#Enfield never talked to Hyde again

[scarperseus]

I’m really sick at the moment so please enjoy a crappy doodle I made inspired by my illness

#Rest assured #Enfield never talked to Hyde again #Uggh #im so sick #even this doodle took me so long to make #I’m so weak I could barely pick up my pencil #edward hyde #enfield #dr jekyll and mr hyde #jekyll and hyde #mr hyde #my art #mazm hyde #mazm jekyll and hyde #mazm #☽︎ 𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐭 ☾ #doodle #sketch #⭑𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐟𝐟⭑

[ailelie]

Jekyll & Hyde Thoughts & Reactions (Chapters 1 and 2)

This week's Jekyll & Hyde reminded me to catch up on last week's.

The gist is that Utterson is definitely a secret hedonist and I'd love to see that iron self-control of his crack. The other main points are that Stevenson is very careful with his descriptions (which I like) and he keeps creating divisions where they aren't expected (apt).

Chapter 1

Oh, Utterson. I really, really want a story now where you are entirely undone. I want you tempted with wine and rich chocolates and music. I want you tugged back into a theater and consumed with stories. I want to see you revel in life.

Okay. I already love the Utterson-Enfield dynamic. These two men do not understand each other in the slightest, but they still treasure one another and time together. They gift each other their time and receive that same gift of time with joy, even if they've no idea how to use it.

"like a fire in a forest" gives me a hint of foreboding. Every other description in that paragraph is very positive, but then we get this one hint of absolute devastation before returning to the light and positive. This could be absolutely accidental, but it is like a wrong chord in a lovely melody before it turns into something haunting and menacing. It helps that I've idea where this story is going.

But then, immediately, we get another wrong note--this far more obvious. Amidst all of the welcoming buildings, one block is "sinister." Then the description explains how.

We already know the doctor is Scottish, but Enfield also describes him as "emotional as a bagpipe" just to drive that point home in case we missed his accent. This is making me think the fire description earlier was deliberate.

I wish wish wish whoever is running this substack bothered to add in paragraphs to Enfield's speech.

...seriously, Hyde? You paid with your alter ego's check and expected no consequence?

I really appreciate that, while the look Hyde gives Enfield is ugly, Hyde is not (yet) described as being particularly ugly. It isn't his looks that inspires everyone else to hatred, but rather something far more innate about him.

Enfield doesn't ask questions out of fear of opening up new questions and accidentally hurting someone unrelated to the original query. That is such an interesting character note for him. He's very blasé about it, but it speaks to a deeper sense of compassion and thoughtfulness that hasn't been otherwise shown (except, perhaps, when he collared Hyde). He is a "man about town" but he is also very considerate and thinks not only of the consequences of his actions, but the consequences of those consequences. I'll be interested to see if this holds true throughout or if I'm reading too deeply.

Side note: If the above bullet is true, that is a strong mark in favor of his friendship with Utterson, because I think Utterson would be aware of this aspect of him.

So, I am thinking "your tale has gone home" in this case means that Utterson has taken it to heart. When he asks Enfield to be sure of the details, he is also making sure he hasn't internalized an exaggeration. (Not a bad move on his part since Enfield is prone to exaggeration).

I had to be sure, but "long tongue" means someone who talks a lot and maybe someone who gossips. Utterson definitely wants to know more, which is why he asks they never speak of it again. He denies his wants.

Seriously, I need Utterson to be dragged kicking and screaming into a relationship he desperately wants, but does not believe he should have. I also desperately want to know the root of his austerity. My current hypothesis is that he is an utter hedonist and that terrifies him, so he denies himself everything for fear that if he allows the slightest measure of joy, he won't be able to keep from taking it all. And that would make people talk.

Utterson even calls Enfield "Enfield" while Enfield calls him "Richard." He keeps even his closest friend at a remove.

Chapter Two!

I just love the sentence structure here "And hitherto it was his ignorance of Mr. Hyde that had swelled his indignation; now, by a sudden turn, it was his knowledge."

Oh. He worries for Jekyll. "“I thought it was madness,” he said, as he replaced the obnoxious paper in the safe, “and now I begin to fear it is disgrace.”"

I really like how Utterson's friends are so unlike himself. Lanyon indulges where Utterson abstains. He is over the top where Utterson is reserved. Yet, at the heart, both are genuine and they recognize that in each other. It is this heart, not the flourishes, that counts.

Lanyon is worried about and angry over Jekyll. I like the call out of Damon and Pythias. That, more than anything else, shows their former friendship as being very deep, founded on mutual faith in each other. Lanyon, though, has lost that faith. ...it also makes me wonder, just a bit, about shipping Jekyll/Lanyon in their college years with that sense of halcyon doom for their relationship falling apart over Jekyll's 'scientific' pursuits.

I'm glad Utterson has a "great, dark bed." It makes me think that there's at least one comfort he gives himself.

Utterson has a rich imagination. Of course he does. I'm sure he tries to leash that as well.

“If he be Mr. Hyde,” he had thought, “I shall be Mr. Seek.” <-I love this. I love every glimpse of the man Utterson tries so hard not to be.

Of course, Utterson has to be this way. In a story about a man literally divided into his angels and demons, we need a protagonist who is likewise, figuratively so divided.

I love the encounter between Utterson and Hyde and how quickly Hyde decides Utterson is lying and that sparks his immediate disgust. Hyde is no demon delighting in others' sins.

Side note: I'd never heard of Dr. Fell before and so I looked him up. Here.

Utterson can find nothing distasteful in Hyde's appearance and yet finds him ugly still because of the feelings (e.g., fear, disgust) Hyde arouses in him. And then he lands on the idea of inner nature affecting outer countenance. But I find that I almost like this take. Hyde's presumed inner nature doesn't physically, literally make him ugly. Rather, it causes others to perceive him as ugly. He could have the most angelic of features, but others would still perceive him as ugly because of his heart. This is a step above "someone is ugly and therefore must be evil." Instead it is "because someone is evil it is impossible to see them as beautiful, no matter how lovely their features."

The above interests me because it is another division of something that seems intrinsic. How someone looks and how they're perceived are usually the same, but here, with Hyde, they are not. He looks one way and is perceived another. Stevenson keeps creating these little divisions. Utterson's inner hedonism and enforced austerity. Enfield is a lighthearted playboy (basically) who is deeply considerate and looking several steps ahead. Lanyon is genuine while appearing false. This division of perception and appearance. Even, perhaps, the rending of Damon and Pythias.

Oh, Utterson knew what Enfield's door was the entire time.

Ooh, Jekyll had a wild youth. This is not discrediting my Jekyll/Lanyon idea at all.

#jekyll and hyde #jekyll & hyde #richard utterson #stevenson #readalong #reactions #chapter 1 #chapter 2

[chemiicalformula]

Ok bc of your doctor jekyll and mr hyde post I am now extremely curious. What's your favorite interpretation of the original story?

ah! hello anon!! sorry i took a while, i usually don't get asks and this honestly made me very happy!!! 🧪 buckle up because you've just opened the flood gates

(also i use commas like my life depends on it, so my apologies in advance for run-ons)

so, let's see, my favorite interpretation of the strange case of... , that's a bit of a tough one seeing as i like quite a few i've seen around and also my own, sort of, which is...

essentially, what i got was henry jekyll and edward hyde are both henry jekyll. one man, two bodies ; not two men, one body/head/mind, you get me? i don't exactly enjoy how media has turned them into a "split personality" symbol when that's not what the original story was about, and i also don't really enjoy how people try to write off henry as some sort of saint when he was simply going incognito mode by mixing a potion and disguising himself so he could try and just live life until it unfortunately took a turn for the worst

and with that said, i feel i must address that when it comes to the movies (although i absolutely love fredric march's performance as the doctor and mister hyde in the 1931 film) i really hate that most of them try to:

A. make him appear far younger and more innocent/naive than he is because come on, he's written as a large, fifty year old man who is a bit (well actually a lot) unhinged and selfish but knows how to act like he's not (and i love him for it)

B. have him be engaged to marry a woman (most times the daughter of sir danvers carew when that's the dude he literally murdered like huh???) when i'm a firm believer (as a bisexual nb man) in henry jekyll being someone who was forced to hide his sexuality because of the strict victorian society he lives in, so he just never marries and goes on about his life alone out of shame with a hint of fear

C. try to pass it off as some sort of intrusive thoughts or split personality thing because it's not either, and finally

D. don't add in utterson or hastie because!!! come on man, they were in the story too! and poole, and enfield because some of their dialogue made me giggle for no reason (in all honesty, i find a lot of the book very humorous but maybe that's just because i love the characters and feel a strong connection to the premise given personal reasons)

now, i do love hearing theories; one big example is utterson thinking hyde was some sort of secret lover or even more outrageous (a long lost son??!) who's planning to blackmail jekyll. it's really funny to me in a dark comedy sort of way because it's such a huge leap to make seeing as gabriel is one of his best friends, yet he came to that kind of conclusion so quickly after henry said edward hyde was someone of interest to him, but given the time period and the customs, it's not surprising to understand why he could be thinking that (plus i don't think jekyll running down the stairs after waking up as hyde in his hilariously oversized clothes or filling hyde's townhouse with expensive stuff made it any better)

"i can't pretend i shall ever like him." GABRIEL, DEAR SIR, THAT'S JUST JEKYLL YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT!! and it's so funny!!

i also love the interpretations by everyone who says they head canon henry jekyll/edward hyde as being on the spectrum or/and that he's trans, because hell yeah dude, as someone who is both, i will give all of you a high-five for being so rad and so cool

i feel like there's more i could say but i've rambled so much already and i apologize for that, but thank you once again for the ask and feel free to message me if you ever want to talk about more (anyone for that matter can do so because i really want to engage with more fans!!) 💉

bonus : for reading this far, here's a silly drawing

#the strange case of dr jekyll and mr hyde #dr jekyll and mr hyde #gothic lit #gothic literature #anonymous ask #mineart

[frankensteinthecollegedropout]

I like this cover, i think it represents the book concepts of the characters well. jekyll: respectable looking, somewhat large. hyde: I have no idea what's going on with his face but I do NOT like it. 10/10 for accuracy

another note: when I first realized the book was Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde not THE Strange Case I thought it was the funniest thing I'd ever seen. okay on to the content

chapter 1

MR UTTERSON THE LAWYER

y'all have no idea how much love I have for this man,, literally just the sight of his name here FLOODS my brain with serotonin

that being said. mr louis stevenson why did you have to do him so dirty in these first two paragraphs. "embarrassed in discourse; backward in sentiment (what does this mean???) ... dusty, dreary..."

compared to richard enfield, known man about town

the beginning of this conversation is so awkward loving the vermisilitude

okay so (SPOILERS if you've somehow managed to go your entire life avoiding references to this book) in my interpretation hyde isn't necessarily evil, he's just jekyll but without the limits placed on him by society and also more impulsive, emotional, etc. so this begs the question-- which has bothered me since I first read this-- why did he trample that little girl? does he hate kids that much? was it just this specific child? did he just go "hehe you know what would be funny" and not think it through? did he just zone out REALLY hard and not notice her until it was too late?? I need ANSWERS

also, who lets a small child play in the street at three am?

"about as emotional as a bagpipe" now that is. most certainly a figure of speech

HATE these apostrophes!!

ah yes the famous Awkward Enfield & Co And Also Hyde sleepover

enfield: *absolutely batshit story* utterson: tut-tut

nice metaphor with the stone

"so what did hyde... look like?" "idk man I couldn't describe him physically but I do know I fucking hated him from the moment I laid eyes upon his hideous visage"

im pretty sure the key never has significance again fhdgsjsj... a for effort mr utterson

the "well let's never talk about this again" thing is so funny. as if normal people would be able to not bring that up every time they saw each other

#jekyll and hyde #edward hyde #richard enfield #gabriel utterson #strange case of dr jekyll and mr hyde #robert louis stevenson #gothic lit #classic lit #jhblog

[melodiouswhite]

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde rewritten - Ch. 27

27. A troublesome stroll

Turned out Lady Summers wasn't the only angry one.

As soon as he heard what happened, Lanyon was absolutely furious, just like her. But unlike her, he had no issues with yelling reproaches and profanities at both of his friends, until his voice was too hoarse to manage more than a whisper and his anger was drained.

“I'm truly the only sane person here”, he rasped in the end, scowling at Utterson and Jekyll.

