Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde [+ The Body Snatcher, The Bottle Imp, Markheim and Weir of Hermiston]

by Robert Louis Stevenson

In Stevensonâ€s famous tale, Dr Henry Jekyll develops an elixir that allows him to explore the hidden depths of his psyche and transfer evil traits to another personality. The result – the repulsive Edward Hyde – proves to be unstoppable. The novel is accompanied by four short and sinister The Body Snatcher, The Bottle Imp, Markheim and Weir of Hermiston.

Genres: Classics, Horror, Fiction, Mystery, Fantasy, Short Stories, Science Fiction

238 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2016

About the author

Robert Louis Balfour Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, and travel writer, and a leading representative of English literature. He was greatly admired by many authors, including Jorge Luis Borges, Ernest Hemingway, Rudyard Kipling and Vladimir Nabokov.

Most modernist writers dismissed him, however, because he was popular and did not write within their narrow definition of literature. It is only recently that critics have begun to look beyond Stevenson's popularity and allow him a place in the Western canon.

Reviews

[Kerri · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was of course the story The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde that drew me to this collection. It's so famous at this point that even if you haven't read it, you probably know it. The amount of stories, movies, spoofs and references it has inspired is incredibly impressive. I was pleased to find the story itself holds up very well. Even with the suspense of the twist being removed, it's a tense, creative, well-written tale. The biggest surprise to me, was that Dr Jekyll was far more complicated than I had expected. It's not quite good vs evil -- it's sort of good but quite dark and troubled vs pure, unbridled evil.

This was followed by three very good stories, The Body Snatcher, The Bottle Imp and Markheim. I enjoyed all of them, but it was the unfinished novel, Weir of Hermiston that really stole the show. It took me a while to get into it, because I found the way it was written daunting. Then, there was this sentence, both awful and funny, and I was hooked:
"She was never interesting in life; in death she was not impressive; and as her husband stood before her, with his hands crossed behind his powerful back, that which he looked upon was the very image of the insignificant."

It's probably terrible that it made me laugh, but it did, and from then on I found I understood the story -- even when the Scottish characters were written as they sounded, which sometimes took me several tries to crack what they were saying: 'If ye arena a'thegither dozened with eediocy, ye'll gang your ways back to Cauldstaneslap, and ca' your loom, and ca' your loom, man!'

The story was unexpectedly gripping, with insights that still feel relevant now, "Indulgence followed hard on the heels of admiration" was one I especially liked. Then, just as it feels like the story is about to reach a very dramatic point, it ends. Robert Louis Stevenson died before he could finish it. Wikipedia has a summation of what a friend of his says was going to happen, based on letters sent, which was nice to know, but it's not just what was going to happen but how it was going to be written. It's a great loss that the author didn't get to complete what may have been his masterpiece. However, I do appreciate that we at least get to read what he did manage to write. I thought it was well worth the time, even though it leaves you wanting a conclusion that doesn't exist.


Finishing the review with two Gifs of the singer Hyde, not because they are really relevant (the pronunciation isn't even the same) but I'm not sure when I'll next have the opportunity to include them!

[Cori Reed · Rating 3 out of 5]

MEH. I quite enjoyed the actual story of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, but the other stories in this collection had me falling asleep in my soup.

[Stephanie Roxane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jekyll and Hyde

4/5 I really enjoyed this story. It was at times creepy, at times a little sad, and definitely had an eerie feel throughout. The story itself was interesting, and I enjoyed the ending.

The Body Snatcher

3/5

This story was pretty good. I enjoyed myself reading it, even though some times I had trouble with it and had to read areas over again. Overall I did enjoy it, but not as much as Jekyll and Hyde, which I really loved. I liked the ending. I thought it was well crafted as a whole.


The Bottle Imp

4/5

I loved this story. It was kind of fun in a weird way. Had it’s creepy moments. I just had a really good time reading this one. Didn’t much care for the ending though, but it didn’t ruin the overall story.

Markheim

4/5

This story was very short, but it packed an interesting story and message into the few pages it was. This story was very much a good vs evil kind of story. The main character had done many bad things in desperation over his poor situation. And a mysterious stranger comes and sort of opens his eyes, as well as gives advice that the MC, Markheim, has to choose whether to take. I really liked it, it was short and to the point, an enjoyable read.


