Secrecy and Reputation Flashcards
“make his name stink from one end of London to the other”
Enfield recalls threatening to expose Hyde to the whole of London as an alternative to killing him. Stevenson uses olfactory imagery (images linked to smell) in the metaphor “make his name stink from one end of London to the other” to show how Jekyll’s reputation could be tarnished. As he was well known in society it is evident the whole of London would find out what he had done.
“It turns me cold to think of this creature stealing like a thief to Harry’s bedside”
It has commonly been interpreted that Utterson assumes that Jekyll and Hyde are in a homosexual relationship. The metaphor “turns me cold” shows the severity of the implications of this accusation and the animalistic connotations of “creature” serve to further highlight the criminality of the act and the need to keep it a secret.
“If it came to trial, your name might appear”
Utterson is more concerned with preserving Jekyll’s reputation than bringing Hyde to trial. After Carew has been murdered, he says to Jekyll “if it came to trial, your name might appear” Utterson is also wary of gossip, and he tries to avoid talking about Hyde to anyone else. The gentlemanly ideal of repressing one’s innermost thoughts causes Utterson to suffer from nightmares. This suggests Stevenson’s message is that reputations are only based on appearances. Reputations are not always genuine versions of people - they are just the façades that people try to
uphold and show to society.