“What am I going to do with you? One of you is utterly reckless, the other has no regard for self-preservation!”

He sighed and collapsed into a chair. “You will be the death of me.”

They exchanged a guilty look, before crouching down, hugging their distressed friend and apologising endlessly.

Lanyon just leaned into the hug, too hoarse and upset to say any more.

The mood was still tense later, so Lady Summers suggested a walk through the park to calm them all down. Everyone was too eager to agree.

And so they went into the park.

At some point Jekyll grew tired and asked for a small break.

The four of them sat on a bench and somehow managed to enjoy the moment.

Some birds that were staying over the winter were croaking or chirping somewhere.

The air was cold, fresh and clear, as only winter air could be.

The sun was shining and there was only a little ground fog.

Some withered leaves were rustling about.

For an uncertain amount of time, the group sat in comfortable silence.

“What a beautiful day! Typical Sunday weather”, Lady Summers then said. The three men nodded in agreement.

“Been a while since the sun shone like this here in London, eh?”, Lanyon remarked.

“Indeed”, Utterson agreed.

“And do you guys know, what would make this day even better?”, Jekyll finally spoke up.

The others looked at him curiously, but he had his eyes on Utterson.

“If you, Utterson, promise me something. I'm asking this here, because I want witnesses.”

The lawyer looked at him apprehensively, but agreed.

Jekyll looked around to see, if anyone was within earshot. Then he continued: “Listen. I'm speaking for both Hyde and myself, when I say: Please … just stop stalking us. It's creepy.”

He enjoyed Utterson's flustered stuttering way too much.

When the black-haired man looked at Lanyon and Lady Summers for support, they just shrugged.

“Don't look at us that way, Utterson, he's right”, Lanyon stated.

The Lady nodded. “Yes, it is kind of creepy, I'm afraid.”

The lawyer threw his hands up in surrender. “Alright, alright. I admit it, I'm in the wrong here and I made a mistake. I promise by everything that's holy to never stalk you again.”

Jekyll smiled in satisfaction.

He stretched his limbs in the most gentlemanly manner possible.

“I think we can go on now”, he informed them, “I feel strong enough.”

Utterson helped him up and they slowly continued their stroll.

They were close to the exit and Lanyon was telling them something funny, when another voice called out to them.

“I can't believe my eyes! Utterson! Gentlemen! I haven't seen you in ages! How are you?”

All four turned to the right and saw a strawberry blonde young man approaching them.

Utterson cried out: “Enfield! So good to see you!”

The young man joined them and Utterson stepped next to him.

“Gentlemen, Milady, let me introduce you to my cousin, Enfield. Enfield, those are my friends Dr. Jekyll, Dr. Lanyon and my benefactor, Her Ladyship Countess Summers of Cornwall.”

“It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Enfield”, Lanyon said genially.

Lady Summers followed his greeting with reserved courtesy. “Enchantée.”

Jekyll greeted the young man politely, but before he could say a few niceties, he felt Hyde stir within his conscience.

“It's him! It's that man!”

Before the doctor could ask his alter ego, what he meant, he was flooded with pictures.

The night Hyde had trampled a child.

And this was the man who had stopped him and threatened to discredit him, if he didn't pay up.

And that very man was standing there, as friendly and innocent as any young man.

Suddenly he felt an immense anger. Anger that wasn't his.

And an immense nausea.

Oh, nonononono! Not here! Not now! Hyde, please, not again!

Lanyon immediately realised that something was wrong.

Jekyll paled and began to tremble. Then his cocoa brown eyes began to turn bilious green and it was clear, what was going on.

In presence of mind, the hoary doctor blurted out: “Weren't you going to tell me something, Jekyll? Right, why don't we discuss this one on one?”

He pulled his colleague behind a conveniently placed set of bushes and shielded him from every view, as he transformed into Edward Hyde.

He looked just like when Lanyon had met him first; a lost boy in Jekyll's oversized clothing.

When the young brunette came to himself and looked down, his eyes widened with horror.

“What the-? Oh shit, not agai-”

Lanyon covered his mouth with a finger.

“Not so loud!”, he hissed quietly, “You're going to alert them. Dammit, Mr. Hyde! What in blue blazes were you thinking?!”

“I – I didn't mean to”, Hyde whimpered, his voice hoarse with fear. “Do-Doctor Lanyon, please-”

The doctor shushed him and looked around. No one in sight. Perfect.

He crouched down in front of the young man and took his quivering hands.

“Alright, Mr. Hyde, compose yourself. Deep breaths. It will be fine. But you need to calm down. Don't panic!”

“You can talk”, Hyde muttered, “You're not the one-”

“Shut up and try to turn back. Deep breaths. Concentrate. Look me into the eyes.”

Under normal circumstances, the younger probably would have snapped at him for giving him orders, but he was obviously too frightened to do so.

Hyde complied, but it took a few minutes for him to calm down enough to turn back.

All the while, Lanyon looked around, to see, if anyone was looking or even passing by. He felt the small, bony hands in his own morph into the smooth, big ones of his friend. All the tension fell off his shoulders, when he looked back and Jekyll was standing in front of him.

The poor man was visibly shaken by the ordeal and still trembling all over.

“I-I'm sorry”, he choked, “I don't know what came over me-”

“Jekyll”, Lanyon whispered gently and stroked the other's hands with his thumbs, “It's fine now. Everything is fine. No one has seen anything. Calm down.”

The blond took a few deep breaths, before wiping away a stray tear and smiling weakly.

“I … I think we can go back now”, he breathed. “Thank you so much, Lanyon. If it wasn't for you …”

The white-haired man just smiled back and told him to save it for later.

“Is Dr. Jekyll alright?”, Enfield asked in concern.

“Oh, don't worry your head about it, young man”, Lady Summers assured him with a saccharine smile. “Dr. Jekyll is perfectly fine. He just has something to discuss with Dr. Lanyon. From colleague to colleague, if you will.”

She and Mr. Utterson distracted the young man with pleasantries and conversation, until Dr. Lanyon returned with a slightly upset Dr. Jekyll.

“We just exchanged a few professional things”, Lanyon lied, “I'm afraid I ruffled my poor friend a little with what I had to say.”

Dr. Jekyll played along: “Yes, I really didn't need to hear about your latest patient's outbursts.”

“My apologies”, Lanyon chuckled.

Then he turned to the others: “I think we should leave. I'm starting to feel slightly cold.”

“So do I”, Utterson agreed. “We have to go now. Enfield, it was good to see you again. Goodbye.”

Mr. Enfield seemed disappointed, but smiled. “Oh, I see. It was nice to get to meet you, Milady and gentlemen. Have a nice day!”

Then they parted ways.

But right in front of the exit of the part, Lady Summers stopped in her tracks.

Lanyon noticed and looked at her worriedly. “What's the matter, Milady?”

Her eyes narrowed and she looked around. “I'm feeling watched”, she told them grimly.

The gentlemen exchanged uncomfortable glances.

“Let's leave”, Jekyll begged, “I don't want to be here any longer.”

Lanyon nodded. “Me neither, let's get the hell out of here.”

They left the place as quickly as was appropriate and decide to go over to Lady Summers' house.

As soon as the door closed behind them, they went into the parlour.

Lady Summers allowed Jekyll to lie down on one of the couches, which he accepted gratefully.

She rang for her Arabian day guard. As soon as he appeared, she gave him an order in Arabic.

Not only Utterson was confused, when the man went about to close the curtains.

“Close all the curtains on the ground floor”, she added in English, “I do not wish for anyone to look inside.”

“Yes, Milady”, he replied, bowed and saw himself out.

Now the four of them were alone. The only light came from the fireplace, filling the parlour with a dim, red glow.

Utterson looked at her confusedly. “Milady, what-?”

“Don't say a word”, she warned. “Don't say anything about this. Don't question what I do.”

Her tone was sombre and grim.

She wouldn't talk, Utterson realised.

But something seemed to be frightening her and that in itself was unsettling.

Lady Luise F. W. Summers was the bravest woman – maybe even the bravest person – he knew.

In the entire twenty-one years he had known her, he had never seen her frightened before. Never. Whatever it was … it had to be something truly terrifying.

“Mr. Utterson, you realise that I can hear your pondering, right?”, she sighed in irritation.

“Forgive me, Milady”, he apologised, “I just can't help myself. I've never seen you frightened before.”

“I never had reason to be frightened, since I moved to England”, she returned tiredly.

So she was admitting to it.

That was one of the traits he admired about her. How honest she was with her own emotions.

But right now, the German Countess and Marchioness was sitting in her armchair, staring into the fire bleakly. Then she turned to them with a pained look in her eyes.

“I know that this unsettles you, gentlemen, but please trust me”, she implored softly. “Whatever happened in my past, is of no concern to you. Promise not to ask me about it.”

“I trust you, Milady”, Lanyon spoke up, “But I can't make that promise to you. Not when I see how much it pains you. I'm sorry.”

She gave him a bitter look, before continuing: “Listen, I know exactly what I'm doing-”

“Of course you do”, Jekyll piped up, “You always know what you're doing, Milady.”

Utterson found the genuine trust in his doctor's voice and eyes so endearing, that he had to smile.

And sure enough, it lightened the Lady's mood enough to charm a complacent smile onto her face.

“You're absolutely correct, Dr. Jekyll”, she agreed and straightened her posture. “I certainly do.”

The men chuckled.

Nothing like flattering a noblewoman's ego to brighten up the mood.

Jekyll sighed and lay back down. “We just can't catch a break, huh?”

“No”, Lady Summers agreed sadly. “I'm awfully sorry, gentlemen, especially to you, Dr. Jekyll. This really isn't your weekend.”

“I don't think it's anyone's weekend here”, Jekyll stated and closed his eyes. “God, I'm so tired.”

“Me too”, Utterson muttered and leaned back.

Lanyon looked at the clock. “No wonder, the last days have been stressful and it's already late.”

“You can stay here over night”, Lady Summers offered, “I have great issues with being alone right now. And most of my servants have the day off. An ageing widow would be grateful.”

“You know”, Jekyll replied, “I think I'm so tired I won't manage all the way home. And my body is still sore from yesterday night. I shall take up your offer.”

“So will I”, Utterson conceded. “My butler is on a holiday and I don't want to be alone either.”

“There is no way I will leave you alone now, Milady”, Lanyon completed.

She smiled gently. “Thank you, gentlemen.”

Meanwhile, not so far away from the Lady's villa, an ominous figure was sitting alone in their flat.

They were standing over their desk, speaking into a telephone.

“Yes, I have found test subject 37 again.”

“…”

“I'm absolutely sure. She hasn't aged a day.”

“…”

“She seems to be living off her abilities. And she was married at some point, because she's widowed now and carries a different name.”

“…”

“That will be difficult, but I'll see what I can do.”

“…”

“Of course. Oh, and one more thing.”

“…?”

“I believe I have found a new test subject for you.”

#The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde #Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde #Dr. Jekyll #henry jekyll #Mr. Hyde #edward hyde #Mr Utterson #Gabriel John Utterson #utterson #Hastie Lanyon #dr lanyon #lanyon #oc #inconvenient transformations #again #and unknown creeps

[teal-skull]

Beyond the ending of the case (J&H fanfic)

This is basically a fanfic about how I imagine Utterson could have reacted after he read the final line of Henry’s confession.  

Originally writen, during a time I didn’t have tumblr I read a lot about finnish Jekyll and Hyde fanfictions, shipping memes and posts made by @starlene @neroushalvaus @muplakuovi . My fangirling was set in fire and after writing some notes in the middle of a night, I wrote this in one day. So I have to thank you them for my inspiration. Thank you! I have made some edits in it so it’s not completely the original version.

“Here then, as I lay down the pen and proceed to seal up my confession, I bring the life of that unhappy Henry Jekyll to an end.”

Those were the last words on the paper. The last words of Dr. Jekyll. Mr. Utterson was holding in his shaking hands. He didn’t even feel them. The shock had made his blood to run away from his veins, in the rhythm of his beating heart. A lonely candle in his desk lighted up his white face. Somehow they seemed ten years older than an hour ago. It was visible in the dark circles around his eyes. The wisdom he had gotten from turning his whole world upside down.

The lawyer was sitting at his wooden desk, hesitant to rise up. The anxiety stormed in his stomach. Gabriel’s feet were powerless as if they had weight a ton. His feet could have gone through the floor and drag him underground. Actually, he would have been happy if that happened. Then he wouldn’t have to bare this truth. Nor the pain of keeping it inside.