Weir of Hermiston

2.75/5

This story was in no way bad. I just didn’t really like it. It was often confusing, I found the language really hard to understand at times with all the Scottish colloquialisms, and I just didn’t connect with or really care about any of the characters. I liked Archie. But he’s still sort of mediocre. And this could definitely have to do with the fact that this story is unfinished so I didn’t get his full character arc, but either way. This one I feel is hard to rate. Overall, it was fine. I wonder how it was supposed to end.



Overall, really good collection.

[Alex Spees]

I just read Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Wasn’t even that strange. Maybe I’m desensitized. Or maybe I just knew the story too well going in

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde:
I started reading Jekyll and Hyde alongside my girlfriend, who is reading it for a class. Before I started reading I had the realization that, I've been seeing this story spoofed my entire life, but I actually have no idea how the story ends and that's not very surpsing now.

This story was super interesting and actually much better than I expected it to be. The writing feels a little dated but in a very nice way, like every sentence reads like a bite from a crisp apple, y'know? No? Well too bad. I think this is now one of my favourite classics, it felt like it told the story it needed to and I don't feel like I wasted my time with it, and that's about what you need for a good classic.

It's no wonder I didn't know the ending to this story. The guy literally commits suicide so he doesn't have to keep being such a massive dick. It not like you'd see Tweety Bird with that ending. I thought most of the drama behind Hyde was funny, the Victorian reaction to him bowling over a child made me laugh and even Uttersons reaction to Hyde got me. Also I hope Utterson didn't have to do too much paperwork after his client killed himself lol.

The Body Snatcher:
I read this out of order, so I actually read it after Markheim. This short was alright, but it might have been my least favourite. I don't know if that's because I was expecting the sci-fi concept or what, but it was fine. This is about grave robbers getting what they deserve, but they get it pretty lightly all things considered. And since the bulk of the story was flashback, or researching into someone's history, I expected the end to be in modern times again, like the beginning, just to wrap Fettes and Macfarlands past back into their meeting as adults but I guess grave robbing was shocking enough to a Victorian audience.

The Bottled Imp:
This was a pretty entertaining short story, I don't know if Stevenson started the 'Imp in a bottle grants wishes', but I liked how he dealt with the subject matter. Stevenson seems super into the duality between good and evil
And how a person can only balance out evil for so long. I kinda wish we got a description of the imp, but that's alright, the sheer icy terror our friends react in is enough of one I guess. I also kind of like that the friend fucks off from the story right after that.

Markheim:
Another good vs. evil debate with a fun back dropping of a murder! This felt a lot like the Tell-tale Heart (which I love) so I liked this story a bit too. When murderer Markheim gets confronted by a demon (?) he realized that maybe he is more evil than he thought and, knowing that he can still redeem himself [SPOILERS] gives himself up to the police. I liked this short a lot and thought it was an interesting look at self guilt in Victorian times almost.

The Weir of Hermiston:
Oh my God this was so painful to chug through, and I laboured over it for way longer than I should have before I realized it wasn't even complete. Like okay, don't get me wrong. This was fine. It was just boring. It's about this boy who doesn't like that his judge father murders people in his "God given job" and then dad doesn't give a shit and sends his son to live by himself in the mountains. I don't much care for historical fictions like this, but I could see, if it had an end, me actually liking this. I was somewhat compelled by Archie and what he was going through and wanted to see some kind of resolution for him. The phonetic dialogue hurt my brain though.

[Alexander Barnes · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this book for the title story, Jekyll and Hyde, which I was absolutely pleased with. The book also contained The Body Snatches, Markheim, The Weir of Hermiston and The Bottle Imp. I was fairly impartial to the additional stories except for The Bottle Imp, which was absolutely amazing.

[Beth M · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm averaging a rating of three stars since this consists of a novella, three short stories and an unfinished novel, the latter of which I won't be reading since it's incomplete.

Stevenson wasn't the best horror writer of his age, but I'm glad to have read these.

[مُهنا · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first few stories were truly wonderful and enjoyable. The last one however I couldn’t finish.

