The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

Well. That was a whole lot better than I expected.

I can't believe I loved this as much as I did. There is only one thing that brought this down from five stars to four (it will be explained further in this review), and I still feel like maybe I should give this 4.5. But I've been doing a lot of .5 star reviews lately so... here we are, I guess.

OK, so, what did I like about this book?



1) SETTING.

The dirty, 19th-century-London setting in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde reminisces both the dreariness of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and the intrigue of an Agatha Christie novel. Anyone who knows me knows that setting will make or break a book for me. And trust me when I say it made this one.

2) MYSTERY.

Y'all, I thought I knew what was going on. show more Truly, I did. I thought it was something to do with blackmail or money... in case you're curious. And because of what I thought it was, I wasn't hooked right away. But as I slowly started to realize it was something different than I'd expected, I was at the edge of my seat just waiting to fugure it out. And that ending really had me... I didn't expect anything quite so dark or shaking from this novel at all. (That's a good thing.)

3) FREAKING PACING.

This book was almost the perfect length. There was a slow, dark feeling to it (see also: SETTING) that made the whole book so perfectly timed. There was always this sense that something big was about to happen. Anytime it did, it was done so that it left you wanting more. Every plot point was hit at the right moment, so that I was never bored, but it also never felt too fast. I loved it.

SO WHY ONLY 4.5?

Somehow, though I loved the pacing and the mystery so much, I could have done with a much shorter reveal. It was so long, in fact, that I found it really difficult to make it through that final chapter. It could have easily been half of that length, and the explanation still would have been sufficient enough, while leaving just a little bit up to the imagination.

This should not, of course, deter anyone from reading, but it is something to be mindful of going in.

FINAL THOUGHTS.

R.L. Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a masterpiece of a mystery. Complete with setting, intrigue, and structure, this book is perfect for fans of Mary Shelley, Agatha Christie, and A.C. Doyle.

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For anyone who's curious, here's a link to the magnificent audiobook I used for this read. (Seriously, this audio is probably half the reason I loved this book so much.) Thank you, Steven Garnett, for the lovely experience reading this book.

—Elliana Maselli
Thursday, April 15, 2021
5:48PM show less

Romanzo tanto famoso, quanto erroneamente interpretato, soprattutto a motivo di un approccio superficiale o addirittura inesistente alla sua lettura. La semplicistica contrapposizione tra un Dr. Jekyll bigotto e bacchettone e un Mr. Hyde gaudente e trasgressivo, con una chiara oscillazione delle simpatie verso quest’ultimo, non ha senso; infatti Hyde non è “altro” da Jakyll, né la sua versione disinibita: è Jekyll stesso, così come si trasforma in seguito all’assunzione di una pozione (guarda caso) “impura”; è il male che è in Jeckyll, distillato nella sua essenza più spaventosa e atroce, perché separato dal bene, in una scissione contro natura di quelle componenti positive e negative che albergano in ogni essere show more umano.
Per questo è di bassa statura e di costituzione più esile rispetto a Jekyll: per il fatto che ne è soltanto una parte, una componente. Per questo ispira sgomento e orrore in chi lo avvicina: non perché sia brutto o deforme (come di norma viene raffigurato nelle trasposizioni cinematografiche), ma per il fatto che da lui irradia un’aura indefinita di mostruosità, di “inumanità”, in quanto non può considerarsi umano un essere ricolmo unicamente di pulsioni maligne e delittuose.
Indefinito, nel senso di non enumerato né descritto, è anche il genere di colpe di cui Hyde si rende responsabile, con l’esito di ampliare fino all’enorme, al raccapricciante, all’impensabile il potere emozionale del non-detto. Le scelte stilistiche dell’autore sono sapientemente intese in questo senso, ovvero a concentrare sul mistero, su ciò che è taciuto, la potenza suggestiva del racconto, in un climax di intensità e tensione che culmina con le straordinarie pagine della confessione di Jekyll.
Vero miracolo di perfezione compositiva, questo romanzo ad ogni rilettura suggerisce nuove riflessioni e dischiude nuovi tesori: ciò accade soltanto per i capolavori. show less

This struck me as less about the conflict between good and evil in a person's soul, and more about Victorian bourgeois hypocrisy.

Prior to Jekyll's transformation, he uses the shield of medical respectability to indulge his unnamed, and therefore probably sexual, vices (the other main vices of Victorian England, gambling and alcohol, not being unnameable), and had already been leading a double life.

His potion, Jekyll says, has the potential to emphasise either the "good" or "evil" traits of the personality, in his Case unleashing Hyde due to his preexisting affinity for wickedness. Before the transformation, Jekyll had to hide this part of his life; as Hyde he is both more concealed and more visible to "polite society", which is more show more concerned with appearances than substance. Although we don't get to follow Jekyll or Hyde into the world of their indulgences, it is likely that the people of that echelon of society better knew the quality of Henry Jekyll, and were of old acquainted with the qualities, if not the figure, of Edward Hyde. show less

There are books I’m surprised to realize I haven’t read, yet they seemed a pervasive part of culture as long as I can remember. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is one of them. Of course, I’d seen the old movie with Frederic March numerous times, thanks to Channel 9’s Million Dollar Movie. I suppose that’s why I never picked up the book.

My interest was recently awakened, again via television, when the BBC aired a dramatic reading that included nearly a third of the book’s text.

The book is psychologically acute and builds well the sense of horror. A few parts drag; in particular, the letter from Dr. Lanyon rehearses more of the plot than necessary. This was an easy cut for the BBC adapters. I liked how, after the show more story is told mainly from the point of view of Utterson, the lawyer, the final chapter is narrated by Dr. Jekyll via a confessional letter he quickly wrote before his final transition to Edward Hyde.