Utterson was surrounded by heavy silence. The calm but dark atmosphere of the empty room suppressed him.  But inside his head he could have screamed. Inside his mind there was no silence. it was an endless list of questions and terrifying thoughts mazing through Gabriel’s head. The image of Edward Hyde hunted his restless soul like a terrible nightmare. It was just like when Enfield had first told him about this mysterious man. But at that time he didn’t had a face. Now he had. And that wasn’t all. Hyde was wearing Dr. Jekyll’s face. Like a mask that hid the real person behind it. Gabriel saw again that pale and desperate face of Henry that he had seen at the window. The last time he ever saw poor Henry. And he hadn’t even had the faintest idea of how much pain his Henry had been in.

Suddenly Utterson had a desperate desire to look around. He felt the eyes of someone in his back. But there was no one else in that gloomy room. Only he and a crackling fireplace. The fire in it was dying but a small orange light still illuminated the empty room. The lawyer sighed and turned back to the letters in his hands. Utterson though that he was holding grave stones. At least it felt like it. Gabriel watched Lanyon’s letter. He remembered a thought that it had brought to his mind when he had got the letter: “I have buried one friend today, what if this should cost me another?” Now it seemed that his premonition had been terribly right.

He saw a picture of Jekyll in his eyes. Scared man chained to a monster. Or was it a dishonest man, with two faces to wear? Had he even known Henry for all this time? No, Henry had many bad traits but he was still trying to make the world better. Maybe the power he gained just had seduced him to the wrong path? Or had he been selfish from the beginning? Utterson didn’t know anymore. All the golden memories that Gabriel had about Henry were now shadowed by Mr. Hyde. Forever. He recalled the time he had met Hyde. Had he really talked to Jekyll but just with a different face? It was insane! Oh Henry… what did you do? And now he was gone. Not even his body was left. Only... A terrifying thought came to his mind: Shall he bury his best friend as a murderer?

It was too much. Gabriel put his hand on to his eyes and sighed again like a lonely soul in sorrow. A snivel escaped from his lips and soon little drops were dripping on the table. His shoulders were stiff. Tears did seem to have no end. In a moment Gabriel’s cheeks were all wet but the sounds of agony were only whispers in the room. He wasn’t aloud to make a sound any stronger. He couldn’t have opened up about his sorrow to any one else. So he just sit there. Alone with his heavy thoughts.  

He didn’t know, how long he had been sitting there, when the church bell’s dragged him back to the harsh reality. Finally he managed to rise but he still needed to lean on the table. He wiped off tears and tried to calm down. He took a few breaths. Utterson looked at the papers. He took those letters that revealed a horrible truth and put them to his private safe. These papers shall never see the light of day again. If they would get in the hands of the public they would be like a burning match that was dropped to oil. Dr. Henry Jekyll’s good reputation was the only pure thing that was left of him. Only thing that Hyde had not ruined. At least he could save his legacy even if he couldn’t save his best friend anymore.

He walked to the fireplace and looked to the fire. Trying to come up with a believable lie that he could tell to Poole, who was probably still waiting for him. It proved to a challenging for he had always been quite honest. How had Jekyll been so good at lying? Was it something that came naturally from him? He started to deepen once again among his thoughts.

Warmness off the fireplace somehow calmed the lawyer a bit. Utterson watched the slow dance the flames performed to him.  They gave him an idea. He walked to his safe again and took the letters of his dead friends. Gabriel glanced at them for one more time before throwing them to the fire. He watched as the reddish flames started to gnaw the edges while the papers twisted in their hold. Almost like they were screaming. Screaming like his friends had.

Mr. Utterson’s heart was full of agony as he realised he was a lonely man again. Only the now ruined memories of Jekyll and Lanyon remained. He wished the flames would burn away the agony with the papers. But he knew that they wouldn’t. Those twisted words would hunt his dreams forever. His voice was quiet, full of grief and coldness:

-Those letters have accomplished their purpose. I have the full story. This strange and horrific case is solved. I have the knowledge but what has it cost me? The death of my friends and the peace of my mind. My curiosity is fufilled but...To be honest… Now I wish I didn’t know.

#dr. jekyll and mr. hyde #the strange case of dr. jekyll and mr. hyde #john gabriel utterson #parts of this were writen in the middle of a night #turquoise writings

[crackspinewornpages]

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde 10/10 -Robert Louis Stevenson

6

A reward was offered for information on the murderer Hyde, who disappeared like he never existed, (yeah almost like he popped in and out of existence) horrible stories came up but no location. Utterson began to recover thinking the death paid for Hyde disappearing from his life, “Now that the evil influence had been withdrawn, a new life began for Dr. Jekyll.”p.22 He came out (not that type of came out) renewed relations and hosted parties and seemed to open up and brighten after two months at peace. In January, Utterson had dinner with him, Lanyon was there jut like the old days but a few days later the house was shut. When he’s refused the next day, he worries about Jekyll’s new solitude, on the sixth time he went to Lanyon’s.

He was let in but shocked at his appearance, practically at death’s door with terror in his eyes and Lanyon says he’s had a great shock will be dead in weeks, (did he have a stroke from the shock or is this heart failure) life was pleasant and he used to like it. Utterson says Jekyll is sick too and asks if he’s seen him and Lanyon loudly says he won’t see or hear of Jekyll, he’s dead to him. Utterson asks if he can do anything, nothing ask him yourself, he won’t see him. Lanyon isn’t surprised and after he’s dead he might learn because he can’t tell him and wants him to talk about other things.

At home, Utterson wrote to Jekyll wanting to know why he can’t come over and why Lanyon hates him, the next day he gets a long letter. Jekyll doesn’t want him to blame Lanyon but agrees their friendship can’t be repaired and has to live his life in seclusion and respect his silence. “I have brought on myself a punishment and a danger that I cannot name. If I am the chief of sinners, I am the chief of sufferers also.” p.23 Utterson though with Hyde’s influence gone Jekyll returned to his old self, now that peace of mind was gone, but with Lanyon’s words there must be something deeper. (one would think a friend would look into this)

Lanyon died a week later and after the funeral Utterson was given an envelope written by him, inside was another to not be read until Jekyll’s death or disappearance. (hmm) Utterson remembered the clause of the Will and the suspicion of Hyde but here it was, written in Lanyon’s hand. What could it mean, but he respected his friend and put it away. (I wouldn’t given all these circumstances) Utterson now desired his surviving friend’s company but his thoughts were fearful, maybe he was relieved to be refused into a house of voluntary bondage (again words from the book) to speak with a reclusive. Jekyll had shut himself in his laboratory and little by little, Utterson visited less.

7

On a Sunday walk with Enfield they stopped to look at the door to the house and Enfield comments they won’t see Hyde again. Utterson hopes not and tells him when he saw Hyde he felt repulsion. Enfield points out the backway to Jekyll’s and Utterson wants to go into the court to look at the windows. He’s uneasy about Jekyll and seeing them might do him some good. One of the windows was open with the air of infinite sadness of a prisoner, (of his own creation) then Utterson saw Jekyll.

He calls to him if he’s better, Jekyll says he’s low, but it won’t be long. Utterson says he should get out like them and introduces his cousin Enfield. Jekyll wants to but he can’t, it’s good to see them and would like them to come up but the place isn’t fit. (can’t be any messier than my room) Utterson says they can talk like this, Jekyll smiles but is quickly replaced with terror so fast it stuns Utterson and Enfield. The window was instantly thrust down (if this was written today it could really play up the controlling abusive relationship this looks like) and they silently left the court walking till they came to the thoroughfare where they looked at each other. Utterson mutters for God to forgive them and Enfield nods and walks on.

8

Utterson was sitting by his fire when Poole came to see him because there’s something wrong, he knows Jekyll has locked himself up, he doesn’t like it and is afraid. It’s been a week and he can’t take it anymore; he can’t look Utterson in the face when he says he thinks there’s been foul play and he come see for himself. (Why not get the police first) When Utterson goes to leave he sees relief on Poole’s face, a paragraph on the cold empty street they walk on and Poole hopes to God there’s nothing wrong.

The servants have the door locked and let them in, they were huddled together like sheep relieved to see Utterson, Poole explains they’re all afraid. Poole has Utterson follow him to the laboratory in the garden warning him to be quiet and if he’s invited in not to go. Inside Poole knocks on the door to the room Jekyll shut himself in and says Utterson is here to see him, Jekyll says he can’t see anyone. They both go back inside and Utterson say his voice has changed. (hmmm)

Poole says he’s served him twenty years and knows his voice, then eight days ago he was made away with, “when we heard him cry out upon the name of God; and who’s in there instead of him, and why he stays there, is a thing that cries to Heaven, Mr. Utterson!” p.29 (God You Must Help Me Carry On~) Utterson supposes Jekyll could have been murdered but why would the murderer stay. Poole tells him all week whatever is in there has been crying out for medicine and throws orders on paper, a shut door and meals smuggled in when no one’s around.

Several times a day he’s been ordered to all the chemists then ordered to return it because it was wrong. “This drug is wanted bitter bad, sir, whatever for.” p.30 He shows Utterson the notes the chemist threw back at him, it’s in Jekyll’s hand, Poole thought so too but he’s seen him. He slipped out one night and he looked in and saw him digging around to look for something. Only for a minute his hair stood on end but when he was spotted the man gave a cry and locked himself in again, if it was Jekyll why would he run. (seems suspicious like you should get the authorities involved)

Utterson says it’s strange circumstances and they’ll wait for daylight, Jekyll has a sickness that deforms the sufferer so he avoids his friends. That’s why he wants the drug and hopes to God for recovery, that’s the explanation he gives Poole. Poole doesn’t believe him (of course not I wouldn’t either) as Jekyll is bigger than that man, he’s known him for twenty years, that thing is not Jekyll and thinks he was murdered. Utterson says that if he believes that, the note proves he’s alive, it’s his duty to break down the door, they both agree to do it. (you both think Jekyll is dead and there’s a murderer living in the laboratory why are you not calling the police)

They take a fire poker and axe and Utterson says they’re about to put themselves in peril and asks Poole if he recognized the man. Poole says it was Hyde, who else could get in by the laboratory door during the murder, he still has the key. Had he met Hyde, once, then he must know there’s something about him that’s strange, Utterson knows. Poole says a glance isn’t evidence but has a feeling it was Hyde. Utterson feels it too, concluding Jekyll was murdered and the murderer is still living there for God knows what reason. (Forensic Files episode If I Were You)

They call for Bradshaw, the footman, in case Hyde runs when they break in, he has to catch him. A paragraph on how dark and still London was the only sounds were the footsteps in the laboratory, Poole says it walks all day, it’s not Jekyll. Once he did hear it crying like a lost soul when he heard it he could have cried too. (oh my poor baby gremlin) The time comes and Utterson calls that he demands to see him if he won’t let him in it will be by force. The voice calls for mercy, it was Hyde’s voice and Utterson orders the door down. The door is broken down, they stood back a little and look into the quiet room, in the middle was a body twitching. Edward Hyde in clothes too big for him and the poison vial in his hand, suicide. (well he’s no longer alive but something tells me Satan is still by his side) They were too late, Hyde saved or punished himself, now they need to find Jekyll’s body.

They searched the laboratory; closets were empty and there were cobwebs and dust everywhere no trace of Jekyll. Poole thinks he must have been buried and Utterson thinks he’s fled but the lock to the gate is rusted shut. They again search the room to find a prepared experiment Hyde was interrupted in. Poole recognized the drug he was ordered to get and Utterson finds a pious book Jekyll loved now annotated with blasphemies. They find a cheval glass (if you’re a fan of Jekyll and Hyde you should check out the webcomic The Glass Scientists it’s pretty good) they look in expecting horror but nothing, Poole says it’s seen strange things and Utterson wonders what Jekyll would want with it.

