Chapter 1 Flashcards
“There is something wrong….something displeasing….something downright detestable” [Enfield in regards to Hyde’s appearance]
-the adjectives ‘displeasing’ and ‘detestable’ establishes Hyde as a monstrous and malevolent character
-the plosive ‘d’ and ‘t’ creates an explosion of air
-the harshness of the sounds shrouds Hyde in an air of violence and iniquity
-the anaphoric repetition of ‘something’ creates an incessant air of ambiguity
-upholds Victorian theory of physiognomy
-fitting characteristic of gothic novels such as the Picture of Dorian Grey that depicted the direct link between declining beauty with debauchery
-to a Victorian audience, Hyde’s appearance would have been an immediate indication of his wickedness
-Stevenson’s vague yet sinister description of Hyde forces the reader to embody their worst fears in his character , -heightens the reader’s fear to establish the character as completely and irredeemably evil
Enfield compares Hyde to “Satan”
-religious analogy would further advance the fear of the pious intended audience
-by crafting Hyde as a character who is comparable to the devil himself (the personification of evil and the chief adversary against God),Stevenson exemplifies Hyde to be a character rooted in sin from the very first chapter
“Trampled calmly” over a child (Enfield description of Hyde’s actions)
-highlights his barbaric nature through the oxymoron ‘trampled calmly’ wherein Stevenson explicitly juxtaposes Hyde’s indifference with the aggression in his actions as the verb ‘trample’ gives an impression of extreme violence
-Hyde is constructed as a remorseless and amoral character who doesn’t conform to the strict moral conventions of the Victorian era in which people were expected to act with courtesy
-Stevenson furthermore presents Hyde as a horrifying character as he doesn’t conform to the human feelings of remorse and guilt, emotions that are typically associated with a functioning moral compass and catalyse repentance
“damned juggernaut”
adjective ‘damned’-doomed for enternal suffering so Hyde is irredeemablely evil
-juggernaut refers to wagon used to carry image of Krishna,devotees described to have thrown themselves under in order to go to paradise
-Stevenson may have used the noun juggernaut as to foreshadow the momentous sacrifice made by Jekyll(loss of control/sanity) in exchange for mindless self indulgence in inappropriate behaviour as Hyde
-alternatively, perhaps the juggernaut could refer to Hyde as the machine/vessel used by Jekyll to commit crimes without ramification
“he was austere with himself…”
-Utterson is constructed to conform to the tropes of a quintessential Victorian gentleman
-the adjective austere connotes to a self-imposed strictness
-his character is vital for examining the repressive nature of the Victorian society and gives a glimpse into the strict moral codes that constrained the upstanding men of the time such as Jekyll
“..drank gin when he was alone to mortify a taste for vintages”[a description of Utterson]
-the verb ‘mortify’ means to suppress needs
-on a surface level,he drinks gin in order to repress himself from indulging in more expensive alcohol eg.wine
-although he drinks gin as an alternative to quench his thirst for expensive beverages, he chooses to only drink gin in his own home ,perhaps as gin was often associated with the lower classes so drinking in public would tarnish reputation
-alternatively he may also indulge in gin by himself due to the high alcoholic content of gin which could lead to drunkeness
-drunkenness is often associated with withdrawing one’s inhibitions which would also besmirch his upstanding reputation
-through the character of Utterson-the protagonist of the novel and the epitome of a Victorian gentleman-Stevenson highlights the importance of having a moral code whilst concurrently allowing yourself to indulge in your desires in a controlled fashion
-this is a point of contrast between Dr Jekyll and Mr Utterson as the burden of respectability became too heavy for Dr Jekyll leading to feelings if shame [chapter 10]
what is physiognomy?
-[physiognomy] in 19th century England, physical abnormality was an implication of transgression against God, society and nature
“really damnable man”
-Hyde’s condemnation is reaffirmed later in chapter 1 as Enfield reiterates his certain damnation :highlights the extreme sacrilegious nature of Hyde ,
-so malevolent that there’s no place in the afterlife for him other than hell
-the adverb ‘really’ intensifies his declaration
“almost with envy…at the spirits involved in their misdeeds”
-implied jealousy of the liberal nature of others , something he closes himself off from
-he desires to satisfy his cravings however he’s aware of the repercussions of mindlessness-indulgence for his persona of decorum
-through the character of Utterson, Stevenson gives an insight into the rigid societal pressures that Victorian gentleman such as Dr Jekyll face and lament
-it is somewhat ironic how Me Utterson ,a lawyer, experiences an attraction towards wrongdoings
-this reflects the hypocrisy that permeated throughout Victorian London
-a completely virtuous society is impossible and the severity of the moral codes dictates the duality of society
-even Utterson , the paragon of decorum, is not exempt from duplicity
Enfield was coming home from “some place at the end of the world …[at] about 3 o’clock”
-although Mr Enfield is presented as a respectable gentleman, he seems to live a double life
-the ambiguity surrounding his location and the early hours imply secrecy or scandal
-this is further emphasised through the contrast between Mr Utterson and Enfield as Mr Utterson goes to bed with the Church bells
-subtle introduction to the theme of duality- Stevenson is hinting that the quintessential Victorian Gentleman is unattainable
-also,duplicity is a characteristic that was prevalent throughout all of Victorian England as even minor characters such as Mr Enfield live in secrecy
