolically expressing a deeper spiritual and moral meaning. For humans the battle between the potential for extreme good and extreme evil is in the mind, but Jekyll's experiment has given one man a split personality of the two extremes in the physical realm. The book also involves a theme of hypocrisy, as shown by Jekyll and Hyde of Victorian society. On one hand it was pleasant society, respectable, conventional, deeply religious, and polite. On the other was a much more bohemian England, symbolized by dishonesty and darkness. The combination of the two aspects in contrast to each other made an impression on Stevenson. This was a world of appearance not truth with Victorian oppression, fighting against basic human nature. Throughout the story is an omniscient narrator who tells the story from full view of different people with different perspectives (e.g. the view of the maid lets us into her feelings and attitudes towards Hyde). The author could have chosen another route by possibly telling the story as a confession from Jekyll's point of view. The author chose not to write in this way because he wanted to give a view of... ... middle of paper ... ...This is a warning from Stevenson to the reader not to take the easy way out. It also proves that Stevenson wants the reader to judge Jekyll harshly as he was weak and took the "cowards" path out, which lead to his death. Although Jekyll seems to have no control over Hyde, once he has transformed, it is Jekyll's original attitude towards evil in the first place, which brings him trouble. He sees the ability to lose moral control and be free from the ties of society as a kind of liberation, which is why the transformation into Mr Hyde is so appealing to him. It is not that he has no regard to society as a whole, or he wouldn't need to turn into Hyde, but that he cannot tolerate that certain behaviour is prohibited. By becoming Hyde, Jekyll can follow his wildest imaginations without worrying about the consequences.
Stevenson then went on to put a scary touch to the story by telling us
The sense of conflict being created through disapproval portrays duality that the Victorians had at the period; it is almost as if they were in a dilemma and confusion in deciding which element of sanity to maintain. Stevenson wrote the story to articulate his idea of the duality of human nature, sharing the mixture good and evil that lies within every human being. In the novel Mr Hyde represents the evil part of a person and of Dr Jekyll.
The focal point of this essay is to define the life of Dr. Henry Jekyll, and the transformation he went through in becoming Edward Hyde. Dr. Henry Jekyll is a physician in London. He is very well respected and is currently experimenting the dual nature of mankind. Edward Hyde is a manifestation of Dr. Jekyll's personality. He is accused of committing evil acts throughout the novel.
Good and Evil in Human Nature in Lord of the Flies and The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
In the novel “The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” a number of
According to Robert Louis Stevenson’s work, these counterclaims aren’t always as true as in this novel; it proposes that your bad side can triumph over your good side, the yin and yang symbol isn’t always correct and perfectly balanced, and it is actually possible to have multiple personalities that are completely opposite. Some non-believers may think that it is perfectly equal because in the picture the sides look almost the same. Despite this idea, Robert Louis Stevenson’s work proves this claim wrong. The first example in the novel is when Jekyll is explaining what happened at Regents Park, “I began to be aware of change in the temper of my thoughts, greater boldness, a contempt of danger, a solution of the bonds of obligation.
Robert, Stevenson L. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. New York: Dover Publications, 2013. Print.
In Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Robert Louis Stevenson, the dual nature of man is a main theme. Jekyll says: "Man is not /truly one, but truly two"(125), meaning all people have both a good and a bad side. Dr. Jekyll creates a potion to fully separate good and evil, but instead it awakens a dormant character, Mr. Hyde. Throughout the novel, Stevenson uses society, control, and symbolism to tell the reader about human nature.
The story of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a confusing and perplexing one. R.L. Stevenson uses the devices of foreshadow and irony to subtly cast hints to the reader as to who Mr. Hyde is and where the plot will move. Stevenson foreshadows the events of the book through his delicate hints with objects and words. Irony is demonstrated through the names of characters, the names display to the reader how the character will fit into the novel. These two literary devices engage the readers; they employ a sense of mystery while leading the readers to the answer without them realizing the depth of each indirect detail.
embryos. As we can see in 'Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde' and also in Mary
..., and also used subtle contrasts between characters and places to create in depth detail and to portray the popular secrecy that bound the Victorian era. His feelings and thoughts are cleverly wound into his writing. The morals of the story, it is thought that he wrote the books as an allegory, however discreet are very important. Stevenson believed that gentlemen were hypocrites with outward respectability and inward lust and greed, and in this novel there are several occasions where hypocrisy is brought into the lime light.
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a riveting tale of how one man uncovers, through scientific experiments, the dual nature within himself. Robert Louis Stevenson uses the story to suggest that this human duality is housed inside everyone. The story reveals “that man is not truly one, but two” (Robert Louis Stevenson, 125). He uses the characters of Henry Jekyll, Edward Hyde, Dr. Lanyon, and Mr. Utterson to portray this concept. He also utilizes important events, such as the death of Dr. Jekyll and the death of Mr. Lanyon in his exploration of the topic.
Mr. Hyde and Dorian Gray are characters that nearly match each other in their symbolism and manner. However, it is the key differences that make them remarkably interesting as a pair. They symbolize the battles between good and evil, though they have differing interpretations of morality.
we deny our bad side. It looks at a doctor called Dr Jekyll who feels
The others living during this time will likely fade and not survive within the society. In Robert Stevenson’s “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”, Hyde embodies what happens to the normal healthy dual aspect of human nature when it’s overly suppressed by a strict society.... ... middle of paper ... ...