[Tamara Morrill · Rating 3 out of 5]

this was a collection of Robert louis Stevenson's work
mainly Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

if you like gothic classics like Frankenstein you will like this collection

[amal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Update I’m rating it 3/5. Can’t rate this for some reason. Ngl I did only read dr Jekyll and mr hype and not the other stories but whatever who cares. I actually enjoyed this and I think I would have enjoyed it a lot more if I didn’t read the stupid introduction that tells me basically the entire plot 😒 can publications please stop doing this. Also, it’s very different from treasure Island and I definitely enjoyed this a lot more. Might read some of the other stories? Who knows

[April Mccaffrey · Rating 2 out of 5]

My ratings: 2/5
Goodreads: 2/5

This book didn't do it for me. I enjoyed the story concept and the concept of an alter-ego alternative self or a split personality but I was incredibly disappointed with how it ended and how it left much to be desired.

I adored RLS Treasure Island and had heard good things from Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde but seeing how short it was, I had my doubts and when I finished it, I was confirmed.

I did enjoy the character of Mr Utterson and Poole but Jeykll and Hyde although were the main "characters" were very underdeveloped in my opinion. Perhaps this is because RLS went to a law school and was not a man of science but when Jekyll was making his draughts/drugs, he didn't explain exactly what was in them to make him Hyde or how he poisoned himself to get rid of him.

Treasure Island is still my favourite works of his so I was incredibly disappointed in this work after hearing so many things about it.

[Colby Holloway · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt like this story got a lot right that Dracula and Frankenstein got wrong. It’s fast paced, succinct, and interesting. It’s much more like a pulp crime noir then a Victorian tragedy, but then it bunks it all up with how the author decides to wrap up the story. Rather than drawing it to a dramatic final stand off it fizzles out with a long explanation. Something about 18th century writers made them impervious to dramatic finales. Instead they like to draw their final act to a slow and painful close while they hammer in the point through 30 pages of thematic prose. Needless to say I was pretty disappointed with the final third of the story, but the first two thirds were thoroughly engaging.

On a different note the theme was far more moralistic then I had come to expect from pop culture and was far more of an interesting thought experiment than I had expected. I can see it’s enduring value.

[Laura Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was fun, though I think my jaded 21st century eyes failed to be impressed by what was probably quite suspenseful back in the day. Not helped by the fact that I already knew the twist. I must say, though, I haven't seen a modern adaptation that captures the puritan/Catholic-esque guilt that Dr Jekyll feels. The novel tells us that he never did anything worse than any other person, but he felt so insanely guilty about normal transgressions that he felt the need to externalise those actions. It could be a really interesting plot point considering modern puritanism, where many people (especially young people) feel the need to be 100% morally correct on all issues and are extremely unforgiving of anyone who doesn't meet those standards. All of that particular kind of person's nastiness gets funnelled into punishing other people for their bad behaviour, and I'm sure that many have their own Mr Hydes lurking under pseudonyms on the internet.

[Darcey McKay · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's important to note that this particular edition not only includes The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde but also some other works of R.L.S.
Dr. J & Mr. H is definitely well written and despite having a general idea of the story from various forms of popular culture it's always interesting to find the root work that has spawned all of it.
As for the others works included in this edition my favourite would have to be The Bottle Imp, a short story that packs a lot into it's short length.
Half of this edition encompasses the unfinished work of Weir of Hermiston which I found it difficult to get through as the dialogue is full of Scottish words/slang/sayings. There is a glossary included with the text to help out in this regard but it takes some time to work through it and comprehend the story along with it.

[Gracie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kinda spooky if you think about it

(2nd Read for class, 2 years later)
having to analyze this piece for a college English class has allowed me to see deeper into what this book really means. It's not just a tale on the duality of man but is also a warning that no immoral action can be done without the expectation that guilt will follow. Any man of good health will feel guilt and this is only natural. Trying to suppress or separate oneself from guilt will only lead to more immoral behavior and the process of slowly inching away from any scraps of humanity.

[Lukas von Spurr · Rating 4 out of 5]

Following Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, The Bottle Imp and Markheim stand equally interesting stories. The Body Snatcher kept me fairly attentive to the pages, as well. Weir of Hermiston threw me off completely, tho. From the beginning of those pages my interest quickly dissipated and I didn't manage to truly finish the book. Thusly, I review this book for the stories that I enjoyed and completed, and consider myself done with it.

