Explore Stevensons presentation of evil in the novel ‘Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’ Essay

In Robert Louis St levelsons fiction Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, a value doctor experiments with unfairness by drinking a potion to float all of the grave go forth of his body. This leads to numerous diabolical incidents taking place. Evil is causing pain or harm to former(a)s in a spiteful or malicious steering. puritanical celestial horizons of despicable were closely related to religion and the delegacy plenty looked. This was a safe and comforting touch sensation for the Victorians because they could imprison these people and could keep absent from people that they thought were unfairness as it could be easily identified. Stevenson shows his view of detestation using many antithetical techniques mainly through with(predicate) characters and in addition through setting imagery and language.Stevenson was influenced by many different circumstances during his life. Stevensons childhood was a fearful one with a strict religious upbringing constantly focusing on Hell. He was genuinely ill and therefore spent a lot of quantify in bed calculateing slightly Hell. He was always solo and isolated as he was an only child so he could non discuss his feelings with anyone. This is closely linked to Jekyll non telling anyone slightly his double life and recrudesce ainity. In university he led a double life, his life that his parents believed he led a strict and view one compared to a hidden life of a poor, strange, malevolent boy. He was a lot like Edinburgh as it was in 2 parts.The old, dark, stark side and the modern, neat, respected side. This links with the novel because Jekyll is a neat and respected man whereas Hyde is an vileness and dirty man. Two men called Burke and cony influenced Stevenson. In the late 1820s, they killed random people by sm another(prenominal)ing them and consequently gave the corpses the doctors at the university to publicly dissect and experiment on. They were given money for the corpses and the newcomer th e corpse the to a greater extent money they received. Burke and rabbit were later plunge out and publicly hung and dissected. Their skeletons were given to a museum and their skin was made into personal pocket books.This influenced Stevenson because people at this time were fascinated and Burke and Hare were like a factual life Jekyll and Hyde character with a split personality. Darwin who introduced the theory of evolution likewise influenced him. This relates to the Hyde character that had not soon enough evolved from the emulator like creature. After he had written the book Jack the Ripper helped its popularity because no one knew who he was and why he killed prostitutes in the brutal way he did. Many people thought his acts were offensive and read the novel to try to find out why he was so wicked.Stevenson uses characters as his main presentation of evil. Jekyll and Hyde are the two major characters that show evil. Jekyll is shown as evil because he initially hopes to cha nge into Hyde and become purely evil. likewise when he is Hyde he likes it I felt younger, lighter, happier in body the diagnose of three is very effective as they link and it gets better round the line. The use of lighter shows us he has lost all his worries and has gained emancipation and is therefore a lot happier. Jekyll gets very choleric when Utterson asks him about Hyde this is a private matter and I beg of you to let it sleep this shows us he is deceitful and feels guilty as he does not penury to talk about it.When Hyde does anything wrong Jekyll does not take any tariff this is shown by the use of the pronoun he, him, or his. This shows us does not think of himself as evil because he is a respected doctor and everyone else thinks well-grounded of him. Stevenson describes Jekyll as a large, well-made, smoothed faced man of fifty, with something of a slyish cast this shows us that he is perceived as suspicious. Jekyll told himself that he would never dig into Hyde again but he kept Hydes stand in Soho and all of his clothes. This proves that he was evil because he even lied to himself about what he would and would not do. Stevenson shows evil through Jekyll very effectively because people would worry that all doctors may be evil and he scrapd Victorians beliefs.Hyde is the other major character that Stevenson shows evil through very effectively. One main incident where Hyde was evil was when he walked straight oer a child. Stevenson wrote trampled calmly over the childs body he used the al-Quran calmly, which shows Hyde has no emotion. Trampled shows us he is fast, heavy footed and violent. The event that it was a child makes us very angry and sympathetic, as the female child is innocent, vulnerable and more delicate. Stevenson wrote left her screaming on the ground this shows us that the girl was screaming in pain and he still did not care. The incident besidesk place at three oclock of a black winter morning this makes it sound ver y eerie and makes us think that Hyde is being secretive because it is dark and any crimes he has attached can be hidden.The girl was described as 8 or 10 who was streamlet as hard as she was able. This tells us that she was running to get some help for someone, as she was a nice fondness person. This is a contrast to Hyde who is a horrible person out in the streets committing crimes. When a doctor came to see the child and asks what happened he turns sick and uncontaminating with a desire to kill him this shows us that the doctor was very angry as he pauperisms to kill someone when his life ambition is to provided peoples lives. Also doctors see horrible things every mean solar day but when Hyde tramples over a