In the story Dr Jekyll, an admired member of the
professional Victorian middle-classes, conducts a series of scientific
experiments which unleash from his own psyche the ‘bestial’ and
‘ape-like’ Mr Hyde Gothic fiction had examined the idea of the sinister alter ego or double before on many occasions but Stevenson’s genius withJekyll and Hyde was
to show the dual nature not only of one man but also of society in
general. Throughout the story, respectability is doubled with
degradation; abandon with restraint; honesty with duplicity. Even London
itself has a dual nature, with its respectable streets existing
side-by-side with areas notorious for their squalor and violence.
Dr.Jekyll
A
prominent middle-aged doctor who is both tall and handsome. He is
extremely wealthy and is described as respected and proper. He believed
that every human being had two sides GOOD AND EVIL and carried out
experiments trying to separate the two. He however did not do it for
scientific reasons but in order to escape the confining guise of the
good Dr. Jekyll.
Edward Hyde
He is a
small, deformed, disgusting young man that is devoid of an apparent
profession. Many descriptions of the horror provoked by his appearance
have been given. He is often compared to animals implying that he is not
a fully evolved human being. He menaces the society at night, trampled a
girl in the street and even killed Sir Danvers Carew.
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