[Jonah · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lot of good stories
My biggest criticism is that they don't all fit together neatly as a collection
I'm kind of annoyed that Weir of Hermiston was never finished, considering how fun it was to read
Really neat style it has

[Thea Jessen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oy these tales of horror are chilling. So disturbing to read some of them, but at the same time entirely fascinating.

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun and spooky little collection of short stories. My favourite story was definitely The Bottle Imp.

[Rhonda Siebert · Rating 3 out of 5]

I only read Jekyl and Hyde because it was the story I was interested in. Maybe I will read the other stories at another time.

[Quinn]

Dnfed at page 150.

[Nirali · Rating 4 out of 5]

Author’s Background:
Robert Louis Stevenson was a Scottish novelist, poet, essayist, and travel writer. He was born on November 13, 1850 and passed away on December 3, 1894. His most famous novels are Treasure Island, Kidnapped, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and A Child’s Garden of Verses. While he was traveling all he would do is write. Stevenson wrote during the Victorian period. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde reflects the duality that was immanent in London. The historical conditions of life in London that affected Stevenson’s story included living conditions for the upper and poorer classes. Benthamism was the philosophical system of utilitarianism proposed by the English philosopher and jurist Jeremy Bentham. It taught that self-interest was a person greatest good and that happiness came through the pursuit of pleasure and avoidance of pain. These ideas were all evident in the novel.
2. Literary Time Period:
The novel was written in 1885 in Bournemouth, England. 1885 was during the Victorian era. The victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria’s reign until her death. It was a long period of peace, prosperity, and national self-confidence for the United Kingdom. In the novel, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde contains many aspects about the Victorian era.


