Discussion Topic
Madness and Plot in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Summary:
In The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, madness is depicted as a progression akin to addiction. Dr. Jekyll's transformation into Mr. Hyde begins as a choice for freedom and indulgence, but spirals into uncontrollable addiction, paralleling the stages of substance dependency. The plot unfolds as Mr. Utterson investigates Hyde, culminating in the revelation of Jekyll's dual identity through his death and a revealing letter, which resolves the central conflict and explains the mysterious connection between Jekyll and Hyde.
How is madness portrayed in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde?
Jekyll's madness—if it is that—is portrayed as a progression similar to that of addiction. It begins with choices Jekyll makes, becomes more attractive and harder to resist, and ends up being completely out of his control.
When Jekyll begins his experiments with turning himself into Mr. Hyde, he does so because he wants to have fun. He wants to be able to engage in his "undignified pleasures" (music halls? brothels?) without being recognized. At this point, he still feels he is in control of Hyde and can stop becoming him any time he wants to. As he tells Utterson, "I can be rid of Mr. Hyde any time I wish." This corresponds to the early stages of addiction: the addiction is an occasional pastime and the person does not feel it to be a major influence on his or her personality.
However, it is worth noting that at the moment...
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when Jekyll turns into Hyde, he feels a euphoric sense of freedom and power, the sense that can he do anything he wants to, completely without inhibition. Instead of scaring him, this feeling is pleasurable to him in his Hyde state. This corresponds to a drug high.
When Hyde starts committing serious crimes, Jekyll realizes that he needs to stop his excursions as Hyde. His Jekyll self is appalled and ashamed by what he has done, and also Hyde's crimes are starting to potentially endanger Jekyll's reputation. So Jekyll tries to quit "cold turkey." He even promises Mr. Utterson that he will never see Hyde again.
At first, Jekyll feels good about having quit cold turkey. However, after a month or two he begins to be tempted to become Hyde again. This temptation eventually becomes unbearable, and when Jekyll finally gives in to it, he finds that his Hyde self is stronger and more evil than ever as a result of having been repressed through willpower. Hyde is so "hungry" at this point, and his emotions so strong, that it is a tossup as to which is the "real" Jekyll: Jekyll or Hyde.
Not long after this, Jekyll starts turning into Hyde spontaneously, without having to take the potion. At first it happens only once in a while; soon it happens whenever he lets his guard down. The first time it happens, it scares Jekyll and he races home to change himself back into Jekyll. But the potion for changing himself back starts to get less and less effective, requiring bigger doses and not always working the first time. This corresponds to the stage of addiction where the high is harder to attain or may not even be present at all, but where the withdrawal symptoms are so bad that the person is living from dose to dose of the drug just to keep themselves from the suffering of withdrawal.
By this time, Jekyll's household servants have realized that something is seriously wrong. He is locked in his study, desperately sending them out to pharmacy after pharmacy to find ingredients for a potion that will actually work to return him to his Jekyll state. His whole life now revolves around managing Hyde. It is no longer fun to be Hyde; it is torture to go back and forth.
Ultimately, he is unable to manage Hyde. The thing that started out as a lark has led to his death. It shows that the psychology of addiction can operate even without an addictive substance. Arguably, what Jekyll was addicted to—mind and body—was not the drug that turned him into Hyde, but rather Hyde himself—the freedom and power of being totally evil without discovery.
What is the plot of "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde"?
The resolution of this great story comes after the death of Dr. Jekyll and when the letter that exposes the truth of his bizarre experiment is read and reported to us. Note how all the unanswered questions we have are answered at this point and our curiosity is satisfied concerning the relationship between Mr. Hyde and Dr. Jekyll. The resolution, in terms of stages of a plot, concerns the end of the conflict that has driven that plot, and this is something that can only be achieved through the death of Dr. Jekyll, unfortunately.
Try to think about the overall story that is happening in this book. Through the whole story, we are trying to understand who Hyde is and what his relationship is with Jekyll.
So think about the beginning, the middle, and the end in those terms. First, we find out about Mr. Hyde and Utterson tries to discover more about him. I'd call that the beginning and the middle, perhaps. Then the story reaches its climax and Utterson finds out that Hyde is dead in Jekyll's laboratory. From there on, we have what you might call the resolution. That is the part where we sort of have it all explained to us.