Literary Contexts in Novels: Robert Louis Stevenson's "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde"
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a very intriguing book. It has the reader constantly trying to figure out how the relationships make sense, as if it is a detective book. Throughout out the book Robert Stevenson, the author, uses what is going on in his life to relate to this story. He does this through historical, social, religious and scientific contexts.
First, the book was written just before the time of Sigmund Freud and his study on the human psyche. This story came to the author, Stevenson, in his dreams. On top of that he was able to sit down and write this book in three days. This adds to Lettice Cooper’s comment that ‘Stevenson’s ego feared his id’, and Stevenson was worried of having the same unconscious evil inside of him (Kerr). …show more content…
Utterson was a lawyer, and Lanyon and Jekyll are both doctors. By showing this Stevenson could be critiquing the middle class as well as Hyde for his evilness. The main are almost isolated from the rest of London, making the reader picture London based on allusions and the treatment of the other middleclass characters. Hyde on the other hand, is associated with the lower class, showing that lower-class are more likely to give in to evil as for the higher class (Kerr).
Religion is another area that is very evident in this book. It shows in many cases that evil is more powerful than good. Stevenson used Hyde for his imagination of when the devil took on the human face. Jekyll understands how evil Hyde is in the book, but still feels joy to be able to release the feelings he has buried inside. Utterson, Jekyll and Lanyon are all portrayed as church going men by Stevenson, in turn adding to the battle between good and evil
The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is a very intriguing book. It has the reader constantly trying to figure out how the relationships make sense, as if it is a detective book. Throughout out the book Robert Stevenson, the author, uses what is going on in his life to relate to this story. He does this through historical, social, religious and scientific contexts.
First, the book was written just before the time of Sigmund Freud and his study on the human psyche. This story came to the author, Stevenson, in his dreams. On top of that he was able to sit down and write this book in three days. This adds to Lettice Cooper’s comment that ‘Stevenson’s ego feared his id’, and Stevenson was worried of having the same unconscious evil inside of him (Kerr). …show more content…
Utterson was a lawyer, and Lanyon and Jekyll are both doctors. By showing this Stevenson could be critiquing the middle class as well as Hyde for his evilness. The main are almost isolated from the rest of London, making the reader picture London based on allusions and the treatment of the other middleclass characters. Hyde on the other hand, is associated with the lower class, showing that lower-class are more likely to give in to evil as for the higher class (Kerr).
Religion is another area that is very evident in this book. It shows in many cases that evil is more powerful than good. Stevenson used Hyde for his imagination of when the devil took on the human face. Jekyll understands how evil Hyde is in the book, but still feels joy to be able to release the feelings he has buried inside. Utterson, Jekyll and Lanyon are all portrayed as church going men by Stevenson, in turn adding to the battle between good and evil