The next day they find an envelope for Utterson, inside was the Will, but the benefactor was now Utterson. He doesn’t understand, Hyde had this, saw himself replaced, must have raged but didn’t destroy it. There’s a note written by Jekyll, written a day ago and Utterson believes it’s proof of Jekyll being alive but why, and how could he leave. The note says that he must have disappeared, and his end is early, to read Lanyon’s note, then his. Utterson plans to read the notes and be back at midnight and call the police and they lock the door again. (call the police now a whole bunch of suspicious shit just happened and there’s a dead body on the floor and a missing person)

9

On January 9th Lanyon received a note from Jekyll, surprising him since they didn’t contact each other much and the letter made him curious. Jekyll wrote to him that his life is at his mercy and what he asks may be dishonorable. He’s to cancel all meetings that he has and come to his house and Poole has orders and a locksmith waiting for him. There is a drawer in his lab, bring it to him with all its contents to Cavendish Square. At midnight he should be alone in his consulting room and allow in a man and give him the drawer and after that, if he wants an explanation, he’ll understand why it was important. (if a friend I hadn’t spoken to in years contacted me out of the blue and asked me to do all this you bet your ass I ‘d have some questions) But if this is too late and the night goes without event it would be the last of him.

Lanyon then writes that he was sure Jekyll was insane, but he did as requested, had the laboratory unlocked, retrieved the drawer and went to Cavendish Square. He examined the contents, powders, a phial and salt, the phial had bloodlike liquid in it, phosphorus and pungent. There was a date book over a year ago and cuts off writings of double and total failure. (hmm probably no cause for concern) “How could the presence of theses articles in my house effect either the honour, the sanity, of the life of my flighty colleague?” p.38

Why couldn’t he get someone else and thought Jekyll might be insane and loaded a revolver in defense. (I don’t know what it is but you’re right he ain’t right) At midnight someone knocked and when he’s let in hurries when he sees a policeman. Lanyon had never seen him before, but his face made him distasteful and believed it’s a deeper reason for hatred. The man was in clothes too large for him and ludicrous as it was, he didn’t laugh. There was something abnormal and revolting about him and he was curious of his origin.

The man quickly asks if he has the drawer and Lanyon told him to sit. The man apologizes saying Jekyll had sent him and is on the verge of hysteria and Lanyon takes pity on him and points him to the drawer. The man almost throws a fit of convulsions, he gives a dreadful smile and sobs with relief, then asks for a graduated glass. Lanyon retrieves it for him and watches as he mixes together the liquids and powders until it turns green. Hyde sets it down and asks Lanyon if curiosity got the best of him, think before he decides, leave now no richer or poorer or stay and new knowledge will be presented, fame and power before him. (so Blue Pill or Red Pill)

“in this room upon the instant, and your sight shall be blasted by a prodigy to stagger the unbelief of Satan.” p.40 (dude the worst things we’ve seen you do is stomp on a kid and beat an old man to death) Lanyon says he’s gone too far and will see it through, (Red Pill then) Hyde drinks the mixture and convulses and Lanyon sees him change, thrown back in terror as Jekyll stands before him. Jekyll explained it but he couldn’t write it down because it sickened him, but he believes it. He’s going to die from the shock and tells Utterson one thing, “The creature who crept into my house that night was, on Jekyll’s own confession, known by the name of Hyde and hunted in every corner of the land as the murderer of Carew.”p.41

10

Jekyll writes he was born into fortune and gained respect, graduated a distinguished future. His fault was his disposition, he made people happy and had to hold his head high for the public and now in his age, looked around at the duplicity in his life. It was his nature and degradation of his faults that made him. “Many a man would have even blazoned such irregularities as I was guilty of, but from the high views that I had set before me I regarded and hid them with an almost morbid sense of shame.” p.42 (everybody has their guilty pleasures we don’t judge and we don’t kink shame) He reflected deeply on the law of life, the root of religion, he’s not a hypocrite, both sides were earnest and directed to science and neared the truth that man is two.  (I like here to point out a theory that there is no real Jekyll as Hyde is the real him and Jekyll is just the mask he puts on even to hide from himself) He recognized the duality of man and if each could be different identities, life would be relieved and the other could do good things and not disgraced by evil. The curse that they were together continuously, struggling, (yes yes we know there are two wolves inside of us) how could they be parted.

He began to look into the laboratory but won’t go into it, but he did learn doom is bound to man’s shoulders and when cast off returns with pressure. (that’s why you don’t shirk your responsibilities) Second, his discoveries were incomplete and bore on his soul, it was long before he tested it knowing the risk. He purchased a large amount of chemical salt, the last of his ingredients, mixed it and drank it. (went straight from theories skipping animal testing to human testing) He was racked with pains then strange new sensations, younger and freedom from conscious. “I knew myself, at the first breath of the new life, to be more wicked, tenfold more wicked, sold a slave to my original evil;” p.44 (we get it you the Spirit of London at Night)  and he embraced it. He snuck through his own house to see the face of Edward Hyde and theorizes the body is younger than himself and evil is written on his face leaving an imprint of deformity, but wasn’t repulsed by him, seemed human. At first none came near him and believes as man are both good and evil Hyde is pure evil. (so Hyde is like a mirror showing them the worst parts of the soul and people are repulsed by it) He went back to the laboratory before daylight drank the concoction to be himself again.

He did the experiment under pious aspirations the drug didn’t discriminate, diabolic or divine, when virtue slept evil woke. (you know I used to watch Once Upon a Time before it got all fanficy and I like the twist they did spoilers Hyde was actually kind of decent just had higher charisma and Jekyll was the evil one that incel literally pushed a girl out a window because she wouldn’t love him) He prepared with care made his house in Soho and told his servants that Hyde has run of the place and made the Will say everything goes to him. Men have hired others to do their bidding, but he did so for his own pleasure in complete safety that Hyde could go away and he would be there, innocent. Hyde’s pleasure became monstrous and he wondered at the depravity, (with morbid fascination I’m guessing) but it was Hyde who was guilty, and he would undo his evils. (like what you created a villain so you could come in and be the hero)

But there were warnings, such as that night when he harmed that child and had to write a check as Jekyll which was fixed by making Hyde an account with a signature slanted differently. Two months before the murder he woke and felt he wasn’t where he was supposed to be, wasn’t in Soho but in his room as Hyde. In terror he woke up, “Yes, I had gone to bed Henry Jekyll, I had awakened Edward Hyde. How was this explained?” p.47 (losing your self-control) How could it be fixed, the servants were up, everything was in the laboratory, how could he sneak out. He remembered his servants were told Hyde could come and go, so he dressed as Hyde and Jekyll was back ten minutes later.

He lacked appetite as he thought of the possibilities of the dual existence, as it was fed Hyde seemed to grow and if prolonged the balance could tip to Hyde. At the beginning of the experiment it was different having to double it and himself had been thrown to the other side gradually. (chipping away what you spent years carefully building) “All things therefore seemed to point to this; that I was slowly losing hold of my original and better self, and becoming slowly incorporated with my second and worse.”p.48 Now he had to choose, Jekyll took pleasure in Hyde but Hyde was indifferent to him. To choose Jekyll the appetites would die and to chose Hyde the aspirations would die and be friendless, Jekyll would suffer in abstinence, but Hyde would be unaware. “as it falls with so vast a majority of my fellows, that I chose the better part, and was found wanting in the strength to keep it.”p.49 (you never truly kick addiction) He preferred the discontented doctor than the liberties of Hyde, but he still didn’t get rid of Hyde’s safety net. For two months he enjoyed it but in time began to long like Hyde struggled for freedom and in weakness caved in. (that’s why you join a twelve-step program and inform your doctors you’re a recovering addict)

He never thought ahead to cover the readiness to evil that was Hyde and he was punished. (always plan for the worst) After being caged Hyde roared to life with impatience as he listened to his victim and declares no sane, morally could have committed that crime. He stripped himself of instincts, even the worst have steadied among temptations. “and in my case, to be tempted, however slightly, was to fall.”p.49 He raged and gleefully beat the old man and not until he tired did he feel terror of what he did, his life was forfeit (what do you know actions have consequences) and he ran onto Soho to destroy everything. When he turned back to Jekyll, he fell on his knees in remorse, flashes of his life to that evening, to scream and smother down those images. Then there was joy as Hyde was no longer an option but let him sneak out and then would rise to slay him. He resolved to redeem the past as Utterson saw him do, the days were almost happy for him, but he was still cursed with the duality and it wanted freedom and as himself fell for temptation. (This is a good allegory for drug addiction remember what Mr. Mackey said kids drugs are bad m’kay)

Now the end, “and this brief condescension to my evil finally destroyed the balance of my soul.” p. 51 It seemed natural and reflected in the park when he felt nauseous, it passed but he noticed other thoughts and found himself again as Hyde who’s wanted for the gallows. While Jekyll would have panicked Hyde came up with a plan to get Lanyon’s help and had a handsome drive him to a hotel who laughed at his appearance until Hyde scared it off, otherwise he would have attacked him. (yeah something you definitely shouldn’t do when you’re wanted for murder) Hyde being in pain was new, wanting to inflict pain but controlled himself to write the letters to Lanyon and Poole.

He sat in his room with fear until the time and went in a cab, “He, I say, -I cannot say, I. That child of Hell had nothing human; nothing lived in him but fear and hatred.” p.52 When the driver was suspicious, he went on foot an object of observation to the public (well you’re a guy walking around in clothes too big) and smacked a woman that talked to him (that’s definitely gonna draw attention to you) and fled. When he saw Lanyon something changed in him, he didn’t fear the gallows but being Hyde. It was like a dream and he woke in his bed and woke shaken still fearing the brute within him and hadn’t forgotten the dangers. “and gratitude for my escape shone so strong in my soul that it rivalled the brightness of hope.” p.52

Once again, he was seized with these sensations of change just getting into the laboratory as he became Hyde. He took a double dose but after six hours he became Hyde again retaking it for four days until he became immune. If he rested for a moment, he would be Hyde without sleep he became delirious, mind only of the fear of his other self. He would transform with less and less pain to a body brimming with hatred not strong enough to contain it. (I Was Jekyll Jekyll Hyde Jekyll Hyde Hyde Jekyll~) Hyde grew as Jekyll weakened, “And certainly the hate that now divided them was equal on each side.” p.53

Jekyll had instinct, fully seeing what Hyde could do, he was hellish and not organic, that it uttered voices. “that what was dead ad had no shape, should usurp the office of life.” p.53 This horror knit them closer and heard it struggle to get out. Hyde’s hatred of Jekyll was different, fear of the gallows drove him to temporary suicide. Loathed Jekyll’s despondency and would retaliate with blasphemies and destroying Jekyll’s prized possessions. “and indeed, had it not been for his fear of death, he would long ago have ruined himself in order to involve me in the ruin.”p.53 But Hyde’s life and while he sickened him his fears of Jekyll killing him he found he could pity him. (these last two were a paragraph over page)

It might have gone on like this for years as the salt ran low, he sent for more, but it didn’t change color and when taken didn’t work. He had Poole go all over London, but it was in vain as he’s sure the first supply had an unknown impurity. (did you try substituting a dab of sun tan lotion) It has been a week, the last time he has his own thoughts and face and has to finish writing this as if Hyde comes, he’ll destroy it, but if sometime passes after he may save it from spite. The doom on them both has crushed Hyde in a half hour he’ll be back, and he’ll pace until then in his refuge listening. “Will Hyde die upon the scaffold? or will he find the courage to release himself at the last moment? God knows; I am careless; this is my true hour of death, and what is to follow concerns another than myself.” p.54 (I have to say this is a very well written short story just a shame pop culture ruined the twist) Here he ends the confession and brings the unhappy life of Henry Jekyll to the end. (the lyric They’ll Never Be Able To Separate Jekyll From Hyde~ is so poignant as it’s true Jekyll and Hyde are almost synonymous with each other on that note you should check out S. K. Michels Animatics)

FIRST

#jekyll and hyde #robert louis stevenson #books #book summaries #gothic fiction #science fiction #fantasy fiction #horror fiction #psychological thriller #thriller #drama #mystery #fantastique

[oliviarthomasba2a]

Jekyll & Hyde Chapter 6

Remarkable Incident of Dr Lanyon

Time passes and there is no sign of Hyde. Jekyll is gaining his health back and becoming more sociable and become very involved with charity.

The removal of the evil nature from Hyde has done a world of good for Jekyll is what is believed by Utterson.  

Jekyll a couple of months later holds a party, where Utterson and Lanyon are both invited to attend - the three talk together as friends. 

However, a few days on and Utterson is informed by Poole that his master isn’t taking any calls or visitors. 

This continues for a while and causes Utterson to worry. He visits Lanyon in an attempt to learn more about Jekyll’s situation.

Lanyon is in very poor health and expects to die in a few weeks. 