3. Setting:
The setting of the story is in the late 1900s in London. The setting allows Dr. Jekyll to be more of a sympathetic character. It was a very morally restrictive era and is the same era that Robert Louis Stevenson grew up in.
4. Characters:
Dr. Henry Jekyll- He is a well known physician who was born into a wealthy family. He is very handsome and looks good for someone who is fifty years old. He does not have many friends because some of his experiments concern the dual nature of mankind. He does not think of himself as a hypocrite but he does call himself a double-dealer, saying that both sides of his dual self are intense.
Edward Hyde- Edward is Dr. Jekyll’s evil side. He is described as the “fleshy” side of Dr. Jekyll’s personality. Throughout the novel he commits brutal crimes. Everyone who sees him describes him as ugly, cruel, and deformed. He is not a creature that belongs to the rational world so he does not have good speaking skills.
Mr. Gabriel John Utterson- He is a very well known lawyer and is very well respected in the community. He is a good friend of Dr. Jekyll and he also narrates most of the story. He isn’t very outgoing and lacks some imagination. Utterson’s rationalism helps him deal with Dr. Jekyll and his other side Mr. Hyde.
Richard Enfield- Richard is a distant cousin of Mr. Utterson and unlike Utterson he is reserved, formal, and scornful of gossip. They sometimes take walks together without saying one word because they are so different than each other. Enfield is the first one to see Mr. Hyde showcase his brutal behavior when he knocked down a child and trample her.
Poole- Poole is Dr. Jekyll’s servant, butler, and manages the whole house. He has been with Dr. Jekyll for a long time so he knows everything about him.
5. Themes:
The biggest theme in this book is good vs. evil. The good is Dr. Jekyll and the evil is Mr. Hyde. The battle between good and evil rages within the individual. We can see that Hyde might be taking over so we can say that evil is taking over good. Since Hyde does end up dead in the end of the novel that is suggesting that evil has failed. Another theme in this book is the duality of human nature. Dr. Jekyll confesses to Utterson that he has been interested in the duality of his own nature and he thinks that his condition affects all men. Before the climax of the story we find out that Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are the same people and that their dual personalities create a tension between good Jekyll and the crazy Hyde.
6. Plot:
The book starts off talking about how Dr. Utterson, a well known London lawyer, and his distant cousin, Mr. Enfield, take a walk through the city of London. They walk every Sunday. They two men are complete opposites and barely even say a word to each other the whole time they are walking. One Sunday, they stumble upon a house that has a different door than the rest of the houses in the neighborhood. The door reminds Mr. Enfield about an encounter he had when he saw an unpleasant man trampling a small screaming girl while he was going somewhere. They later found out that his name was Mr. Hyde. The crowd of bystanders forced the man to make retribution in the form of money and they were surprised when he came back from the weird doors with ten pounds of gold and a check for ninety pounds. They went to the bank to make sure the check was valid because it was signed by Dr. Jekyll. The check ended up valid. Later that evening, in his apartment, Mr. Utterson becomes more interested in Mr. Hyde because Dr. Jekyll’s will has a weird clause that stipulates that Edward Hyde is to be the sole beneficiary of all of Dr. Jekyll’s wealth and property. Utterson goes there to visit someone named Dr. Lanyon, who tells him that ten years ago, that he and Dr. Jekyll became estranged because of a professional issue. Utterson decides to find Hyde. Utterson starts a conversation with Mr. Hyde and he becomes suspicious of his interest in him so Mr. Hyde tries to leave. Utterson walks around the block and knocks at the front door of Dr. Jekyll’s house. Utterson talks to the butler Poole and finds out that Mr. Hyde has complete access to Dr. Jekyll’s house. Later in the book, Utterson gets invited to Dr. Jekyll’s house for dinner and stays after all of the other guests have left so he can ask Dr. Jekyll about how Mr. Hyde is the beneficiary to all of his wealth. A year later, a maid witnesses the horrible murder of a old person named Sir Danvers Carew. The murderer leaves before they are caught. The maid identifies the murderer as Mr. Hyde and Utterson and the police go to his house to find him. They find out that he is not home. Utterson asks Dr. Jekyll where he went and he says that he left a letter saying that he disappeared forever. After Hyde disappears, Jekyll starts a new life. On another Sunday walk, they pass along the street where Mr. Hyde trampled the little girl. They go to the courtyard and see Dr. Jekyll in an upstairs window. Utterson invites Dr. Jekyll on their walk but suddenly Jekyll’s face starts to change and he runs back into his home. Utterson and Enfield are completely shocked. Utterson goes to his house again and Poole tells him that Dr. Jekyll has confined himself into his laboratory. Utterson and Poole break into his laboratory and they discover a figure just commit suicide by drinking some poison and find out that they man was Mr. Hyde. They search the entire house for Jekyll and find him nowhere. The only thing that Utterson finds is a note addressed to him from Dr. Lanyon. Dr. Lanyon’s note says that Dr. Jekyll needs to follow precise instructions: go to Jekyll's laboratory, secure certain items, bring them back to his house, and at twelve o'clock that night, a person whom Lanyon would not recognize would call for these things. Lanyon said that he had followed all of the instructions and at 12 o’clock a horrible creature appeared in the laboratory to get all of the items. Before leaving, he asked for a "graduated glass," proceeded to mix the powders and liquids, and then drank the potion. To Dr. Lanyon's horror, the figure transformed before his eyes into that of Dr. Henry Jekyll. Lanyon closes his letter by pointing out that the man who stepped into the house that night to claim Jekyll's items was the man known as Edward Hyde.
7. Literary Devices:
One literary device in this book is a metaphor. A metaphor is described as a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable. For example, Jekyll's lawyer Utterson shows his concern for his friend by thinking, "Poor Harry Jekyll . . . my mind misgives me he is in deep waters!" Jekyll is not literally drowning but in deep trouble. Later, an attack by Hyde is described as the man "hailing down a storm of blows,”. Another example is an oxymoron. For example, when running into the child in Enfield's story, Hyde "trampled calmly over the child's body." Trampling isn’t something you do calmy.
8. Memorable Quotes:
One memorable quote is, “There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something downright detestable." This is when Mr. Enfield is describing Mr. Hyde to Utterson. Another memorable quote is, “All human beings... are commingled out of good and evil." This is when Dr. Jekyll is reflecting on mankind.

[Kyrsten Seigrist · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
Kyrsten Seigrist
Book Card
21 January 2017
1.) Author's Background
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was written by Robert Louis Stevenson. He was a Scottish author who loved to travel. His expeditions inspired most of his literary works. He originally went to Edinburgh University to study engineering to follow his father’s footsteps so that he would be able to take over the family business. He changed his mind, deciding that law was a better fit for himself. He finished law school, but had chosen to take up writing. He wrote several novels before Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. However, it was this novel that would become one of his most famous works.

