Dr Jekyl Character profile
Introduction
Well-respected doctor
Member of the upper class with bg secret to hide
He is shown to be kind and generous, but shocks Utterson when he decided to change his will and leave everything to Mr Hyde
Develops a concoction which seperates the positive and negativ characteristics of himself and creates Hyde, allowing him to fullfil his evil pleasures
Jekyll loses control of Hyde, showing the increaisng lack of control someone can have after giving into to temptation
Key Characteristics
Moral and Honourable
Participates in charity work and is community minded
This increases the shock experiences by the reader as it is revealed at the end of the novel the true nature of Jekyll
He is very sociable and friendly, he holds dinner parties for his friends
Inventive
Highly intelligent with a curious mind and decided to experiemnt with separating the evil side of himself
Jekyll symbolises the encroachment of sicence on religious thought duirng the Victoriam era
Erratic
Jekyll becomes increasingly erratic as the novel progresses
He is faced with hiding the existence of Hyde from other people
Key moments
Jekyll's dinner party
Utterson quesitons him about his will
Jekyll doesn't reveal much about Hyde
Jekyll appears secretive, creating tension and mystery
The Letter
Mr Guest compares the handwriting of Hyde and Jekyll and discovers they are similar
Utterson assumes that Jekyll foged a note for Hyde
This scene shows the influence and power the Jekyll has begun to have over Hyde
Jekyll's confession
Jekyll describes how Hyde came to be, descending from the scientific curiosity about the human nature of good and evil
Jekyll is the last character who we hear from, highlighting his important to the narrative of the story
The motivations to create Hyde exemplify his inquisitive nature and reason to question Victorian beliefs about science, religion and morality
Relationships
Lanyon
Jekyll intrusts Lanyon with the secret of Hyde
They disagreed on the improper and immoral usage of science
Utterson
Very strong relationship
The curiosity of Utterson causes him to uncover the case of Jekyll and Hyde
Relationship appears to have unconditional loyalty
Utterson's care for his friend is unwavering throughout the story
Hyde
Power imbalance and increasing control Hyde has over Jekyll appears to propel the narrative
Boundary between Jekyll and Hyde becomes icnreasingly fluid and uncontrollable
Two is becoming one
Key Quotes
'Charitable man', 'one of his pleasant dinners' - Jekyll is presented as a sociable and well respected man
'Concealed my pleasures' - abiding to the status quo of the time
'My devil had long been caged, he came out roaring' - Stark contrast with Christian ideas of morality, 'roaring' has connotations of animalistic
'I felt younger, lighter, happier' - restraints of society are tiresome, Hyde is able to indulge freely
'Man is not truly one, but truly two' - Shows the duality of man, everyone has a good and evil side
'Strong glow of courage' - presents Jekyll as Erratic