“[L]ife has been pleasant,” he says. “I liked it; yes, sir, I used to like it.” Then he adds, “I sometimes think if we knew all, we should be more glad to get away.”

Utterson mentions that Jekyll also seems ill, but Lanyon retaliates violently and demands that Jekyll isn’t to be mentioned. Lanyon promised that after his death, Utterson will learn the truth - but currently, it will not be discussed. 

Utterson later writes to Jekyll, discussing how he was turned away for Jekyll’s house and asking what caused the tension between him and Lanyon.

Jekyll’s reply arrives and explains that Lanyon is still a friend, but understands why the doctor suggests they shouldn’t meet. He also adds that he thinks of Utterson as a good friend, but for now must not see anyone, for he is suffering a punishment which cannot be named. 

A few weeks on and Lanyon dies. after the funeral, Utterson takes a letter from Lanyon meant for him. Inside he finds an envelope which is marked to remain sealed until Jekyll has also passed on.

Utterson is an upstanding man and a man of his word, therefore he holds back his curiosity and will wait to open the second

Chapter 7: Incident at the Window

The next Sunday, Utterson is having his weekly stroll with Enfield - passing the door where Hyde was first seen. Enfiled remarks on the murder. 

Enfield states that the story that began with the trampling and ended with murder is at an end and Hyde will never be seen again. 

Enfiled has learnt of the connecting laboratory in this house to Jekyll’s home - both stop to look inside and to their surprise see Jekyll at the window.

Utterson offers him to join them for a walk, however, is refused, since he cannot go out. Suddenly the look of terror overcomes Jekyll’s face and he shuts the window - vanishing. 

Utterson and Enfield both depart in a shocked and silent manner. 

It is clear by now that Utterson’s rational thinking won’t solve the case since logical explanations are out of the question. 

Lanyon’s connection in the case is mysterious and unclear - he is letting on that he knows a lot more than Utterson and we do. His comment to Jekyll’s work being ‘boulderdash’ and ‘unscientific’ suggest he too is a man of reason and rational thinking. 

His physical deterioration mirrors his deterioration and loss of logic in the novel - something supernatural is occurring. 

#storyadaptation

[15hont1c]

Chapter 7: Incident at the Window (Summary/Analysis)

The chapter has Mr Utterson and Mr Enfield taking their daily walk on a Sunday. As they are walking in the familiar neighbourhood like the beginning of the novella, they come across the front of the door. The two talk about the murder case again and how they will never see Mr Hyde again. Enfield also learned of the interconnecting door between the laboratory and Dr Jekyll’s house. 

As they peer into the house, they found the windows open and a sad-looking Dr Jekyll, enjoying the fresh air outside. Dr Jekyll states that he is feeling “very low” and that he will “not last long,” suggesting that he is feeling depressed and not in the mood. Mr Utterson suggests that perhaps a walk would help improve his health. Instead, Jekyll refuses, but wouldn’t mind continuing speaking to the two. Suddenly, his demeanour changes as he expression:

“The smile was struck out of his face and succeeded by an expression of such abject terror and despair” (pg 36).

Dr Jekyll’s sudden change and even the slight glimpse of his transformation is witnessed by the two men outside. Jekyll shuts the window and disappears, leaving Utterson and Enfield in shock.

The language used by Stevenson is very rational and logical through the eyes of Mr Utterson. Despite this and even Lanyon’s representation as the ‘rational approach’ of science, the weird supernatural happenings add a sense of fantasy and horror to what is happening surrounding Dr Jekyll and Hyde. 

There is also the detail that the characters have a loss for words upon seeing Hyde’s physical deformities. By leaving the details vague, it can prompt an uncanny valley with its supernatural effects. 

#story adaptation #year 2

[steffanwilbyba2a-blog]

Analyse

In The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr.Hyde (1886), the writer Robert Louis Stevenson explores a strong theme of addiction and duality. One such theme that I too intended to explore within my own story but first, to understand my approach, you must first understand the major essence I was trying to capture in my story. It has been my observation and my own experience that children perceive the tension and problems between family members but all so often are unable to devise what’s actually wrong. And when they ask questions, children are shielded from the truth to protect their innocence but in some cases, the mere exposure to an unhappy atmosphere can manifest negative traits in the child's wellbeing. This observation was to be my attempt at reflecting a pattern Stevenson had laid out throughout his story, in which no one seems to be able to describe Hyde, I tried to explore a story of a child put in a difficult position who sees the problem but is unable to identify what’s actually happening. This is perhaps best demonstrated by a quote from Enfield (p10) “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.”. In my story, the quote is applied to the situation rather than a person.

For this to work, I had to create a situation in which the family would display signs of discomfort and disagreement but the cause had to be linked to addiction and one in which a child would not naturally understand it without having it explained to them. And furthermore, I wanted the cause to be relatable to a modern day audience but contextually relevant to the time period. As such, I found alcoholism to be a perfect fit. In our society, it’s reasonable to assume that with an estimated 7,327 alcohol-specific deaths in 2016 and an estimated 595131 dependent drinkers in England alone most people are aware of the dangers and effects of excessive alcohol consumption and many of us likely know someone who drinks more than they should. And Victorians were also no stranger to alcoholism. In fact the presence of the Temperance movement which originated in the early 19th century in which middle-class Victorians advocated that the working class should ‘spend their wages on clothes, food, and middle-class comforts such as furniture and watches, rather than on beer or spirits’ (Zieger, 2002) and for the promotion of rational levels of drinking, alone suggests that alcoholism had become a significant issue for the working class.

Not only was alcoholism a method of bridging the gap between a modern audience and history but it would also act as a connection between my story and that of Steavenson’s. With the transformation of Jekyll into Hyde being a clear expression of duality, the transformation of the father into the drunk would be mine. It was intended to be an example of how addiction can transform a loving man into a monster. It is this with this where I believe my story fails though. In my attempt to establish the father was a drunk I did not adequately demonstrate the other side of him. The Jekyll side. I had intended to show this side equally as much if not more and subtly hint at his addiction, not revealing it till the resulting conflict. However, due to my lack of appreciation for how short 500 words is I chose to take a more direct route in order to complete the story arc.     

Through reading Stevenson's story, I came to appreciate the application of doors and how they could be used to represent more than just an entrance or exit. As such, I also tried to use the door as a device to deliver important symbolism of my story. In my story, there are three instances where I attempted to use doors as a way to indicate the relationship between the child and his parents. The first instance, in which the child is talking to his drunk father through the door, is intended to act as the barrier that stops the child from ever finding out what his father is really like and the mother acting as a guardian upholding the barrier to spare the child’s innocence. This first encounter is also my way of referencing a moment from the book. The moment in question is in The Last Night (p50,51) where Poole takes Utterson hear the voice of Hyde through the door. In both stories the two characters experience an unfamiliar voice raising suspicion and are so close to witnessing the truth but in that moment it is a single door barring them from knowing the truth. The second is the mother hiding behind the door. This is a somewhat literal symbolic gesture that she’s hiding the truth again trying to protect the child from the truth. And the final is the father being locked out. This is supposed to indicate a separation and breaking apart of the family as a result of his addiction.

Conclusion

Although I did manage to implement several direct links to the original story and put my own twists, that I considered to be meaningful, on them I found that my story ended up lacking a lot of what I would have liked it to. For one, I had wanted to explore the world of Victorian England within my own story as the setting makes for the perfect environment for mystery especially given the lack of light and industrial caused fog, and with consideration to adapting it visually these features would be a defining feature so to not thoroughly feature them in the story feels like a missed opportunity. And this ties into the main problem I had with writing in general. Given that the story was to only be 500 words I found it incredibly difficult to balance the act of progressing the story plot whilst finding room for descriptive, flavour text which I was using to better establish the moments but also the characters themselves. It felt to me that I had to cut out a lot of what created personality within the story to ensure that I could tell the complete story that I wanted to tell. I think that this is perhaps indicative of my little writing experience. Having not written a story since last I was forced to in secondary school through lack of desire and passion for writing, this whole experience was abstract to me. As such, I should have spent the time to carry out more writing exercises and research writing techniques rather than only researching contextual subjects.    

Another aspect is that I wanted the dialogue to be of the period. However, I quickly found that any attempt I made felt authenticate and ham-fisted. This purely falls on my lack of understanding and exposure to the language of the time, I should have made more of an effort to consume literature from the era to help with this. But when you combine that with my extremely limited writing experiencing, especially when it comes to dialogue, it resulted in a cheap imitation. As such, I chose to go for a more standardized English. Choosing only to leave one period word in the story because of how well it described the character I was trying to convey in a single word. For reference, the word ‘Gigglemug’ means ‘An habitually smiling face’ (p141, Ware).

As for my main theme, which I explained at the start, I feel like I did a poor job of creating the depth required to adequately situate the child in a difficult atmosphere that truly reflected the complexity of emotions and thoughts of the family members. This is especially true for the father for the reason I explained earlier.

Animation Adaptation

When it comes to adapting to animation the most important factor to get this right will be matching the lighting and mise en scene to reflect the atmosphere of the moment. For example, the introductory dinner should be filled with warm candlelight, it should be inviting to look at whereas the moment between the mother and child at night needs to be lit by moonlight not just because the lack of lights that would be present in a Victorian home but also to create a cold, depressing colour palette. Another important consideration is the staging and framing of any shot involving the father. To preserve the believability that the child doesn’t know about the father’s addiction. The child should never actually see the father in a state of drunkenness and as an extension, I think this should apply to the audience so that the perspective of what the child’s going through is maintained and understandable to the audience. An example of this would be with the conversation through the door. The camera should stay on the side of the child and mother. Cutting to see the father drunk would diminish from the purpose of the story. This, of course, excludes when the child is looking out of the window, instead, we make use of the Victorian setting to obscure the father in darkness and fog, maintaining the illusion. And finally, this aspect for me comes down to personal opinion but I believe the most appropriate medium for this would be CG. The reason being that the facial expressions will be a driving force in showing the audience the true emotions of the characters. With the mother and father both hiding the truth wearing false smiles, it will be the microexpressions behind the smiles that allow the audience to infer something is wrong and this is best captured with a realistic 3D face.

#adaption

[ba2akbm]

Research: Stevenson the Feminist: Flipped Gender Roles in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde [Critical Analysis]

I found a critical analysis essay online based on the flipped gender roles that Stevenson displays in Jekyll and Hyde, and found some parts of it interesting. Below are some of the excerpts, here is the link. 

“women are not completely void from the text. In a way, in regards to the maid that watches Hyde’s gruesome murder, they do play a small role. Without that maid watching, the hunt for Hyde would not have begun, or would Dr. Jekyll be forced into choosing between his two sides. As Charles Campbell says, women are the “key to a reading of the novel as it concerns the suppression of sexuality” (310). He suggests that: “The men of the novel are the city incorporated as lawyers, doctors, scientists, and sadists; they are associated with fog, lights and interiors. The women are the city as sexuality, innocence, sentiment, and victims; they are associated with street life, the outside of buildings and doors” (316) and this critic is not incorrect, but he misses a bigger point throughout the text. The maid did not necessarily have to be a maid. It really could have been any passerby, male or female, but more likely male since the women were constantly off performing their duties. This shows that women in the text, though seeming to have a role, are still unnecessary.“

“The Victorian period was the starting point for many new discussions regarding sex, as showcased by Antonio Sanna’s work: “The late nineteenth century saw an explosion of discourses on sex and sexuality” (Sanna 21). Sex became a part of conversation; it was not totally accepted, but it was a curious subject and earned its place in discussion. Furthermore, “the attacks and campaigns against sexual excesses such as masturbation and coitus interruptus, which had lasted for the whole nineteenth century and were a commonplace in medical literature, now focused on homosexuality” (22). Perhaps sex became a familiar subject because homosexuality became a more familiar action, which is why many critics see “The all-male pattern [in Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde]…[suggests] a twist of thought that Jekyll’s secret adventures were homosexual practices so common in London behind the Victorian veil” (Nabokov 187) and these critics are not incorrect. They see Jekyll’s “secret pleasures” as a “strong argument” for the exclusion of women in the text (Linhan). Suppose that Jekyll’s secret pleasures and need for Hyde is because of his undisclosed homosexuality, this is a further point that women are unnecessary. Men are able to find love and release from their needs with other men, therefore taking on a “feminine” role as the second partner in certain erotic escapades.“

“The reader is constantly drawn to Hyde’s physical appearance. Mr. Enfield attempts to describe Hyde to Mr. Utterson in the first chapter: “There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something downright detestable…He must be deformed somewhere; he gives a strong feeling of deformity…He’s an extraordinary looking man” (Stevenson 11-12). Immediately the reader, alongside Utterson, contemplates how atrocious this man must be, therefore transforming Hyde into the “looked at” and the reader into the “gazer”. The descriptions continue: “Mr. Hyde was pale and dwarfish, he gave an impression of deformity without any nameable malformation, he had a displeasing smile, he had borne himself to [Utterson] with a sort of murderous mixture of timidity and boldness, and he spoke with a husky, whispering and somewhat broken voice” (17). I understand men to lack such eloquent vocabulary especially when describing another man, at least today, but the speaker spends ample time lingering and reporting on what Hyde looks like more than once. The speaker goes into such detail, narrowing down to the way he talks and smiles, not just his physical stature–crossing the line to the erotic and forcing the reader to tag along. This further exemplifies Hyde as the feminine object, and the speaker–and therefore the reader too–as the looker, willingly crossing the line into eroticizing Hyde.

