Victorianism Flashcards
background and context, "Strange Case of Jekyll and Hyde"
What is “domesticity”?
Cosy assembling of the family within their home, like on painting of Victoria‘s family
In Strange Case, what kind of world does Stevenson write in? What is the context?
- Britain, London; public image of virtue -> concealing darker impulses
- Scientific and industrial advancements -> rapid progress
- Gothic and psychological exploration -> conflict between reason and primal instinct
IN DETAIL
Stevenson sets Strange Case in Victorian London -> a vast and fast growing city due to the industrial revolution and resulting urbanization (people from all around the world came there to work) -> which also led to poverty (lacking city administration: massive increase of people and activity on the streets couldn‘t be handled properly).
-> combines pride in achievement but also anxiety over the possible loss of control (Key themes in Strange Case!!)
What are the characteristics of Victorian London?
- heart of everything; dark, fast-going city; anxiety; loss of control
- no place left for people to live, huge class difference
- Nothing more to discover: peak of cilivilisation
Victorian London:
-rise of the middle class (by the middle of the 19th century: They define the perfect family lifestyle instead of the aristocracy -> domesticity)
-sense of superiority within the world: prime in science, technology, art and even war: battle between the French and Britain was won by the British navy
-> 1851: Great Exhibition: Demonstration of the British what they had achieved, held in Crystal Palace -> To show off their achievements in science, technology and art (all the fruits of the industrial revolution)
-colonial expansion -> Network of colonies (inheritance of the British empire) -> Colonization of Africa etc. and christianization of those “savages”
-rapid development/urbanization (in 1850: Population doubled in comparison to 1801: Several million living in London)
-migration into London -> overcrowded (poverty as a result) -> contrast to “Peak” civilization (opposite poles are important here!!!)
-lots of crime
How are the characteristics of Victorian London included in the novel “Strange Case…”?
Stevenson includes these factors by reflecting them in the aesthetics of the different streets representing different neighborhoods of different social classes, contrasting them.
Streets of middle class neighborhood: Dingy, overcrowded with poor people, prostitutes etc.. -> Contrast to that: Upper middle class neighborhood (ancient, handsome houses, showing prosperity)
-> This contrast is contrasted yet again: Hyde‘s back part of Jekyll‘s house is decaying and gloomy, scarcely a house (Foreshadowing: Hyde is scarcely a human, evil and gloomy)
Also: Contrast -> House of Jekyll is separated in two parts (one side is lovely and high class, the other side is gloomy) -> Represents two parts of Jekyll: When he turns into Hyde, he turns from handsome and presentable to gloomy and frightening
-> Reflection of people who lived in England, Victorian way of life -> Contrast of forces -> depravity vs peak civilization
Inside of Jekyll‘s halls: Pleasant and warm (contrast to the dark and gloomy laboratory Hyde is in -> contrast to make the twist even more frightening)
-> Stevenson uses spaces to highlight contrast!!!
What role does space play in the text?
Analyse Dr. Jekyll‘s house for example
- duality and secrecy: respectable front of house –> hidden neglected backdoor
- isolation and transformation: house as physical barrier
-> isolates himself, indulge in his darker experiments
—> no social judgement
-Also: Use of space to create suspense -> Jekyll has to open room after room and letters within letters to slowly unveil the truth bit by bit
What role does secrecy play in the construction of the narrative of “Strange Case…”?
- drives suspense and mystery: characters withhold crucial information
–> mirrors Victorians anxieties about hidden desires and societal repression
IN DETAIL
You are very removed from the truth, you don‘t know what happens until the last two chapters (Dr. Lanyon telling what he saw in a letter and Dr. Jekyll explaining everything in his letter) -> builds suspense. -> You open/unveil everything layer for layer (like when Mr. Utterson goes from room to room and opens letters within letters) -> Ehland used analogy of Matrjoschka (Russian doll)
What is the narrative situation in the text “Strange Case…”?
primarily told through Mr. Utterson (Rational and reliable narrator)
but also letters and testimonies from other characters -> creating layers
The story is being told by an unknown narrator. Mr. Utterson is the focalizer (we feel and experience what he feels and experiences, see the story through his self whenever there are no letters or stories by others being told-> he defines what we know). The last two chapters have Lanyon and Jekyll as narrators.
What part does religion play in the text “Strange Case…”?
- backdrop for exploration of sin and guilt; struggle between good/evil
- idea of damnation, soul’s corruption -> highlight Jekyll’s internal conflict and fear of eternal punishment
IN DETAIL
The church is an empty signifier in this story. To Utterson, the church is not a church, but a clock/a timekeeper. When he reads a dry book of theology, he doesn‘t do that because he is a believer or particularly interested in it, but because it‘s part of his routine as a self-disciplined victorian man.
-> Context: Religious certainties were undermined and destroyed in the 19th century (Victorian Age: First medical, later natural science replaced religion) -> Lost Paradise/Garden Eden gone
-> Another example of this: A Yard replaces Jekyll‘s garden: a yard is a place where laboratories and dissecting rooms are -> The garden is an empty signifier too, it‘s no garden anymore (a lost paradise)
Mr. Utterson is represented as the ideal Victorian man in “Strange Case…”. How is that?
