Barrington Stoke CLASSROOM RESOURCES THE STRANGE CASE OF DR JEKYLL AND MR HDYE Robert Louis Stevenson INTRODUCTION PART 1 Synopsis and Background PART 2 Chapter One PART 3 The Key Characters PART 4 The Key Themes PART 5 The Key Scenes ABOUT THE AUTHOR www.barringtonstoke.co.uk Page 1 of 14 INTRODUCTION This guide has been produced to provide ideas for guiding readers through Robert Louis Stevenson’s infamous novella The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. This guide will start with a synopsis and a brief cultural and historical background to the text. From here it is suggested that Chapter One of the novella be read and discussed in isolation with the provided questions. After the book has been read in full, this guide will break down the text into its key characters, themes and scenes. The questions assigned to each aspect of the novel are accompanied by quotes and are intended to further an understanding of the text and provide opportunities for classroom discussion or written work. We hope you enjoy using these materials with your students. www.barringtonstoke.co.uk Page 2 of 14 PART 1 SYNOPSIS AND BACKGROUND SYNOPSIS The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde follows the character of Mr Utterson as he seeks to uncover the mystery behind the terrifying and deadly Mr Hyde. Utterson’s friend, Dr Henry Jekyll, appears to be in some way connected to Hyde and Utterson is concerned for his friend’s wellbeing. However, what Utterson doesn’t know is that Jekyll and Hyde are one and the same, and Hyde is the human embodiment of the good doctor’s dark desires. As Jekyll retreats further from society and Hyde becomes more powerful, there is little Utterson can do to stop them. When Utterson discovers the dead body of Hyde, wearing Jekyll’s clothing, the doctor’s secret is revealed. CULTURAL AND HISTORICAL BACKGROUND First published in 1886, Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is one of Stevenson’s most famous stories and has had such a significant cultural impact that even people with no knowledge of the book would recognise the names of its central characters. Originally published as a ‘Penny Dreadful’ (stories from the Victorian era that were designed to shock and scare) The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is a gothic mystery that examines the duality of human nature. Written in a time of great scientific advancement, Stevenson would have been greatly influenced by medicine’s developing interest in the human mind, and he had long been fascinated by the balance of good and evil within human nature. The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde was extremely successful in its time, selling 40,000 copies in its first few months of publication. It has never been out of print, has hugely influenced many great works of literature and film, and remains culturally prominent to this day with simply the names of its protagonists. Before starting the novel with the group ask them the following questions: Have you heard of Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde before? No What impression do you get of the novel from its front cover and title? ¯ What do you think the novel is about? ¯ Do you recognise the names Jekyll and Hyde? In what context do you recognise them? ¯ Yes How do you know the story? Have you already read the book? ¯ Do you know about Jekyll and Hyde and their relationship from somewhere ¯ other than the book? www.barringtonstoke.co.uk Page 3 of 14 PART 2 CHAPTER ONE Read the first chapter as a group before reading the rest of the novel. Use the questions and quotes below to discuss the opening to the novel and to help encourage critical thinking as the readers progress through the rest of the text. We will return to some of these questions later: SETTING AND ATMOSPHERE A certain sinister block of building thrust forward its gable on the street. It was two storeys high; showed no window, nothing but a door on the lower storey and a blind forehead of discoloured wall on the upper; and bore in every feature, the marks of prolonged and sordid negligence. The door, which was equipped with neither bell nor knocker, was blistered and distained. Tramps slouched into the recess and struck matches on the panels; children kept shop upon the steps; the schoolboy had tried his knife on the mouldings; and for close on a generation, no one had appeared to drive away these random visitors or to repair their ravages. [page 5–6] Where is the book set? Does the author give a specific location? ˚ When is the book set? Does the author provide a specific date? ˚ Do you think Stevenson has set the book in his own time period? ¯ Can you think of anything that might be important about this time period? ¯ How does Stevenson’s language create a sense of time and place? Provide examples from ˚ the chapter. How does Stevenson use language to create atmosphere? ˚ Give examples of passages driven by atmosphere or descriptions you ¯ particularly like. Look at the language used by Stevenson; how does it make you feel? What atmosphere is it creating? Is Stevenson successful in creating this atmosphere? MR UTTERSON Mr Utterson the lawyer was a man of a rugged countenance, that was never lighted by a smile; cold, scanty and embarrassed in discourse; backward in sentiment; lean, long, dusty, dreary and yet somehow lovable […] But he had an approved tolerance for others; sometimes wondering, almost with envy, at the high pressure of spirits involved in their misdeeds; and in any extremity inclined to help rather than to reprove. [page 1–2] www.barringtonstoke.co.uk Page 4 of 14 What can we tell about Utterson from his introduction? ˚ What sort of man do you think he is? Why? ˚ What language does Stevenson use to describe Utterson? Pull out some examples from the text. ˚ What do Stevenson’s language choices tell us about him? ¯ How does this language make you feel? ¯ What imagery does Stevenson use to describe him? Pull out some examples from the text. ˚ What techniques is Stevenson using in his descriptions of Utterson? ¯ What does Stevenson’s imagery convey about Utterson? ¯ What can we tell about Utterson’s personality from Stevenson’s description? ˚ What three words would you use to describe Utterson? ˚ MR HYDE 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. And it’s not want of memory; for I declare I can see him this moment. [page 16–17] What is unique about how Hyde is introduced? ˚ Do you think we can really classify Hyde’s introduction as a description? Why? ˚ What effect does Hyde’s description, or lack thereof, have on our understanding of the ˚ character? What sort of man do you think Hyde is? What about how he is described by the other ˚ characters gives this impression? Do we learn more about Hyde from his actions or his description? ˚ What do you think Stevenson is trying to achieve by leaving Hyde’s physical description ˚ ambiguous? Is Stevenson successful in this? How does the ambiguity of the character make you feel? ˚ Does the opening chapter to The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde make you want to keep reading the book? Why? www.barringtonstoke.co.uk Page 5 of 14 PART 3 THE KEY CHARACTERS In this section we will return to the characters discussed in the first chapter whilst also looking at the other supporting characters. All of these characters help to illuminate and support the book’s central themes, and play major roles in the key scenes of the text: MR UTTERSON Return to the discussion of this character from Chapter One: Has your perception of Utterson’s character changed after finishing the full text? ˚ How has it changed? Did he act the way you expected him to? ¯ What do you think about him now? ¯ How has his characterisation changed from Chapter One? ˚ What new information did we learn about him as the story progressed? Give examples. ˚ Have your feelings towards him changed? At what point in the text did you start to feel ˚ differently about him? How do you think Stevenson wants us to feel about him? ˚ What do you think his role within the text is? Is he the central character or does he serve ˚ another purpose? MR HYDE Return to the discussion of this character from Chapter One: Has your perception of Hyde’s character changed after finishing the full text? ˚ How has it changed? Or did he act the way you expected him to? ¯ What do you think about Hyde now? ¯ Do you think that Hyde is an effective antagonist? ˚ Did you find him intimidating, scary, unnatural? ¯ Do you think a Victorian reader would have a different response to Hyde? Why? ¯ Were you surprised by the revelation of Hyde’s true identity? ˚ www.barringtonstoke.co.uk Page 6 of 14 Do you think the ambiguity of Hyde’s character makes him scarier or more unnerving? ˚ How would you more fully describe Hyde? What do you think his most prominent ˚ characteristics are? What do you think he actually looks like? Describe him in your own words.