Though the descriptions of Hyde are not as pleasing as a woman would be described, when contrasted with Dr. Jekyll, the gaze turns even more erotic. Jekyll is described as “handsome” whereas Hyde is distasteful (20). The speaker enjoys focusing on the hands of both men, showcasing Jekyll’s transformation into Hyde through his hands. Jekyll recounts a morning when we woke up to realize he was actually Hyde.”

“More so, the few female characters are the ones performing the gazing and looking, as exampled by the maid servant who witnesses the gruesome murder of Sir Danvers Carew: “It seems she was romantically given, for she sat down upon her box, which stood immediately under the window, and fell into a dream of musing” (21). The maid servant happened to sit down next to her window and watched as an older man, Carew, approach Hyde to enquire about something, but instead of answering, Hyde simply beats Carew to death with his cane before running away–all witnessed by the maid. While she watched Carew down on the ground, she contemplates his appearance: “the girl was pleased to watch [his face], it seemed to breathe such an innocent and old-world kindness of disposition, yet with something high too, as of a well-founded self-content” (21). This is an obvious example of a woman taking on the role of the gazer, and the object of the gaze is a well-off gentleman. This maid servant’s only scene in the novella is this one, where she slightly objectifies Carew and serves as witness to Hyde’s murder. After this scene, she is never brought up or mentioned again.”

“Continuing with women’s lack of agency, Jekyll himself embodies the characteristics of a female by, in a way, giving birth to Hyde. By finding a way around traditional birth, Dr. Jekyll proves that women are unnecessary to the final extent–now men can create a different life without the use of a woman. Obviously Jekyll does not physically go through pregnancy, but he does bring life to a different form from his own body, much like how a woman gives life to something created from her body. In fact, the first transformation into Hyde resembles that of labor: “The most racking pangs succeeded: a grinding in the bones, deadly nausea, and a horror of the spirit that cannot be exceeded at the hour of birth or death” (50). Though I have never given birth, from other descriptions and images, the process seems horribly painful and not too dissimilar to Jekyll’s transformation. Additionally, in a way, when a person has a child, they are no longer a singular person but instead two: constantly watching out for another human being, feeding, caring, and loving a small person. Jekyll has created, to some extent, another person to now watch out for and care for, and when he realizes that Hyde became too much for him to handle, and he tries to subdue Hyde’s power, Hyde only forces himself farther into Jekyll’s life.

A man has taken over not only the basic tasks like running errands and caring for a household, but now reproduction as well, showcasing that women are completely unnecessary. Many “[Suspect] that Hyde is Jekyll’s illegitimate son” (Nabokov 187), but he is much more than that. Jekyll disavows what he has done by taking on the role of a father figure of Mr. Hyde: “[I] had more than a father’s interest; Hyde had more than a son’s indifference” (Stevenson 55). Hyde certainly is a son, a teenager even, but in reality, Jekyll has taken on the motherly role by creating and caring for this extra being. Mothers are the caregivers of their children, rearing them while the father attends to the other more masculine tasks, and in some scenes, Jekyll deals with an unruly teenager and has to raise him a certain way–therefore taking on both roles of the mother and father. Even further, “Hyde was ‘knit’ to him, he writes ‘closer than a wife,’” (Linehan 204). Jekyll does not want to admit that his creation forces him to a maternal role, however the evidence is apparent–a mother to child bond is certainly closer than that of a wife and husband, nothing can oppose the link between the mother and her newborn baby. Therefore, nothing can oppose the bond between Jekyll and his Hyde.”

#narrative strategies

[strategiestoryadaptationhd]

Chapter 10 “Henry Jekyll’s Full Statement of the Case”

At this point all the mysteries of the novel unravel, as we encounter a second account of the same events that have been unfolding throughout the novel. Only this time, instead of seeing them from the point of view of Utterson, we see them from the point of view of Jekyll—and, by extension, that of Hyde. This shift in point of view makes a great difference indeed. All the events that seemed puzzling or inexplicable before are suddenly explained: Jekyll’s confession makes clear the will that left everything to Hyde; it tells of the events leading up to the brutal murder of Carew; it clarifies the mystery of the similarity between Jekyll’s and Hyde’s handwritings; it -elucidates why Jekyll seemed to improve dramatically after Carew’s murder, and why he abruptly went into a decline and was forced into seclusion. We know, finally, the details behind Hyde’s midnight visit to Lanyon and Jekyll’s bizarre disappearance from the window while talking to Enfield and Utterson; so, too, is Jekyll’s final -disappearance explained. It is as if there have been two parallel narratives throughout the novel, and we have, until now, been given access only to one. With Jekyll’s confession, however, everything falls into place.

Jekyll’s meditations on the dual nature of man, which prompt his forays into the experiments that bring forth Hyde, point to the novel’s central question about the nature of the relationship between the good and evil portions of the human soul. As the embodiment of the dark side of man, Hyde is driven by passion and heedless of moral constraints. Yet it is important to note that while Hyde exists as distilled evil, Jekyll remains a mixture of good and evil. Jekyll repeatedly claims that his goal was to liberate his light half from his darker impulses, yet the opposite seems to happen. His dark side is given flesh, while his better half is not. Moreover, his dark side grows ever stronger as the novel continues, until the old, half-good and half-evil Jekyll ceases to exist.

Hyde is smaller than Jekyll, and younger, which leads Jekyll to surmise that his evil part is smaller and less developed than his good part. Yet Hyde’s physical strength might suggest the opposite—that the evil side possesses a superior power and vigor. Jekyll’s initial delight whenever he becomes Hyde seems to support this viewpoint, as does the fact that, no matter how appalling the crimes Hyde commits, Jekyll never feels guilty enough to refrain from making the transformation again as soon as he feels the urge. “Henry Jekyll stood at times aghast before the acts of Edward Hyde,” Jekyll writes, “but the situation was apart from ordinary laws, and insidiously relaxed the grasp of conscience. It was Hyde, after all, and Hyde alone, that was guilty.” But such statements seem little more than an absurd attempt at self-justification. For it is Jekyll who brings Hyde into being, clearly knowing that he embodies pure evil. Jekyll therefore bears responsibility for Hyde’s actions. Indeed, his willingness to convince himself otherwise suggests, again, that the darker half of the man has the upper hand, even when he is Jekyll and not Hyde.

With these pieces of evidence, Stevenson suggests the immensity of humanity’s dark impulses, which conscience can barely hold in check. In the end, then, although he portrays Utterson and Enfield as somewhat absurd in their denial of evil, Stevenson also may sympathize with their determination to repress their dark sides completely. Evil may be so strong that such strategies offer the only possibility for order and morality in society. The alternative—actively exploring the darkness—leads one into the trap that closes permanently on the hapless Jekyll, whose conscientious, civilized self proves no match for the violence unleashed in the person of Hyde.

Interestingly, even in this confessional chapter, certain details of the story’s horrors remain obscure. Jekyll refuses to give any description of his youthful sins, and he does not actually elaborate on any of the “depravity”— except the murder of Carew—in which Hyde engages. As with other silences in the book, this absence of explanation may point to the clash between rational articulation and the irrationality of profound evil. Perhaps these deeds are so depraved that they defy all attempts at true explanation, or perhaps Stevenson fears that to describe them explicitly would be to destroy their eerie power.

But in this chapter in particular, the silence may also indicate not a failure of words but, as in other instances, a refusal to use them. Earlier in the novel, reserved and decorous men such as Enfield and Utterson, wanting to deny the darker elements of humanity, make such a refusal. Here, however, one can hardly ascribe the silences to a character’s denial of evil, since the letter that constitutes this chapter comes from Jekyll himself. The absence of description may owe not to any repression within the novel itself but to the repressive tendencies of the world in which Stevenson wrote. Rigid Victorian norms would not have allowed him to elaborate upon Jekyll's and Hyde's crimes if they were tremendously gruesome; Stevenson thus discusses them in a vague (and thus acceptable) manner.

The final chapter of this story is interesting. It takes the path of seeing all the events that have happened through the eyes of Jekyll and Hyde which I actually really liked as we now have everyone’s perspectives of what has happened through out the story. 

It’s also interesting that the story points out that whilst Jekyll and Hyde is suppose to represent good and evil, Jekyll left it so long to actually confess to anything and kept it all a secret- making everyone run around in circles and not get any final conclusion. 

It also emphasises how Jekyll and Hyde have completely different appearances. In particular with Hyde’s appearance he becomes  smaller then Jekyll which puts into my imagination a man hunched over with a suspicious nature. 

Whilst the case finally concludes, we can still see Utterson’s uselessness and Enfields as they both deny that any sort of evil like this simply cannot exist- this links in with a previous chapter when there was a lurking evil under ‘respectable London’. 

[graciemaller]

The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is set in 19th century London and tells the story of the respectable Dr Jekyll and his curious relationship with the violent and detestable Mr Hyde.

Chapter summaries below

v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v 

Chapter 1 - Story of the Door

Utterson and Enfield are out for a walk when they pass a strange-looking door (the entrance to Dr Jekyll's laboratory). Enfield recalls a story involving the door. In the early hours of one winter morning, he says, he saw a man trampling on a young girl. He pursued the man and brought him back to the scene of the crime. (The reader later learns that the man is Mr Hyde.)

A crowd gathered and, to avoid a scene, the man offered to pay the girl compensation. This was accepted, and he opened the door with a key and re-emerged with some money and a large cheque.

Utterson is very interested in the case and asks whether Enfield is certain Hyde used a key to open the door. Enfield is sure he did.

Chapter 2 - Search for Mr Hyde

That evening the lawyer, Utterson, is troubled by what he has heard. He takes the will of his friend Dr Jekyll from his safe. It contains a worrying instruction: in the event of Dr Jekyll's disappearance, all his possessions are to go to Mr Hyde.

Utterson decides to visit Dr Lanyon, an old friend of his and Dr Jekyll's. Lanyon has never heard of Hyde, and not seen Jekyll for ten years. That night Utterson has terrible nightmares.

He starts watching the door (which belongs to Dr Jekyll's old laboratory) at all hours, and eventually sees Hyde unlocking it. Utterson is shocked by the sense of evil coming from him.

Utterson goes next door to warn his friend, Jekyll, against Hyde, but is told by the servant, Poole, that Jekyll is out and the servants have all been instructed by Jekyll to obey Hyde.

Utterson is worried that Hyde may kill Jekyll to benefit from the will.

Chapter 3 - Dr Jekyll Was Quite at Ease

Two weeks later, following a dinner party with friends at Jekyll's house, Utterson stays behind to talk to him about the will.

Jekyll laughs off Utterson's worries, comparing them to Lanyon's 'hidebound' (conventional and unadventurous) attitude to medical science. The reader now sees why Lanyon and Jekyll have fallen out, and starts to understand that Jekyll's behaviour has become unusual.

Utterson persists with the subject of the will. Jekyll hints at a strange relationship between himself and Hyde. Although he trusts Utterson, Jekyll refuses to reveal the details. He asks him, as his lawyer not his friend, to make sure the will is carried out. He reassures him that 'the moment I choose, I can be rid of Mr Hyde'.

Chapter 4 - The Carew Murder Case

Nearly a year later, an elderly gentleman is brutally clubbed to death in the street by Hyde. The murder is witnessed by a maid who recognises Hyde.

