Religion
English Lit: AQA GCSE Dr Jekyll & Mr Hyde, topic 8.2.3
Religious References and Definitions
Here's an explanation of some of the biblical references made by the author, Robert Louis Stevenson:
Israeli tabernacle
- "For any drug that so potently controlled and shook the very fortress of identity, might, by the least scruple of an overdose or at the least in opportunity in the moment of exhibition, utterly blot out that immaterial tabernacle which I looked to it to change."
- This references the Israeli tabernacle, which was said to house God.
- Jekyll uses it to reference his body/soul. It suggests he wants to use his body for experimentation.
- In many ways, he is experimenting with God himself.
“Captives at Philippi”
- After the Battle of Philippi in 42 BC, the victors, Antony and Octavius, released the captives. The captives were those who had supported Brutus and Cassius (the defeated), Julius Caesar's assassins.
- Hyde is unexpectedly freed from his prison and causes more trouble.
The Babylonian finger
- “This inexplicable incident… seemed, like the Babylonian finger on the wall, to be spelling out the letters of my judgment”.
Babylonian finger explained
- King Belshazzar was a Chaldean King. Because he did not bow to the Israeli (Judeo-Christian) God, a ghostly hand appeared and wrote out his death sentence on a wall with his finger.
- The kingdom was invaded that night. Jekyll alludes to this biblical scene because it explains his mental state of conflict, and how he has set himself up against God.
- It also foreshadows Jekyll’s death and evokes a feeling of doom.
Test yourself on Religion
What the significance of Jekyll's reference to the "Babylonian finger on the wall"?
Jekyll refers to the "immaterial tabernacle" that he "looked to changed".
Which of these are true of this reference?