- unwavering sense of duty, restraint, commitment to moral uprightness
- loyalty to his friends; avoiding scandal
IN DETAIL
He is a victorian middle class professional gentleman -> well behaved and seeming to be so totally in control of himself that he might appear repressed.
He doesn‘t even get wasted when he drinks alcohol or engages in prostitution, since he has discipline of a victorian man. -> he‘s austere (even though Victorian men were expected to engage in prostitution to be knowledgeable in sex once they marry a woman that was expected to stay virgin until marriage).
As part of his discipline, he also has his daily routine (sober, reading boring books like a dry book of theology), which is actually broken by Mr. Hyde‘s appearance and Utterson‘s resulting pursuit of him.-> Hyde blows away the victorian discipline
-> not only that, Utterson becomes insane like Dr. Jekyll, obsessed with him (“If he be Mr. Hyde”, he had thought, “I shall be Mr. Seek”)
Compare Mr. Utterson‘s image to that of Dr. Jekyll‘s
Utterson:
-moral responsibility; victorian ideal of self-discipline
-consistent, respectable public image
Dr. Jekyll:
-temptation: forbidden desires and break social constraints
-dual identity; secretly engaging in immoral behaviour as Hyde
Utterson is kind, large and handsome, while Hyde is dwarfish, abysmal and repulsive to look at. -> direct contrast
We can look at the ending of the text as either a gothic horror story or one with more contemporary concerns. How can we interpret it accordingly, and what role does Mr. Hyde play in each case?
- gothic: fear of unknown and supernatural; Hyde uncontrollable monster
- contemporary: mental health & identity; Hyde representing desires and the consequences of urpressing aspects of the self
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde both die
Moral of the story if it‘s a dark romantic and/or gothic horror story: If we can‘t control our darker side, it consumes us (Dark Romanticist/Gothic theme: Corruption of the human -> Corruption can take over -> Like in House of Usher)
Moral of the story if it‘s a contemporary story of the victorian era: Hyde is a living contradiction of the bible/religion -> He is hardly a human, instead a pre-human (ancestor of a human) or ape-like -> Darwinism: Jekyll proves evolution theory with this (which therefore replaces religion) -> Garden Eden gone
Find out about Stevenson’s life and whether he fits our standard stereotype of a Victorian man.
Stevenson was plagued by chronic health issues throughout his life, which set him apart from the robust, industrious ideal of the Victorian gentleman. His poor health also fueled his need to escape the dreary climate of Scotland, leading to his nomadic life.
Stevenson led a more bohemian and unconventional lifestyle compared to his peers. He was adventurous, free-spirited, and often at odds with the rigid moral codes of Victorian society.
He traveled extensively, lived abroad, and eventually settled in Samoa, far from the comforts and expectations of his upbringing.
Stevenson often questioned the strict social norms of Victorian society, including its views on morality, class structure, and religion. His works, like Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, explored themes of duality, hidden desires, and the hypocrisy of societal expectations, challenging the Victorian emphasis on outward respectability.
All in all, he was no classic Victorian Man
J&H is a text is largely peopled by male characters, in fact, it is almost entirely set in the typically homosocial culture of the late-Victorian age to which women had little or no access. (If you want to learn more about gender roles in Victorian times, the following article on the website of the British Library might interest: https://www.bl.uk/romantics-and-victorians/articles/gender-roles-in-the-19th-century#) The central characters assembled in the novel - from Dr. Jekyll to Mr Utterson - represent a certain class in society.
How are the two central characters described by Stevenson (Dr. Jekyll/Mr.Hyde and Mr Utterson)? Give details on their social context, profession, appearance and character traits.
- Jekyll:
-scientist
-popular and well respected man within society (has done charitable work and made many achievements in science and invites people to dinner parties)
-has a moral code and is disciplined, austere like a victorian gentleman is supposed to
-is described as a large, handsome man
-ambitious
-at odds with his darker side and impulses
- Hyde:
-is dwarfish, ape-like, repulsive to people by his looks alone
-has no charisma, kindness or intriguing personality
-is impulsive and brutal
-has no morals and is selfish
What actions by the protagonists contribute to their characterisation?
Jekyll:
-Him inviting other people to dinner parties: socially popular and well standing
-His kind demeanor shows in how he treats other people (he is fairly kind to Utterson and kindly pleads with him to execute his last will in case of his demise or disappearance, also he is generous enough to eventually let Utterson inherit everything he owns)
-his charitable work: Underlines his generosity and kindness
-overly ambitious since he creates Hyde
-at odds with his dark impulses since he create Hyde to free himself from his victorian bounds and be morally free, not obligated to be disciplined anymore
Hyde:
-impulsive and brutal since he killed Carew in a fit of rage and that girl at the beginning too
-selfish since he kills himself so that he doesn‘t have to stand trial for his actions and instructs Lanyon to do chores just so that he can maintain himself
-repulsive/brutish in the way he behaves towards people like Utterson (doesn‘t even offer him to come in) or Lanyon
Utterson: Already elaborated in previous questions
