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Symbolism of light and darkness in heart of darkness
Symbolism of light and darkness in heart of darkness
Symbolism of light and darkness in heart of darkness
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Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: Utterson’s Duality Robert Louis Stevenson’s novel, the Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, is a Victorian novel that explores the psychological implications of the nature of duality. This novel explores the idea of doubleness, duality with the separation of moral obligation and human nature in Dr. Jeykll and Mr. Hyde. Stevenson uses the character Mr. Utterson to narrate the novel and give a logic perspective to Dr. Jeykll and Mr. Hyde’s duality, however Utterson has his own duality that echoes Dr. Jeykll’s. In the novel, Mr. Utterson has a dream that Stevenson uses to explore Utterson’s duality in terms of light and dark symbolism, a separation of his logical mental state, a physical separation between his actions …show more content…
The symbolism of the light and dark in his nightmare represent the internal struggle Utterson is having with himself on the subject of Mr. Hyde. As a lawyer Utterson wants to uphold the law, however as a friend his loyalty demands that he protect Dr. Jekyll in any way that he can. This causes his mental state of separation where his mind will not show Mr. Hyde’s face because of the possible relations to Dr. Jekyll. This mental separation echoes Dr. Jekyll and Hyde’s duality by foreshadowing the later realization that they are in fact the same person. This notion of foreshadowing duality with duality is strengthened even more with Utterson’s physical doubles in his actions and words culminating inside one person as the thoughts, images and emotions from his dreams translate into his waking life. Utterson’s duality is embodied in one person, as is Dr. Jeykll’s duality which Stevenson has purposefully made echo in his novel about human nature and the duality of it. Stevenson was a foreword thinker of his time using gothic vocabulary to try to fill the void of imprecise language to discuss physiological implications. This concept has helped influence literature o help create the science fiction any mystery genre that uses supernatural devices and remnants of gothic language to address morality and human
Within every being exists temptations, whether it be quiescent or dynamic, which fluctuates from one individual to another. Commonly negative, temptations ascend from lesser qualities of man and expose an individual to develop even more reprehensible ambitions. The story of a one man’s dark wishes is explored in Robert Louis Stevenson’s novella, “Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde”. Properly termed, Stevenson perused the unnerving case of a respectable, proletariat-class doctor, who becomes associated and obsessed with Mr Hyde. It is this presence of the “duality of human nature that is created consistently throughout the Gothic Literature”.
The criticism by Vladimir Nabokov, supports the claim that Stevenson uses symbolisms to express ideas and to create suspense. Finally Stevenson’s certain tone when he describes Hyde or the evil things the Hyde commit allowed him to express Hyde’s evil and created an unusual atmosphere. When Hyde was described he was described as small and the facial expression of his was very odd and hard to explain “Mr. Hyde was pale and dwarfish, he gave an impression of deformity without any nameable malformation, he had a displeasing smile, he had borne himself to the lawyer with some sort of murderous mixture of timidity and boldness, and he spoke with a husky, whispering somewhat broken voice” (Stevenson 16). After Utterson’s first encounter with Hyde, he is just amazed and shocked because of Hyde’s physical appearance. Also in their first encounter, the setting was very dark and gloomy which adds to the claim. Also the description of Hyde symbolizes Hyde’s evil. Hyde’s ugliness and his deformed face symbolizes his evil, his small size symbolize Jekyll’s evil side inside him that was repressed for so long along with the dark setting. Another symbolism used in the book is between Jekyll’s laboratory and his house. Jekyll’s house is described as a place of wealth and comfort but his laboratory is described as “a certain sinister block of building thrust forward its gable on the streets” (Stevenson 6). The wealthy house represents the respectable man Jekyll and the laboratory represents the corrupt Hyde. Normal people will not see the two structures as one just like how they won’t be able to see the relationship between Hyde and
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.
...ve duality of man;… if I could rightly be said to be either, it was only because I was radically both” Thus, Stevenson creates in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, two coexistent, and eternally opposed components that make up a “normal” individual. However, here, good and evil are not related but are two independent entities, individuals even, different in mental and physical attributes and constantly at war with each other. Evil now does not require the existence of good to justify itself but it exists simply as itself, and is depicted as being the more powerful, the more enjoyable of the two, and in the end ultimately it is the one that leads to Dr. Jekyll's downfall and death. Stevenson creates the perfect metaphor for the never-ending battle between good and evil by using Jekyll and Hyde. However, this novella is perhaps one of the few that truly show the power of Evil.
Throughout the thriller-mystery story of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Mr. Utterson, the friendly lawyer, tries to figure out the reason behind why Dr. Jekyll, his friend and client, gives all his money in his will to a strange man and murderer named Mr. Hyde. Readers learn from the ominous third person point of view the worries of Mr. Utterson and ride along for his search of Mr. Hyde. In The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, R.L. Stevenson employs characterization, imagery, and motifs of weather to construct complex characters and create eerie settings, which parallel with the mood of the characters.
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.
In The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the author Robert Louis Stevenson uses Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde to show the human duality. Everyone has a split personality, good and evil. Stevenson presents Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde as two separate characters, instead of just one. Dr. Jekyll symbolizes the human composite of a person while Mr. Hyde symbolizes the absolute evil. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, who are indeed the same person, present good and evil throughout the novel.
Page, Norman. "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson." Encyclopedia of the Novel. Eds. Paul Schellinger, Christopher Hudson, and Marijke Rijsberman. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, 1998.
In this essay on the story of Jekyll and Hyde written by Robert Louis Stevenson I will try to unravel the true meaning of the book and get inside the characters in the story created by Stevenson. A story of a man battling with his double personality.
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...
Stevenson uses many methods to achieve and sustain an atmosphere of mystery and suspense in the novel of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. He does this by using a clever sense of setting, vocabulary, surroundings and the manner of his characters which are used to describe and slowly reveal the appearance of Hyde . Some of these are highlighted in the depiction of the Dr Jekyll’s house, such as Mr. Enfield's story, Henry Jekyll’s will and the meeting with Hyde.
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.
The reader is drawn to the plot of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde through the literary devices Stevenson employs. Foreshadowing displays the sense of mystery throughout the novel, the foreshadowing of the actions of Mr. Hyde leaves the reader wondering what will happen next. The ironic nature of Dr. Jekyll relates to the reader as a person, no person is completely perfect and Dr. Jekyll exhibits the natural wants and desires of humans. The irony behind Mr. Hyde adds an enigmatic side to the plot. These two devices expose the readers to the complexity of the novel and reveal the inner meaning of the hidden details.
Stevenson’s most prominent character in the story is the mysterious Mr Hyde. Edward Hyde is introduced from the very first chapter when he tramples a young girl in the street, which brings the reader’s attention straight to his character. The reader will instantly know that this person is a very important part of this book and that he plays a key role in the story. This role is the one of a respectable old man named Dr Jekyll’s evil side or a ‘doppelganger’. This links in with the idea of duality. Dr Jekyll is described as being ‘handsome’, ‘well-made’ and ‘smooth-faced’. On the other hand, Mr Hyde is described as being ‘hardly human’, ‘pale and dwarfish’, giving of an impression of deformity and ‘so ugly that it brought out the sweat on (Mr Enfield) like running’! These words all go together to conjure up an image in the mind of an animal, beast or monster. During the novel...
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)