The best part of the confession is that there are no specifics of the base crimes Jekyll alludes to, other than those few that have already come up in the plot, such as the murder of Carew. This empty space allows each reader to fill in the narrative gap however he chooses. I think the name Hyde says enough. Stevenson has created no role for Miriam Hopkins in his plot.

“Zwei Seelen wohnen, ach! in meiner Brust” lamented that pre-Romantic, Goethe. He was hardly the first to wonder at the dual nature in each of us. Imagine if one could separate these two natures and delegate all we wish we wouldn’t do to that “other”? Theoretically, the good me could become more consistently philanthropic. What could go wrong?

Imagine it Stevenson did, and long before Lumon Industries engineered “Innies” and “Outies,” he shows that it’s not a good idea. If science was the new religion of the nineteenth century, Stevenson follows Mary Shelley and others as a dissenter. show less

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde has, I fear, suffered a fate quite similar to books such as Gulliver's Travels by having been popularized as being something it is not. The latter is too often misinterpreted as a children's book while the former is either misrepresented as a simple horror story or, worse yet, as an inspiration for comic books (excuse me, I suppose I should have said “graphic novels”) or the films made from them, such as The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. In any case, the original stories have too often been simplified, and far too many people have thoroughly erroneous ideas of the real stories.

Stevenson's theme in The Strange Case is the duality of human nature, every man (he does not address the show more distaff side of humanity) being possessed of both good, beneficent, generous, helpful qualities and evil, malevolent, spiteful, destructive qualities. These opposites are not equally balanced within a man, and whichever qualities are practiced and strengthened will predominate. With every good intention in the world, Dr. Jekyll experiments on separating these opposing qualities and inadvertently exercises those of negative bent until they come to predominate. Stevenson's protagonist readily admits that men are more complex than this simple duality suggests but explains that his initial interest must focus on the two basic sides of the personality, leaving more complex divisions to the future.

The composition of this short novel (which some deem a long short story) reminds me of Bram Stoker's Dracula. The author relies heavily on suggestion, hint and innuendo to develop the plot. It is as though the facts of the story are imperfectly glimpsed through a thick London fog, leaving the reader/viewer to wonder whether what he saw was actual or a phantom of his imagination. Not until the final chapter does Dr. Jekyll speak directly to readers, confirming what we have suspected for some time and providing a very satisfactory dénouement.

Those whose understanding of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde has been gleaned from hearsay, movies, or comics owe it to themselves to read Stevenson's short novel. They may come to realize that their understanding is flawed, and they will surely enjoy observing Stevenson's "suggestive horror" style of writing. Is there any sort of lesson to be learned from this little work of fiction? Indeed, humans are complex creatures so be careful of which characteristics you choose to develop, practice and strengthen! show less

Talk about having one hell of a midlife crisis, LOL.

This story is absolutely fantastic! I loved the structure of it, built as a mystery slowly unfolding, sucking all of our characters into the strange world of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the climax, and the denouement that explains all. It's interesting, suspenseful, and thought-provoking. I gobbed it up in one sitting.

I've grown up with the pop culture variations on the theme so was well aware of the basic story, but I like all of the original elements - like how Mr. Hyde is a dwarfish, ugly little creature instead of a huge monster, and how the drug that Jekyll was taking was actually impure, and that was the magical ingredient, though he discovered it too late. Mr. Hyde was basically show more pure id let loose; too bad Dr. Jekyll's id was pure evil. He indulged it to the ultimate breaking point, to his detriment when he was suddenly turning into Mr. Hyde without the help of the drugs, and had to use the drugs to get back to his original self. Mr. Hyde murders a high-ranking MP, and when Dr. Jekyll can't return to his original form, he kills himself under the guise of Mr. Hyde.

The questions of 'two selves' and the battle between good and evil, not to mention aging and regret, are all touched upon here. There's a lot packed into this little story and it is a lot of fun. show less

A strange, deformed man haunts the streets, trampling over fallen children and seemingly wresting money from the good Dr. Jekyll to escape the consequences of his misdeeds. Jekyll has even gone so far as to make this mysterious Mr. Hyde the sole benefactor of his will, against all advice from Mr. Utterson, his lawyer. Utterson suspects blackmail, and he's determined not to rest until he's helped his dear friend and client escape with his life. For surely, he thinks, Hyde must be tempted to murder Jekyll in order to usurp him. Utterson doesn't know how right he is, though not at all in the way that he suspects.

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a classic horror novel, and one that has been referenced so often in modern show more culture that I knew its biggest secret going in. For me, the surprises and the appeal were in discovering the way in which the story was told. Much of the plot involves watching Mr. Utterson and others slowly uncovering the mystery, and, for me, this resulted in a very interesting dramatic irony. I knew exactly what the characters were missing, but I didn't know all the twists and turns of the plot, how the characters would react to them, or how the story would reach its end. For me, this was enough to maintain interest, and I think other readers would have a similar experience if they have only a surface-level knowledge of the plot.

This is a short book, certainly a quick read, and I found it to be a good example of British literature of the nineteenth century. Characters’ physical descriptions are meant to signify aspects of their personalities, houses and the weather are likewise described with obvious symbolism, the omniscient narrator tells you what the characters are like, and the characters have over-the-top reactions whenever anything remotely horrifying happens. Because of this, combined with how easy it is to read, I think it would make a great introductory book for anyone looking to get into British classics from the same time period without immediately jumping in the deep end.

I also found it interesting as a window into the past, seeing how people lived and spoke and how they told their stories. I would recommend it if you have a similar interest, or if, somehow, you actually don't know the secret behind this particular mystery. If that's the case, I recommend you go out and read it right now. You're sure to have an experience worth talking about. show less