girl, it makes him ill. This is a contrast with Hyde who shows no emotion at all. other example where Hyde was evil was his meeting with Utterson. Hyde shrank back with a hissing pulmonary tuberculosis of breath. Shrank back shows us he is scared and does not want to t alk to anyone. Hissing compares him to an animal, which can be perceived as evil and again like an animal is warning Utterson to keep away. In addition, as Hyde is like an animal he has no conscience and is instinctive. After Utterson had commented on his bad language Hyde gnarled aloud into a savage gag. laugh tells us he is rebellious and childlike. savage shows us again that he is untamed and uncivilised. Much like an animal, he is unpredictable and worries the reader. snarled again links to him being animal like and has not so far evolved from the ape like form.The last incident where Hyde is evil is the Carew arrive at. this is the most evil thing Hyde does because he brutally murders an innocent man. Hailing down a hale of blows under which the bones where audibly shattered this tells us that he was revive with so more force that a woman in her house could hear each bone break. This was a very brutal murder a crime that was so evil that it makes Hyde even more so. The c onditions imagery is used to show power hailing. The body jumped upon the railway this shows how much extreme force was used Hyde is again even more evil now as Carew was defenceless as he was dead and yet Hyde continued to beat him. The readers have sympathy for Carew aged and beautiful piece with white hair because Hyde killed a man that was so innocent conflicting himself.Stevenson uses the two main characters Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde to show evil very effectively and in a clear way for the reader as Jekyll denies his involvement with Hyde and Hyde himself commits horr shuttingous crimes, is very rude, and has no conscience.Another way Stevenson shows us evil is through his minor characters. Firstly Lanyon who after being asked if he would like the lookout station the faulting replied I have gone to far in the way of inexplicable services to pause before I see the end . This shows us he was evil because he wanted to see that transformation and see what happens. Also, the use of inexplicable services makes the reader wonder what other evil tasks he has taken part in. Utterson is also evil because he sprang up and grew aspace curio to behold the features of the real Hyde. sprang up and grew shows us that his curiosity is uncontrollable.He is also interested in seeing what a real evil person may look like , he seemed too curious righteous to be concerned for a friend and just wants to find out about evil for himself. In addition, the police policeman could be perceived as evil as he was more interested in the prospect of promotion than trying to help the community. The neighboring moment his eye lighted up with professional ambition he does not care about anyone but himself. The use of lighted up is imagery of a fire that is uncontrollable, like evil urges.The last evil minor character is the maid who cares for Hydes house in Soho she knows that something is not right but she does not tell anyone about her suspicion. as housekeeper a creature whom I w ell knew to be silent and unscrupulous this shows us evil in Jekyll because he wanted a housekeeper that was dishonest and unprincipled. she had an evil face , smoothed by hypocrisy this shows us she was hiding her evil side by the way she looked. But her manners were excellent this shows us that Stevenson believed you could change the way you acted and looked to disguise evil. Stevenson used minor characters to portray his opinion that everyone had evil in them. He wanted to frighten the reader and challenge Victorian views.The setting is another way that Stevenson shows us evil. Many of the evil incidents that took place happened in dark of the night. This links to the secrecy of Hyde and how he does not want to communicate with anybody or be seen. There are two doors the one for Hyde to enter through and the one for Jekyll to enter through. The rear trance was described as a blind forehead of discoloured wall on the upper the marks of prolonged and sordid negligence this is sy mbolism for Hyde as he does not look after himself or care what he looks like. neither bell nor knocker tells us he does not want to communicate with anyone. Hydes catch is at the back of the house because he must be hidden. sinister block of a building is also symbolism as he is an evil man. Jekylls front entrance is described as an ancient handsome house this symbolises Jekyll as he is a respected man in the community so has a house to represent his.In conclusion, Stevenson presents his view of evil in many ways mainly through the major and minor characters but also through language setting and imagery. Stevenson has many messages about evil he believes that everyone has evil in them and if this evil is brought out and used more that good you will become evil forever this is shown through Jekyll when he starts to involuntarily change into Hyde. he is also criticising Victorian connection and challenging Victorians perceptions, which oppresses evil. He takes out his anger on doct ors because when he was younger he was very ill and doctors could not help him. Stevenson is very effective in viewing his opinion because he uses very strong language and opinions which appealed to the Victorian society and for some people appeal to their evil side today. It is quite relevant to the current world because there are Jekyll and Hyde characters in modern day society for example Dr shipman who killed between fifty and sixty people even though he is a doctor and is meant to save people lives not end them.