The character of Dr.Jekyll in the story and his conflicts between his good and evil self conveys that the victorian culture at that time was very concerned about the two sides of a man, the pure evil and the other part which is more balanced and good. as Jekyll said in his last statement before committing suicide “man is not one but truly two” (74). According to Cohen’s first thesis he states that “the montarous body is pure culture” meaning that the monster represents the fears, anxiety and desires of the society (4). We can see that in the story people who came across Dr.hyde such as Utterson, enfield and Lanyon reported that he looked deformed and detestable. His character and appearance tossed terror in their hearts because he represented
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One of Cohen’s seven theses discusses that monsters do not have specific category in this world they can easily transform from one form to another “the monster always escapes because it refuses easy categorization” (6). this is exactly whats happening with Dr.Jekyll who in one part is portrayed as a good person while in another scene is seen as an evil character that no one can describe which is hyde. we notice in the first chapter of the story that enfield has a difficulty describing hyde when Utterson asks him to do so ‘What sort of a man is he to see?’ ‘He is not easy to describe. There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something downright detestable. I never saw a man I so disliked, and yet I scarce know why. He must be deformed somewhere; he gives a strong feeling of deformity, although I couldn’t specify the point. He’s an extraordinary-looking man, and yet I really can name nothing out of the way. No, sir; I can make no hand of it; I can’t describe him” (10). nobody could tell what hyde was and nobody could refer to him as a human or a monster, and thus he can’t be …show more content…
this resembles The fourth thesis in Cohen’s book “monster theory” that monsters are extremely different from the culture in which they exist in “the monster is different made flesh, come to dwell among us” (7). Dr Jekyll depicted as a doctor and a seemingly moral citizen living within his society of which he confines and adheres to the stipulated regulations and thus suffers from repression, and the desire to be freed from the boundaries that were imposed on him. Mr.Hyde is perceived as a subconscious of Dr Jekyll yearning to be freed from the Victorian society, which is restrictive. thats why when Dr.Jekyll separated his good and evil part to be freed from the restrictive society had faced many difficulties coping with it because, Mr.hyde was different in his society. he was pure evil while others were partly good and evil and he states that himself when he says “I have observed that when I wore the semblance of Edward Hyde, none could come near to me at first without a visible misgiving of the flesh. This, as I take it, was because all human beings, as we meet them, are com-mingled out of good and evil: and Edward Hyde, alone in the ranks of mankind, was pure evil”
One of Cohen’s seven theses discusses that monsters do not have specific category in this world they can easily transform from one form to another “the monster always escapes because it refuses easy categorization” (6). this is exactly whats happening with Dr.Jekyll who in one part is portrayed as a good person while in another scene is seen as an evil character that no one can describe which is hyde. we notice in the first chapter of the story that enfield has a difficulty describing hyde when Utterson asks him to do so ‘What sort of a man is he to see?’ ‘He is not easy to describe. There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something downright detestable. I never saw a man I so disliked, and yet I scarce know why. He must be deformed somewhere; he gives a strong feeling of deformity, although I couldn’t specify the point. He’s an extraordinary-looking man, and yet I really can name nothing out of the way. No, sir; I can make no hand of it; I can’t describe him” (10). nobody could tell what hyde was and nobody could refer to him as a human or a monster, and thus he can’t be …show more content…
this resembles The fourth thesis in Cohen’s book “monster theory” that monsters are extremely different from the culture in which they exist in “the monster is different made flesh, come to dwell among us” (7). Dr Jekyll depicted as a doctor and a seemingly moral citizen living within his society of which he confines and adheres to the stipulated regulations and thus suffers from repression, and the desire to be freed from the boundaries that were imposed on him. Mr.Hyde is perceived as a subconscious of Dr Jekyll yearning to be freed from the Victorian society, which is restrictive. thats why when Dr.Jekyll separated his good and evil part to be freed from the restrictive society had faced many difficulties coping with it because, Mr.hyde was different in his society. he was pure evil while others were partly good and evil and he states that himself when he says “I have observed that when I wore the semblance of Edward Hyde, none could come near to me at first without a visible misgiving of the flesh. This, as I take it, was because all human beings, as we meet them, are com-mingled out of good and evil: and Edward Hyde, alone in the ranks of mankind, was pure evil”