English Literature - Jekyll And Hyde - Background And Context

Front 1

When was Jekyll and Hyde published?

Back 1

Stevenson published Jekyll and Hyde in 1886, during the Victorian era.

Front 2

What were gentlemen like in Victorian society?

Back 2

The gentleman was an important figure in Victorian society. A man's social class was one part of being a gentleman - gentlemen were from the upper-classes of Victorian society.

His profession was also important - army officers, church ministers, doctors and lawyers might all be counted as gentlemen. Some middle-class men (such as bankers and successful merchants) also aspired to be gentlemen.

Gentlemen were expected to have strong morals and be kind, particularly towards poorer people, but plenty of people saw this as a less important part of being a gentleman. Being a gentleman brought many benefits. It gave you a chance to enter well-paid professions like medicine and law, and gain the respect of rich clients.

It was also important for your children. A gentleman could use his contacts to arrange good marriages for his daughters and well-paid jobs for his sons.

Utterson, a successful lawyer, is a good example of the Victorian gentleman.

Front 3

How did gentlemen uphold their reputation?

Back 3

Gentlemen were determined to maintain their reputations - without a good reputation, a man couldn't be considered a gentleman at all. Gentlemen would often walk through public places, such as Hyde Park in London. This helped them to keep up their appearance as gentlemen. Utterson and Mr Enfield go on these walks regularly.

Gentlemen were expected to keep their emotions under strict control. This forced them to hide their desires for things like sex and alcohol.

Many gentlemen were publicly snobbish about disreputable places, like public houses and brothels, whilst visiting them secretly at night. Stevenson hints at this hypocrisy in the novel. They were prepared to pay large sums of money to keep activities like these private, which made them vulnerable to blackmail. Utterson assumes that Jekyll is being blackmailed about something in his past. Even Hyde, who doesn't need to protect his reputation, is prepared to pay money, partly to avoid a public scandal.

Reputation plays a big part in the novel. Utterson wants to discover the truth about Hyde, but he is worried that it might damage Jekyll's reputation. This slows him down when he is trying to solve the mystery.

Jekyll struggles with the social pressure to be respectable. He "concealed" his "pleasures", but this made him feel like a "double dealer", even before he created Hyde.

Front 4

What was working-class London like?

Back 4

Whilst the middle and upper-classes lived in richly-furnished houses (like Jekyll's house, which has "a great air of wealth and comfort"), this wasn't true of everyone.

The Industrial Revolution meant that many working-class people migrated to large towns and cities to live and work. Housing had to be built rapidly to accommodate workers and their families. Large areas of slums - heavily populated areas of poor quality housing - sprang up in London's East End.

Slum housing was generally of poor quality because it was built so quickly. Whole families could live in one or two rooms. Houses were often damp, with no running water or proper sanitation. This led to widespread outbreaks of fatal diseases, like cholera.

The streets in the slums were narrow and poorly lit. Victorian London was known for its smoke, caused by burning coal on a large scale. The East End slums were built close to factories so that people could easily work long hours. This meant that the slums suffered particularly from pollution.

In parts of the novel, London could seem nightmarish - the fog and gloom are thick and powerful.

Front 5

Wh

Back 5

There were some parts of London where most respectable men wouldn't want to be seen, such as the working-class slums. They also wouldn't want to be seen visiting brothels or public houses. Hyde is associated with these less respectable parts of the city. His house is in a "dismal quarter of Soho", where "ragged children" huddle in doorways.

But the two sides of the city did overlap. Some gentlemen would deliberately travel to the "dismal" areas of London (where there was less chance of being recognised) to satisfy the desires they hid in public. Jekyll takes this one step further by changing who he is entirely before going to these areas.

Jekyll also sets up a house for Hyde in Soho, and furnishes it in "luxury and good taste". This ties him, a respectable gentleman, to a disreputable part in the city.