A letter addressed to Utterson is found on the body and the police contact him. He recognises the murder weapon as the broken half of a walking cane he gave to Jekyll years earlier. When he hears that the murderer is Hyde, he offers to lead the police to his house.

They are told that Hyde has not been at home for two months. But when they search the house they find the other half of the murder weapon and signs of a hasty exit.

Chapter 5 - Incident of the Letter

Utterson goes to Jekyll's house and finds him 'looking deadly sick'. He asks whether he is hiding Hyde. Jekyll assures him he will never see or hear of Hyde again. He shows Utterson a letter from Hyde that indicates this.

Utterson asks Guest, his head clerk, to compare the handwriting on the letter to that on an invitation from Jekyll. There is a resemblance between the two, though with a different slope. Utterson believes Jekyll has forged the letter in Hyde's handwriting to cover his escape.

Chapter 6 - Remarkable Incident of Dr Lanyon

The police cannot find Hyde. Coincidentally, Jekyll seems happier and, for two months, he socialises again.

Suddenly, however, he appears depressed and will not see Utterson. Utterson visits Dr Lanyon to discuss their friend's health, but finds Lanyon on his death-bed.

Lanyon refuses to discuss Jekyll who, he hints, is the cause of his illness.

Trying to find out what has happened, Utterson writes to Jekyll. He receives a reply which suggests Jekyll has fallen into a very disturbed state and talks of being 'under a dark influence'.

Lanyon dies and leaves a letter for Utterson in an envelope marked 'not to be opened till the death or disappearance of Dr Henry Jekyll'. Utterson, being a good lawyer, locks it away unopened in his safe.

Utterson tries to revisit Jekyll several times, but his servant, Poole, says he is living in isolation and will not see anyone.

Chapter 7 - Incident at the Window

Utterson and Enfield are taking one of their walks, as at the opening of the book. They pass Jekyll's window and see him looking like a prisoner in solitary confinement. Utterson calls out to him and Jekyll replies, but his face suddenly freezes in an expression of 'abject terror and despair'.

The change in Jekyll's expression is so sudden and horrible it 'froze the very blood of the two gentlemen below', and they depart in silence.

Chapter 8 - The Last Night

One evening, Jekyll's servant comes to Utterson and asks him to come to Jekyll's house. They go to the laboratory, but the door is locked. The voice from inside does not sound like Jekyll's and both men believe it is Hyde.

Poole says the voice has for days been crying out for a particular chemical to be brought, but the chemicals given have been rejected as 'not pure'.

Poole says that earlier he caught a glimpse of a person in the lab who looked scarcely human.

They break down the door and inside find a body, twitching. In its hand are the remains of a test tube (or vial). The body is smaller than Jekyll's but wearing clothes that would fit him.

On the table is a will dated that day which leaves everything to Utterson, with Hyde's name crossed out. There is also a package containing Jekyll's 'confession' and a letter asking Utterson to read Dr Lanyon's letter which he left after his death (see Chapter 6) and is now in Utterson's safe.

Utterson tells Poole he will return before midnight, when he has read all the documents.

Chapter 9 - Dr Lanyon's Narrative

Chapter 9 lists the contents of Dr Lanyon's letter. It tells of how Lanyon received a letter from Jekyll asking him to collect a drawer containing chemicals, a vial and a notebook from Jekyll's laboratory and to give it to a man who would call at midnight.

Lanyon says he was curious, especially as the book contained some strange entries.

At midnight a man appears. He is small and grotesque, wearing clothes that are too large for him.

The man offers to take the chemicals away, or to drink the potion.

Lanyon accepts and, before his very eyes, Hyde transforms into none other than Dr Jekyll.

In horror at what he has witnessed, Lanyon becomes seriously ill.

Chapter 10 - Henry Jekyll's Full Statement of the Case

Jekyll tells the story of how he turned into Hyde.

It began as scientific curiosity in the duality of human nature (or the good and evil), and his attempt to destroy the 'darker self'. Eventually, however, he became addicted to the character of Hyde, who increasingly took over and destroyed him.

The novel does not return to Utterson who, at the end of Chapter 8, was going to return to Jekyll's house.

#storyadaptation

[the-jekyllandhyde-blog]

Analysis/Summary of Chapters 7-9

Chapter Seven begins with Utterson and Enfield taking their Sunday stroll and discussing how Hyde will most likely never be seen again. While examining Jekyll’s house, the two men spot him sitting near his window. They invite him to join them, attempting to raise his dreary spirits, though Jekyll cannot. Jekyll expresses his gratefulness for Utterson’s friendship, though while the three are talking, Jekyll suddenly changes in expression and demeanor and viciously closes the window. Utterson and Enfield walk away without speaking, both shaken with horror. 

Later, Mr. Utterson receives a visit by a very unnerved Mr. Poole, who has come to collect Utterson to help Dr. Jekyll. They go to Jekyll’s house and find all of the maids and servers together, huddled in fear. Mr. Poole leads Mr. Utterson to Dr. Jekyll, warning him to not enter Jekyll’s private room if he is invited. However, Jekyll tells Mr. Poole that he will see no one, though Poole and Utterson are able to hear the obvious change in Jekyll’s voice. 

Poole explains Jekyll’s requests for medicine that he has been asking for, the notes becoming more and more demanding and anxious. 

Poole believes that this whole situation was caused by murder, and Utterson eventually agrees. Utterson demands to see Jekyll, and when Jekyll cries out, Utterson realizes that the voice belongs to Hyde. They break down the door to find a somewhat normal room, except there is a contorted body twitching in the center. To Utterson, this looks like a clear case of suicide, and he moves to find Jekyll’s body. In their search, they find Jekyll’s new will, stating Utterson as his beneficiary. Utterson is puzzled by this, but is also confused by a sealed envelope that holds Jekyll’s confession.  Utterson plans to read all of the documents that night, and then go to the police afterwards. 

The confession is written by Lanyon, who tells the story of how he met Jekyll and Hyde at the same time. He was delivered a letter with instructions to obtain a drawer from Jekyll’s home that would be taken by a message man at midnight. Layon does as he is asked, though while thinking that Jekyll must be mad. At midnight he is visited by Hyde, who begins to take the powders and whatnot from the drawer and create a concoction. Lanyon expresses his interest, and Hyde shows him the affects of his creation. Before Lanyon’s eyes, Hyde turns into Jekyll, who tells Lanyon about what he has done, though Lanyon cannot bear to write his words down. 

[melodiouswhite]

Of tragic teenage crushes

This is a request, written for @its-a-dark-place-here . Thank you to @fox-guardian for permitting me to use your Enfield for this.

Warning: Sappiness and swearing (directed to @fox-guardian who doesn’t like strong language)

Edward came home as grumpy as ever.

He had tried to confess his love to Richard Enfield and failed miserably. Instead he had resorted to petty, intellectual insults to keep a face in front of the 26-year-old man.

Dammit, why was it so hard to tell him how he felt?! Why did he always end up being mean to his older crush?!

“Fuck it all”, he muttered and buried his face in the pillow.

There he lay, wallowing in self-pity, until Dr. Henry Jekyll knocked on the door and told him it was dinner time.

They ate in silence, until Henry asked: “Is there something you want to tell me?”

“No.”

“Edward, is it about Enfield? Personally, I think you should leave it be, he is-”

“Shut up!”, the boy snapped. “Jut leave me the fuck alone!”

Henry frowned. “Hey now. Calm down. That's not how you talk to your father-”

“Exactly!!! With my father!!!”, Edward exploded.

How dare that old man! He wasn't his father! His father was dead! Henry was just his godfather. He had taken him in, after his parents' death in a car accident, six years ago.

Henry's face paled and he rushed off, without finishing his dinner. It was only now that Edward realised, that he had gone too far.

Fuck, I really keep dropping bricks today!

On the next afternoon, Edward was sitting on a park bench.

The morning had passed in icy silence, because he had been to cowardly to apologise to Henry. That sucked. Their relationship was awry, but the elder blond was the only family he had. And the old man had accepted his coming out as a trans boy, which his real parents had never done.

“Edward, are you okay?”

The black-haired boy blushed, when he recognised the voice of his crush.

“Do I look like I'm okay?”, he muttered.

Enfield sat down next to him and asked: “What's the matter, kid?”

Oh, how he hated being called 'kid'! Especially by him!

But instead of making another cutting remark, he just shrugged. “None of your business.”

The adult frowned. “Did you have a fight with your father?”

“HE'S NOT MY FATHER!”, Edward blew up.

“Whoa, Hyde, calm down! Isn't that in the eye of the beho-”

“SHUT UP! THAT IDIOT HAS A CRUSH ON YOUR COUSIN, BUT DOESN'T HAVE THE BALLS TO JUST TELL HIM ALREADY! AND THEN HE HAS THE NERVE TO ASK ME ABOUT MY OWN CRUSH!!!”

Richard sighed: “Well, to his defence, he doesn't know that Gabriel is autistic and needs it spelled out to him.”

“WELL, WHY DOESN'T HE, THEN???”, Edward yelled.

“Can you please stop yelling at me? I really don't know. It's not like I know much about the way older men love.”

Something clicked inside Edward's brain. He didn't know why, but somehow this seemed to be a chance to finally-

“Uhh … since we're speaking about love, Richard …”

Enfield tilted his head (damn, he always looked so adorable, when he did that!). “Yeah?”

“I'm in love with you!”, Edward blurted out.

The man's eyes widened and he blushed bright scarlet. Was that a good sign? Blushing was a good sign, right?

But then a heavy silence fell over them and the teenager wasn't so sure anymore.

“Well?”, he asked anxiously.

Enfield looked really uncomfortable, as he carefully answered: “I'm sorry. I can't be your boyfriend.”

Edward felt his heart crack and his eyes filled with tears. “Why?”, he choked, “Is it because I'm a trans boy? I can-”

“No, Edward! Don't think that!”

“Then why?!”, the boy wailed, “Is it because I'm so mean? I can change, I promise, I will never again-”

“Look, the main problem is that you're a minor. You're only sixteen and I'm almost twenty-seven. Besides, I don't like you that way. You're a good friend, but further than that- EDWARD, WAIT!”

But it was already too late.

The other had already leapt from the bench and proceeded to run all the way home. He burst through the front door, almost ran Henry over and dashed into his room.

There he slammed the door shut and flopped onto his bed.

A good friend he called me …

Just a good friend …

It wasn't fair!

Was he doomed to never be loved for his whole life?

Because honestly, if Enfield wouldn't love him, who would? It wasn't like he had any other friends!

And he just had to be in love with the only one he had!

Edward hated himself.

He hated himself for falling in love.

And he hated himself even more for falling in love with Enfield of all people.

Everything was in shambles, just because his heart was being stupid.

And now it was broken.

Dammit …

He buried his face in his pillow and let the waterworks flow.

#The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde #Mr. Hyde #edward hyde #separated hyde #richard enfield #fg's enfield #again thanks for the permission #hyde is a trans boy here #Dr. Jekyll #henry jekyll #one-sided love #Jekyll needs a hug

[readbookywooks]

Search For Mr. Hyde

That evening Mr. Utterson came home to his bachelor house in sombre spirits and sat down to dinner without relish. It was his custom of a Sunday, when this meal was over, to sit close by the fire, a volume of some dry divinity on his reading-desk, until the clock of the neighbouring church rang out the hour of twelve, when he would go soberly and gratefully to bed. On this night, however, as soon as the cloth was taken away, he took up a candle and went into his business-room. There he opened his safe, took from the most private part of it a document endorsed on the envelope as Dr. Jekyll’s Will, and sat down with a clouded brow to study its contents. The will was holograph, for Mr. Utterson, though he took charge of it now that it was made, had refused to lend the least assistance in the making of it; it provided not only that, in case of the decease of Henry Jekyll, M.D., D.C.L., LL.D., F.R.S., etc., all his possessions were to pass into the hands of his “friend and benefactor Edward Hyde," but that in case of Dr. Jekyll’s “disappearance or unexplained absence for any period exceeding three calendar months,” the said Edward Hyde should step into the said Henry Jekyll’s shoes without further delay and free from any burthen or obligation, beyond the payment of a few small sums to the members of the doctor’s household. This document had long been the lawyer’s eyesore. It offended him both as a lawyer and as a lover of the sane and customary sides of life, to whom the fanciful was the immodest. And hitherto it was his ignorance of Mr. Hyde that had swelled his indignation; now, by a sudden turn, it was his knowledge. It was already bad enough when the name was but a name of which he could learn no more. It was worse when it began to be clothed upon with detestable attributes; and out of the shifting, insubstantial mists that had so long baffled his eye, there leaped up the sudden, definite presentment of a fiend.

