Dr Jekyll & Hyde - Context & Author Flashcards
What was Stevenson’s childhood like?
He was unwell in his youth and suffered from tuberculosis.
He did good at school, and able to attend university at 16.
Stevenson’s parents wanted him to become an engineer, but he studied law.
He was a young rebel, he didn’t follow his parent’s expectations of him as a religious scholar. He saw his parent’s religion as an outrage and he became a bohemian who was critical of upper-class hypocrisy and bourgeois values.
How was Stevenson being a rebel link to Jekyll & Hyde.
Just like Jekyll, Stevenson had a shameful dimension to his character. His parents, from the New town, campaigned against prostitution and crime that occurred in the Old Town of Edinburgh. However, unbeknown to his parents, Stevenson visited the dark corners of the town to visit brothels and engage in activities that would have horrified his parents.
Crossing over from the respectable side of the city, to the impoverished side of the city, in a way, the start of the journey to writing Jekyll & Hyde.
What was happening when Jekyll was writing the play?
Stevenson first published the novella in 1886. England was undergoing social changes, and urban terror was rife.
What changes were happening in England when Jekyll & Hyde was written?
The book was written when economic growth in England was booming, induced by the industrial revolution.
The Victorian period also saw a change in societal conventions - science played a more important role and there was a shift from religion to scientific theories.
The views of morality also changed: people started to engage in questionable activities and behaviours.
What was the class system like when the book was written?
There was a strict division between the rich and the poor parts of London. The rigid class system defined where people were allowed to live, work, eat and travel in London. The class system also dictated how you were educated, how you behaved and what was expected of you. The location of Hyde's door in the first chapter was chosen by Stevenson, because it was notorious for crimes and criminal activities, prostitution and opium dens where well-respected men would visit brothels and consume opium.
Explain the significance of fog in Jekyll & Hyde.
The fog is a repeated image in the novella, and Hyde’s character is associated with the fog for two reasons:
The fog is dirty and is associated with the depraved parts of London.
The fog also disguises and hides Hyde’s criminal activities.
Soho is described as being “attacked” by darkness throughout the novella, which illustrates how the fog was an overwhelming force, much like the crime of Soho.
Explain Urban terror in 1886.
In 1850s and 1860s, there were occasional waves of crimes and appalling offences in Victorian England.
The murders of Jack the Ripper in the autumn of 1888 were committed in a small area of London’s East End. These murders evoked nation-wide panic and horror amongst citizens, and press sensationalism was emphasised to sell newspapers.
Who was Deacon Brodie?
How does he link to Jekyll?
Stevenson was familiar with the legend of Decaon William Brodie, and there are some uncanny similarities between Jekyll, and the legend of Deacon Brodie.
The man was a well-respected cabinet maker and pillar of the community - who was also a member of the local council and a representative of government.
Brodie made his fortune by fixing locks and door mechanisms in people’s homes in the city.
Despite his well-respected reputation, he had a passion for pleasure, and for engaging with less-respectable activities.
At night, he frequented the worst parts of Edinburgh and he drank excessive amounts of alcohol. He has a passion for gambling, and five illegitimate children.
To fund his debauchery, he started to steal from people as he entered their houses to repair doors.
He was a master burglar and hid his crimes well.
The false identify and reputation was maintained, until he decided to rob an excise office - he was caught by an officer but ran away. However, letters he was sending to a friend were found by authorities, which led to his arrestt
He was then hanged.
How does Sigmund Freud link to Jekyll & Hyde.
Freud’s scientific theory may have inspired Stevenson to write about this topic, and inspired his motivations to create Jekyll who had similar intentions - to divide his own human psyche.
Explain Freud’s personality theory.
Freud’s single most enduring and important idea was that the human psyche has more than one aspect.
Freud saw the psyche structured into three parts: the id, ego and superego, all developing at different stages in our lives.
These are systems, not part of the brain, or in any way physical.
Although each part of the personality comprises unique features, they interact to form a whole, and each part makes a relative contribution to an individual’s behaviour.
Explain Id, ego and superego.
The id is the primitive and instinctive component of personality that includes sexual and aggressive instincts. The ego mediates between the unrealistic id and the external real world. It’s the decision making component of personality
The superego incorporates the values and morals of society which are learned from one’s parents and others. The superego’s function is to control the id’s impulses.
What part of the human psyche does Hyde represent?
Hyde represents the ‘ID’ - This is the unharnessed and uncharted desires of human nature. He’s unable to restrain himself and he’s a primitive representation of humans. Hyde is impulsive, and he acts without consideration for the consequences of his actions.
In a society where citizens were expected to repress desires, the possibility of a primitive criminal wandering the streets of London would’ve been shocking and terrifying.
