Jekyll's character has been somewhat mysterious throughout the novella- he was described differently to how we saw him and this behaviour change, to a contemporary reader, would have been odd and a cause for concern. The way Stevenson has built up a constant tension through the book that was only truly resolved in the last two chapters keeps the book interesting and is not a usual route for characterisation. The reveal of the change and the event of the book summed up, finally, by Jekyll himself makes it both more sad, disturbing and emotional for readers, both contemporary and modern and paint Jekyll in an emotionally damaged and almost tragic light, rather than the mentally deranged old man Lanyon's narrative painted him to be