jekyll and hyde

• "A large, well-made, smooth-faced man of fifty."


  He is presented a polished, well-groomed and immaculate - an expectation of upper class Victorian gentlemen.
• "Those provinces of good and ill which divide and compound man's dual nature."


  By this he means that because of how he wanted other people to view him, he divided his nature more than he says most people do. A"province"is an area of land under a particular jurisdiction, like a county or country. Jekyll uses the word to continue the geographicalmetaphorthat begins with a"deeper trench. The image is visual - instead of the abstract aspects of good and evil within a person's mind or soul, we are asked to imagine a landscape split by a vast trench.The good and ill"divide and compound"man's nature means that they both split it but also make it complete: Stevenson suggests that we are a compound - an integrated mix - of both good and bad, neither wholly one nor the other. What Jekyll has done in dividing them totally is therefore unnatural.
• "Certain impatient gaiety of disposition."


  Dr Jekyll confesses that the reason he became curious was due to his own need for happiness.
• "Aversions to the dryness of a life of study."


  Dr Jekyll may have felt unsatisfied with the prospect of committing his life to academic study and needed another sort of fulfilment.
• "Hyde alone in the ranks of mankind, was pure evil"


  Jekyll stresses that the evil which is Hyde is a part of him - that he has simply separated that part from himself and given it freedom. But although"Hyde alone in the ranks of mankind, was pure evil", Jekyll keeps the mixed nature that he had before. This suggests that while evil can be given free rein if not kept in check by conscience and discipline, no person can be wholly good. Perhaps the reason is that goodness is demonstrated and accomplished by shunning evil, so goodness cannot exist without evil.
• "my life, my honour and my reason are at stake"


  Jekyll becomes aware that his reputation, rationale and all of his hard work are at risk due to the actions of Hyde and the potential for his identity being revealed.
• "like the Babylonian finger on the wall" - Dr Henry Jekyll


  Jekyll describes his first involuntary change into Hyde as being"like the Babylonian finger on the wall". He is referring to an episode in the Bible in which the king Belshazzar is feasting when a hand appears and writes a warning on the wall foretelling the imminent downfall of the Babylonian empire. Jekyll means the episode warned him that his carefully managed double life was about to end.
• "ground the key under my heel" - Dr Jekyll


  Jekyll says that when he realised he could not dare to turn into Hyde, who was wanted for murder, he"ground the key under [his] heel"so that he could no longer use the door from the laboratory to the street. This is the key that Utterson and Poole find crushed and spotted with rust.
• "sincere" and "warm affection"


  This honest and earnest description of Jekyll contrasts with the description of Hyde as "cold" and brutal.
• "every mark of capacity and kindness"


  Dr Jekyll was known to a caring, generous man.
• "my master is a tall, fine build of a man"


  Compares to Hyde who is described as "dwarfish"
• "let me go my own dark way and live in dark seclusion"


  Dr Jekyll admits his path is evil and immoral but he wants to protect others from it.
• "I swear to God"


  His piety comes too late and once he realised the implications of his actions, he turned to God. Interestingly, in showing Jekyll's death, shows that by turning against the values of God, there is no salvation.
• There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something downright detestable.' - Enfield to Utterson about Hyde


  Enfield's description of Hyde shows how first impressions were everything during the Victorian era. Hyde emanated an aura of evil and sin.
• "If he be Mr. Hyde" he had thought, "I shall be Mr. Seek"' - Utterson


  Utterson's pun shows how he is describing how he shall discover the truth about Hyde. The
• if ever I read Satan's signature upon a face, it is on that of your new friend.' - Utterson


  Utterson describing his reaction to Hyde and his pity towards Jekyll. Hyde is presented as having a mark of evil and the reference to "Satan" would have been well-understood at the time as a reference to the Devil and hell.
• "The moment I choose, I can be rid of Mr. Hyde"


  Jekyll reassuring Mr Utterson that Hyde can be easily removed - yet it is ironic that Jekyll continues to return back to Hyde as he cannot overcome his temptation.
• "...they were the expression, and bore the stamp, of lower elements in my soul."


  Jekyll describing Hyde and how he is a manifestation of the darker side of his soul.
• "Edward Hyde, alone, in the ranks of mankind, was pure evil." - Dr Jekyll


  Jekyll describing the cause of Hyde's repulsive nature
• "...with ape-like fury, he was trampling his victim under foot, and hailing down a storm of blows."


  The use of the simile 'ape-like fury' describes Hyde as an animal capable of rages, not a human. This shows that Hyde doesn't care about his actions and has no control over his fiery, animalistic behaviour.
• "It took on this occasion a double dose to recall me to myself..."


  This shows that Mr Hyde is getting stronger, as Dr Jekyll needs to use more drugs to return to his former self. The use of the exclamation mark suggests that this surprises and also scares Jekyll as he is unsure and wary of Hyde's power.
• "A displeasing smile"


  Ugly and uncanny
• "The face of Hyde sat heavy in his memory"


  This depicts the horror of his face that troubled Utterson.
• "Even in his dreams, it had no face."


  Utterson dreams about Hyde but and his strange face. The repetition of "face" shows how Utterson was fixated on finding out his identity.
• "Shrank back with a hissing intake of breath"


  The verbs and adjectives used to describe Hyde's behaviour present him as a predatory animal.
• "like some damned Juggernaut"


  Hyde is compared to a large lorry suggesting his strength and brutality. 'Juggernaut' means an overwhelming, powerful force
• "glorying and trembling, my lust of evil gratified and stimulated"


  Dr Jekyll explains how Hyde craves evil and sin because he represents the repressed dark side of Jekyll that can now act freely.
• "lean, long, dusty, dreary and yet somehow lovable"


  Mr Utterson is a serious and solemn lawyer who is not explicitly expressive. Despite being unemotional, old, worn and bored or boring, he is still likable.
• "he had an approved tolerance for others"

  Mr Utterson is an understanding character who has the willingness to tolerate the existence of opinions or behaviour that one dislikes or disagrees with.
• "wondering with envy at the high pressures of spirits involved in their misdeeds"


  Mr Utterson is inquisitive and curious about other people's wicked and illegal acts.
• "mark of a modest man"


  Mr Utterson is perhaps the embodiment of the proper, respectable, professional and eminently Victorian society.
• "lawyer of a rugged countenance"


  First description of appearance, not attractive but perhaps reflects his strong work ethic.
• "If he shall be Mr Hyde I shall be Mr Seek"

  said by Utterson


  Utterson's persistence, he uses the pun "Mr Seek" to show Utterson's curious nature
• "where Utterson was liked, he was well liked."


  He is portrayed as well-liked from the very start of the book, especially so that the reader trusts his narration.
• austere with himself'


  Represses his desires
• singularly strong, almost an inordinate curiosity'


  Curious and rational lawyer, deeply invested in the case
• "a clouded brow"


  Pathetic fallacy, serious and scowling, sets the tone of the chapter/novella
• "his hand to his brow like a man in mental perplexity"


  Mr Utterson's curious nature kicks in. Links in with "brow" representing the mind.
• "but in the law of God there is no statue of limitations"


  Mr Utterson uses a legal term that there is no legal restriction when it comes to God's ways - even if ungodly.
• "fog rolled over the city"


  Pathetic fallacy of the fog over London. Representation of Mr Utterson's mind.