Richard Enfield Flashcards
Chapter 1 quotations
“I was coming
home from some place at the end of the world, about three o’clock”
This quote has a theme of secrecy common throughout Jekyll and Hyde, which reflects the Victorian society. The fact Enfield does not reveal where he was coming from at 3am suggests it was a place that could supposedly ruin his image, for example a session with a prostitute or some other illegal manners.
” the man
trampled calmly over the child’s body and left her screaming on
the ground. It sounds nothing to hear, but it was hellish to see.”
He’s unphased by the screams yet he is horrified by the sight of it, suggesting it to be quite graphic, Hyde is a representation of evil which is reinforced by Enfield’s status that he calmly had no issue graphically trampling a child
“It wasn’t like a man; it was like some damned Juggernaut.”
“juggernaut” also derives from the Hindu deity Lord Krishna. In his dream, therefore, later in the play Mr. Utterson compares Mr. Hyde to a powerful god. Enfield suggests a supernatural aspect to Hyde’s character, he’s not a human.
“He was perfectly cool and made no resistance,
but gave me one look, so ugly that it brought out the sweat on me
like running. “
Hyde makes Enfield severely uncomfortable, he is a frightening figure with no remorse as shown through the trampled child. Though it is odd that Hyde is sticking slightly to Victorian expectations in the sense that he didn’t try to cause any argument and handled the situation calmly, he’s the one character who’s free of the Victorian expectations, although this could just show he has no care considering he is not remotely frightened. Just irritated.
“we were keeping the women off him as best we could for they were
as wild as harpies.”
Women were not expected to show any form of aggression this goes against their expectations yet with Hyde’s presence he seems to stir up chaos wherever he goes linking to his later comparisons to Satan, the one who provokes evil in people.
“out with another man’s cheque for close upon a hundred
pounds. But he was quite easy and sneering. Set your mind at
rest,' says he, I will stay with you till the banks open and cash
the cheque myself.”
Hyde is a very provocative character, he stirs drama with his confident sly nature, the fact he’s ‘sneering’ means he’s mocking how cautious Enfield is, his confidence shows he already knows the cheque is genuine and wishes only to tease them further by seeing through to the outcome.
“I never saw a man I so disliked, and yet I scarce
know why. He must be deformed somewhere; he gives a strong
feeling of deformity, although I couldn’t specify the point.”
To be deformed really affects your reputation and status, Victorians aimed for the best appearance and reputation as possible, so to be deformed in some aspect would put you at a disadvantage. There is something unnatural and suspicious about Hyde that seems to agitate everyone upon seeing him, suggesting fear of him and a further link to the devil.
