Dual Nature of Man Flashcards
context and themes
Jekyll believes in the “duality of man”.
What does this mean?
The “duality of man” means that all humans have both a virtuous side that they show in public and a darker side that they generally try to hide.
Explain how each of these characters is shown to have two sides:
a) Hyde’s housekeeper
b) the policeman in ‘The Carew
Murder Case’
a) Hyde’s housekeeper has an “evil
face, smoothed by hypocrisy” but
her “manners” are described as
“excellent”.
b) The policeman exclaims in horror
when he first hears that Carew is
dead, but then his eyes light up with
“professional ambition” — he is
pleased the case will help his
career
Jekyll says the two parts of him “contended in the field” of his mind.
What effect does the language of battle have here?
The battle language suggests they’re fighting each other and can’t get on peacefully. This emphasises that their conflict is harmful and could be dangerous.
Do you think Jekyll is responsible for Hyde’s crimes?
Explain why / why not.
Jekyll is responsible for Hyde’s crimes. Jekyll creates Hyde and lets him roam London, knowing that he is capable of doing real harm. In the last chapter, Jekyll claims that “Hyde alone” was “guilty”, but this isn’t really true — although Jekyll often talks about them as two people, they are actually the same person, which makes Jekyll responsible for Hyde’s actions.
List three differences between Jekyll and Hyde.
Jekyll is a “compound” of good and evil — Hyde is “pure evil”. Jekyll has a “handsome face” — Hyde is “ugly”. Hyde is “smaller, slighter and younger” than Jekyll
Briefly explain how ideas about the dual nature of man in Jekyll and Hyde are linked to evolution.
Darwin’s theory of evolution showed humans share a common ancestor with apes. Hyde is often compared to an ape, e.g. Jekyll describes Hyde’s actions as “ape-like tricks”. Stevenson is suggesting that Hyde is less evolved than Jekyll, and therefore that the evil side of a person is less evolved than the virtuous side.
Give an example of Hyde disrupts Jekyll’s civilised lifestyle
‘Incident of the Window’ shows that Hyde forces Jekyll to stop socialising with his friends, because he cannot predict when Hyde will appear.
Do you think there’s any hope in the novella that humanity can overcome its darker side?
Explain your answer
The novella does offer some hope for humanity. Hyde is “less developed” than the good part of Jekyll when he is created — it is only when Jekyll indulges that side of him that Hyde gets more powerful. The novella could be suggesting that if people try to live a virtuous life, their good side can win.
How does Stevenson use ideas about the dual nature of man in Jekyll and Hyde to criticise Victorians society’s obsession with reputation?
Jekyll believes that everyone he meets is “commingled” (mixed) from “good and evil” — even the most respectable people have a dark side. This suggests that the Victorian obsession with reputation is pointless because everyone is the same underneath.
