Jekyll/Hyde Quotes - Chapters 1-9
English Lit: AQA GCSE Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde, topic 2.1.4
Hyde - Chapter 1
Enfield describes Hyde, saying: "He is not easy to describe. There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something down-right detestable. I never saw a man I so disliked, and yet I scarce know why.”
Analysis - ambiguity
- This shows us that he is an unidentifiable character that does not blend in with the rest of society.
- Hyde is deliberately described as vague and ambiguous to make the reader anxious about who this character actually is.
Analysis - fear
- The idea that Hyde evokes fear in the other characters, but there is a non-specific reason for this, builds tension for the reader, and also leaves the reader to paint an image of Hyde that aligns to their own personal fears.
- Hyde poses as a mechanism to revive the inner terrors and sins that exist within us.
Hyde - Chapter 2
When Utterson meets Hyde, he says: “The other snarled aloud into a savage laugh; and the next moment, with extraordinary quickness, he had unlocked the door and disappeared into the house.”
Significance
- Utterson is the narrator - the reader views the events of his investigation through his perspective. This is the first time we hear a description of Hyde from this well-trusted character.
Savage
- Hyde is described as a “savage” character that we cannot describe - the adjective “savage” implies he is a degenerate without morals, and he also moves like an animal would.
Snarled
- The verb “snarled” is usually applied to animals, and has a sinister undertone.
Sibilance
- The sibilance in this quotation also suggests that there is a sinister aspect to Hyde’s character.
Context
- This connotes to the context of Darwinism, and the idea that humans could possibly degenerate into the inner savage if the veneer of society were removed.
Hyde - Chapter 9
Lanyon recalls: “There was something abnormal and misbegotten in the very essence of the creature”.
Abnormal
- Hyde is described as “abnormal” which differentiates him from the other well-respected gentlemen in the novella.
Creature
- Hyde is frequently referred to as a “creature” rather than a human and this evokes animalistic imagery.
- We get the impression that Hyde is a pre-human troglodyte (caveman) that exists without civilisation and the laws and morals that dictate the civilised being.
Test yourself on Jekyll/Hyde Quotes - Chapters 1-9
Who is describing Hyde in the following quote from Chapter 1?
"He is not easy to describe. There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something down-right detestable. I never saw a man I so disliked, and yet I scarce know why”Key Quote - Hyde
Who is describing Hyde when they say:
“The other snarled aloud into a savage laugh; and the next moment, with extraordinary quickness, he had unlocked the door and disappeared into the house”Key Quote - Hyde
“The other snarled aloud into a savage laugh; and the next moment, with extraordinary quickness, he had unlocked the door and disappeared into the house”
Which words from this quote about Hyde suggest he is animalistic?