“I thought it was madness,” he said, as he replaced the obnoxious paper in the safe, “and now I begin to fear it is disgrace.”

With that he blew out his candle, put on a great-coat, and set forth in the direction of Cavendish Square, that citadel of medicine, where his friend, the great Dr. Lanyon, had his house and received his crowding patients. “If any one knows, it will be Lanyon,” he had thought.

The solemn butler knew and welcomed him; he was subjected to no stage of delay, but ushered direct from the door to the dining-room where Dr. Lanyon sat alone over his wine. This was a hearty, healthy, dapper, red-faced gentleman, with a shock of hair prematurely white, and a boisterous and decided manner. At sight of Mr. Utterson, he sprang up from his chair and welcomed him with both hands. The geniality, as was the way of the man, was somewhat theatrical to the eye; but it reposed on genuine feeling. For these two were old friends, old mates both at school and college, both thorough respecters of themselves and of each other, and, what does not always follow, men who thoroughly enjoyed each other’s company.

After a little rambling talk, the lawyer led up to the subject which so disagreeably pre-occupied his mind.

“I suppose, Lanyon,” said he “you and I must be the two oldest friends that Henry Jekyll has?”

“I wish the friends were younger,” chuckled Dr. Lanyon. “But I suppose we are. And what of that? I see little of him now.”

Indeed?” said Utterson. “I thought you had a bond of common interest.”

“We had,” was the reply. “But it is more than ten years since Henry Jekyll became too fanciful for me. He began to go wrong, wrong in mind; and though of course I continue to take an interest in him for old sake’s sake, as they say, I see and I have seen devilish little of the man. Such unscientific balderdash,” added the doctor, flushing suddenly purple, “would have estranged Damon and Pythias.”

This little spirit of temper was somewhat of a relief to Mr. Utterson. “They have only differed on some point of science,” he thought; and being a man of no scientific passions (except in the matter of conveyancing), he even added: “It is nothing worse than that!” He gave his friend a few seconds to recover his composure, and then approached the question he had come to put. “Did you ever come across a protege of his — one Hyde?” he asked.

“Hyde?” repeated Lanyon. “No. Never heard of him. Since my time.”

That was the amount of information that the lawyer carried back with him to the great, dark bed on which he tossed to and fro, until the small hours of the morning began to grow large. It was a night of little ease to his toiling mind, toiling in mere darkness and besieged by questions.

Six o ’clock struck on the bells of the church that was so conveniently near to Mr. Utterson’s dwelling, and still he was digging at the problem. Hitherto it had touched him on the intellectual side alone; but now his imagination also was engaged, or rather enslaved; and as he lay and tossed in the gross darkness of the night and the curtained room, Mr. Enfield’s tale went by before his mind in a scroll of lighted pictures. He would be aware of the great field of lamps of a nocturnal city; then of the figure of a man walking swiftly; then of a child running from the doctor’s; and then these met, and that human Juggernaut trod the child down and passed on regardless of her screams. Or else he would see a room in a rich house, where his friend lay asleep, dreaming and smiling at his dreams; and then the door of that room would be opened, the curtains of the bed plucked apart, the sleeper recalled, and lo! there would stand by his side a figure to whom power was given, and even at that dead hour, he must rise and do its bidding. The figure in these two phases haunted the lawyer all night; and if at any time he dozed over, it was but to see it glide more stealthily through sleeping houses, or move the more swiftly and still the more swiftly, even to dizziness, through wider labyrinths of lamplighted city, and at every street-corner crush a child and leave her screaming. And still the figure had no face by which he might know it; even in his dreams, it had no face, or one that baffled him and melted before his eyes; and thus it was that there sprang up and grew apace in the lawyer’s mind a singularly strong, almost an inordinate, curiosity to behold the features of the real Mr. Hyde. If he could but once set eyes on him, he thought the mystery would lighten and perhaps roll altogether away, as was the habit of mysterious things when well examined. He might see a reason for his friend’s strange preference or bondage (call it which you please) and even for the startling clause of the will. At least it would be a face worth seeing: the face of a man who was without bowels of mercy: a face which had but to show itself to raise up, in the mind of the unimpressionable Enfield, a spirit of enduring hatred.

From that time forward, Mr. Utterson began to haunt the door in the by-street of shops. In the morning before office hours, at noon when business was plenty, and time scarce, at night under the face of the fogged city moon, by all lights and at all hours of solitude or concourse, the lawyer was to be found on his chosen post.

“If he be Mr. Hyde,” he had thought, “I shall be Mr. Seek.”

And at last his patience was rewarded. It was a fine dry night; frost in the air; the streets as clean as a ballroom floor; the lamps, unshaken, by any wind, drawing a regular pattern of light and shadow. By ten o’clock, when the shops were closed, the by-street was very solitary and, in spite of the low growl of London from all round, very silent. Small sounds carried far; domestic sounds out of the houses were clearly audible on either side of the roadway; and the rumour of the approach of any passenger preceded him by a long time. Mr. Utterson had been some minutes at his post, when he was aware of an odd, light footstep drawing near. In the course of his nightly patrols, he had long grown accustomed to the quaint effect with which the footfalls of a single person, while he is still a great way off, suddenly spring out distinct from the vast hum and clatter of the city. Yet his attention had never before been so sharply and decisively arrested; and it was with a strong, superstitious prevision of success that he withdrew into the entry of the court.

The steps drew swiftly nearer, and swelled out suddenly louder as they turned the end of the street. The lawyer, looking forth from the entry, could soon see what manner of man he had to deal with. He was small and very plainly dressed, and the look of him, even at that distance, went somehow strongly against the watcher’s inclination. But he made straight for the door, crossing the roadway to save time; and as he came, he drew a key from his pocket like one approaching home.

Mr. Utterson stepped out and touched him on the shoulder as he passed.” Mr. Hyde, I think?”

Mr. Hyde shrank back with a hissing intake of the breath. But his fear was only momentary; and though he did not look the lawyer in the face, he answered coolly enough: “That is my name. What do you want?”

“I see you are going in,” returned the lawyer. “I am an old friend of Dr. Jekyll’s — Mr. Utterson of Gaunt Street — you must have heard my name; and meeting you so conveniently, I thought you might admit me.”

“You will not find Dr. Jekyll; he is from home,” replied Mr. Hyde, blowing in the key. And then suddenly, but still without looking up, “How did you know me?” he asked.

“On your side,” said Mr. Utterson, “will you do me a favour?”

“With pleasure,” replied the other. “What shall it be?”

“Will you let me see your face?” asked the lawyer.

Mr. Hyde appeared to hesitate, and then, as if upon some sudden reflection, fronted about with an air of defiance; and the pair stared at each other pretty fixedly for a few seconds. “Now I shall know you again,” said Mr. Utterson.” It may be useful.”

“Yes,” returned Mr. Hyde, “it is as well we have, met; and a propos, you should have my address.” And he gave a number of a street in Soho.

“Good God!” thought Mr. Utterson,” can he, too, have been thinking of the will?” But he kept his feelings to himself and only grunted in acknowledgment of the address.

“And now,” said the other, “how did you know me?”

“By description,” was the reply.

“Whose description?”

“We have common friends, said Mr. Utterson.

“Common friends?” echoed Mr. Hyde, a little hoarsely.” Who are they?”

“Jekyll, for instance,” said the lawyer.

“He never told you,” cried Mr. Hyde, with a flush of anger.” I did not think you would have lied.”

“Come,” said Mr. Utterson, “that is not fitting language.”

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.

The lawyer stood a while when Mr. Hyde had left him, the picture of disquietude. Then he began slowly to mount the street, pausing every step or two and putting his hand to his brow like a man in mental perplexity. The problem he was thus debating as he walked, was one of a class that is rarely solved. Mr. Hyde was pale and dwarfish, he gave an impression of deformity without any nameable malformation, he had a displeasing smile, he had borne himself to the lawyer with a sort of murderous mixture of timidity and boldness, and he spoke with a husky, whispering and somewhat broken voice; all these were points against him, but not all of these together could explain the hitherto unknown disgust, loathing, and fear with which Mr. Utterson regarded him. “There must be something else,” said the perplexed gentleman. “There is something more, if I could find a name for it. God bless me, the man seems hardly human! Something troglodytic, shall we say? or can it be the old story of Dr. Fell? or Is it the mere radiance of a foul soul that thus transpires through, and transfigures, its clay continent? The last, I think; for, O my poor old Harry Jekyll, if ever I read Satan’s signature upon a face, it Is on that of your new friend.”

Round the corner from the by-street, there was a square of ancient, handsome houses, now for the most part decayed from their high estate and let in flats and chambers to all sorts and conditions of men: map-engravers, architects, shady lawyers, and the agents of obscure enterprises. One house, however, second from the corner, was still occupied entire; and at the door of this, which wore a great air of wealth and comfort, though it was now plunged in darkness except for the fan-light, Mr. Utterson stopped and knocked. A well-dressed, elderly servant opened the door.

Is Dr. Jekyll at home, Poole?” asked the lawyer.

“I will see, Mr. Utterson,” said Poole, admitting the visitor, as he spoke, into a large, low-roofed, comfortable hall, paved with flags, warmed (after the fashion of a country house) by a bright, open fire, and furnished with costly cabinets of oak. “Will you wait here by the fire, sir? or shall I give you a light in the dining room?”

“Here, thank you,” said the lawyer, and he drew near and leaned on the tall fender. This hall, in which he was now left alone, was a pet fancy of his friend the doctor’s; and Utterson himself was wont to speak of it as the pleasantest room in London. But to-night there was a shudder in his blood; the face of Hyde sat heavy on his memory; he felt (what was rare with him) a nausea and distaste of life; and in the gloom of his spirits, he seemed to read a menace in the flickering of the firelight on the polished cabinets and the uneasy starting of the shadow on the roof. He was ashamed of his relief, when Poole presently returned to announce that Dr. Jekyll was gone out.

“I saw Mr. Hyde go in by the old dissecting-room door, Poole,” he said. “Is that right, when Dr. Jekyll is from home?”

“Quite right, Mr. Utterson, sir,” replied the servant. “Mr. Hyde has a key.”

“Your master seems to repose a great deal of trust in that young man, Poole,” resumed the other musingly.

“Yes, sir, he do indeed,” said Poole. “We have all orders to obey him.”

“I do not think I ever met Mr. Hyde?” asked Utterson.

O, dear no, sir. He never dines here,” replied the butler. “Indeed we see very little of him on this side of the house; he mostly comes and goes by the laboratory.”

“Well, good-night, Poole.”

“Good-night, Mr. Utterson.” And the lawyer set out homeward with a very heavy heart.” Poor Harry Jekyll,” he thought, “my mind misgives me he is in deep waters! He was wild when he was young; a long while ago to be sure; but in the law of God, there is no statute of limitations. Ay, it must be that; the ghost of some old sin, the cancer of some concealed disgrace: punishment coming, PEDE CLAUDO, years after memory has forgotten and self-love condoned the fault.” And the lawyer, scared by the thought, brooded a while on his own past, groping in all the corners of memory, lest by chance some Jack-in-the-Box of an old iniquity should leap to light there. His past was fairly blameless; few men could read the rolls of their life with less apprehension; yet he was humbled to the dust by the many ill things he had done, and raised up again into a sober and fearful gratitude by the many that he had come so near to doing, yet avoided. And then by a return on his former subject, he conceived a spark of hope. “This Master Hyde, if he were studied,” thought he, “must have secrets of his own; black secrets, by the look of him; secrets compared to which poor Jekyll’s worst would be like sunshine. Things cannot continue as they are. It turns me cold to think of this creature stealing like a thief to Harry’s bedside; poor Harry, what a wakening! And the danger of it; for if this Hyde suspects the existence of the will, he may grow impatient to inherit. Ay, I must put my shoulder to the wheel if Jekyll will but let me,” he added, “if Jekyll will only let me.” For once more he saw before his mind’s eye, as clear as a transparency, the strange clauses of the will.

#DrJekyllMrHyde