Mr. Hyde’s Attempt to Unravel the Battle of Good and Evil

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“The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde” Is a novella written by Robert Louis Stevenson. In this mysterious thriller, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are trying to figure out the battle between good and evil. Dr. Henry Jekyll is a respected doctor and friend of many. He lives in a well-established community and is known for being not only generous but also kind. He hides his inner dark side that he does not want anyone to see or be a witness of.

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He does experiments privately and doesn't let it be known why. He is trying to separate good from evil. Which gives him trouble throughout this novella. Mr. Edward Hyde is a man who is not in the best shape. He looks raggedy and not up to par. He is violent, cruel, and ugly to the people in the community. Everything around Hyde seems to fail tremendously. Hyde is Jekyll and Jekyll is Hyde. They make up a big part if each other.

Without one another neither exist . Stevenson in the story explores accountability for one's action through Jekyll's experimentation, violence, and isolation.

Dr.Jekyll displays experimentation throughout the story because he doesn't know what do with his other half “Hyde”. He is not happy with displaying Hyde because Hyde is not only violent but Jekyll doesn't know how to control him. “I felt younger, lighter, happier in the body: within I was conscious of a heady recklessness, a current of disorder sensual images running like a millrace my fancy, a solution of the obligation of the bond”.

(pg 67). This quote means the more you try something the better you feel which is related to experimentation due to the fact that you will want more from this pleasure. Pleasure is something that all people seek and are looking for. It gets rid of pain and makes you feel comfortable to the point where you are relaxed and seeking to do whatever you did over and over again to get that pleasure back and that's what Jekyll does throughout the story. “The large handsome face of Dr. Jekyll grew pale to the very lips, and there came a blackness about his eyes”.

Some experiments come with side effects and not every side effect is good, some can only make you feel good for the moment. Side effects come in all different shape and sizes. When you try something you always have to be aware of what you are getting yourself into because it could not only be good for the moment but at the same time, it could have a negative resulting effect that could change everything. Jekyll “In any case, to assume that Jekyll represents human 'good' while Hyde embodies that which is 'evil' is to forget that Hyde is but the consequence of Jekyll's experiments in forbidden science; he exists only by the will of Jekyll; he has no independent being. Hyde is not other than Jekyll; he is Jekyll”. No matter how hard Jekyll tries to get rid of hyde it's no way he can. These two personalities makeup apart of each other and this is why as a scientist, jekyll decides to research and examine this mystical study in hopes to eventually be able to separate each side and get rid of Hyde.

Isolation is also not only a huge factor but a role that is displayed and brought to my attention throughout the whole story. Jekyll basically isolates himself from friends and outsiders because he is ashamed and feeling like there’s nothing he can possibly do to get rid of “Hyde”. During this isolation, he displays a source of evil that is uncontrollable. “ Now that the evil influence had been withdrawn, a new life began for Dr. Jekyll. He came out of his seclusion, renewed relations with his friends, became once more familiar guest and entertainer” pg 34). Basically saying that even though Jekyll went through a period of depression and isolating himself from family and friends he soon realizes that’s not the life he wanted to live and tries to begin a new life start trying to make new friends or regain the friendships he once had. His misses all his old friendships and has noticed that hyde is messing up everything he had before.

This reckless monster has taken over him to the point where he feels lost in himself and doesn't even know who he is anymore. He says that “My devil had been long caged, he came out roaring” (pg 79). In other words this means that his body has been locked up for so long that it came out like something he never seen before. Isolating yourself can cause you to hallucinate and lose your mind. Hallucination is an experience of seeing something that is not really there . “Jekyll, selfish to begin with but at least capable of friendship, making a fatal choice that leads him deeper and deeper into a pit of tormented isolation, struggling to preserve the shrinking remains of his soul”. ‘‘Closer than a Wife’: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll’s Significant Other”. This quote means the more you are isolated the fewer friends you have which causes you to make bad choices and it gets even deeper than you think. Resulting in depression.

“ Since then I had been obligated on more than an occasion to double, and once, with an infinite risk of death, to treble the amount” (pg 73). He is so hooked on to the drugs he wants to repeatedly take them over and over again which could result in death due to an overdose. “It wasn’t like a man; it was like some damned Juggernaut” (pg 4). Hyde was moving so fast it made it look like he was trying to kill the little girl. He had no mercy at all he just kept going like nothing happened. The central violent act, the murder of old Carew, echoes the violence to the little girl who was 'trampled' by Hyde.

The more dirt you do the more it is going to follow after you which cause you to do more violent actions you sometimes tend to not do. Even though Hyde did not mean to trample the little girl the impression he gave off made it seem like he did it on purpose.