2.) Literary Time Period
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde was written in 1886. This is shown through the language used throughout the novel. It is also shown through the characters themselves. The men in the novel are hardworking individuals. The setting gives the audience another clue about the time period.

3.) Setting
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is set in Victorian Era England. Victorian England shows the ideas of the gap between the rich and the poor, along with the repression. These beliefs mixed with the servants and the cobblestone streets show the audience where the novel takes place.

4.) Characters
The main character of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is Dr. Jekyll. He is the epitome of good. He is a religious man who says his prayers every day. He does what is expected of him. However, he longs to be evil. Stevenson made him crave evilness to show the audience that even the nicest people have wants that are not exactly the best for those around them.
Another character is Mr. Hyde. He is Dr. Jekyll’s bad side. He is everything that Dr. Jekyll wishes he could be. Mr. Hyde is compared to a monkey throughout the novel. This comparison shows that humans are nothing more than trained animals. Mr. Hyde is also a very violent man. He likes to beat people in the streets. He also commits murders. This is the evilness that is trapped inside of every person in the world.
The final character from Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is Mr. Utterson. He is Dr. Jekyll’s friend. He is another good man who does what is expected of him. However, he can not mind his own business. He constantly tries to talk to Dr. Jekyll about Mr. Hyde. He believes that there must be a rational explanation for all of the crazy murders and beatings.

5.) Theme
The main theme of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is good versus evil. This theme is shown through human nature. Another name for this theme in this specific case could be man versus himself. The whole message that Stevenson is trying to convey is that humans are capable of being terrible creatures because it is in their nature. Dr. Jekyll is what society wants to think of themselves as; good, pure, normal. Mr. Hyde is what lurks behind the scenes; evil, tainted, cruel. In the end, there is no real winner. Both Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde die because human nature can not be controlled. Dr. Jekyll was trying to control the evilness inside himself while Mr. Hyde was trying to control Dr. Jekyll.

6.) Plot Summary
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde begins with the telling of a short story between two characters. The story is about a little girl who was hurt by a mysterious man who disappeared through a door only to return holding a big check from Dr. Jekyll’s bank account. Mr. Utterson, Dr. Jekyll’s lawyer, questioned him about the mysterious man. Dr. Jekyll did not answer any of his questions. However, Mr. Utterson finds out that the mysterious man is Mr. Hyde, the man whom Dr. Jekyll’s estate is left if he were to die. Once again, Mr. Utterson questions Dr. Jekyll, but to no avail.
Almost a year after this incident, a man is found dead. The only witness to the murder claims that Mr. Hyde was the culprit. No one can find him. While everyone is searching for Mr. Hyde, Dr. Jekyll is throwing dinner parties and is basically having a great time. He is becoming especially close with a Dr. Lanyon.
About two months later, both men become sick. They both claim the other is to blame and that they have had a fight that they can not repair. Dr. Lanyon winds up dying. He left a document to Mr. Utterson, but it was not to be opened unless Dr. Jekyll turned up dead or had disappeared. While Mr. Utterson is left to ponder over this secret document, Dr. Jekyll has become a recluse. He refuses to come out of his house, and besides a few visists from Mr. Utterson, he does not talk with others. Eventually, Dr. Jekyll’s servant comes to Mr. Utterson.
The servant tells him that he is very worried about Dr. Jekyll. The two of them go to Dr. Jekyll’s house and break into the laboratory. There they find Mr. Hyde’s body, but no Dr. Jekyll. The servant and Mr. Utterson search the room and find documents left for Mr. Utterson. He returns home to read them along with the document from Dr. Lanyon.
The audience learns that Dr. Jekyll had made potion that allowed him to be turned into Mr. Hyde. They are the halves of the same person. Dr. Lanyon found out and tried to talk to Dr. Jekyll. This did nothing but make matters worse. Dr. Jekyll then explains that Mr. Hyde was getting harder to control so he killed himself.

7.) Literary Devices
One literary device used in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is symbolism. Mr. Hyde lives in Soho which represents the evilness in the novel. The terrible events that unfold occur in Soho. This is because it is foggy and the weather is terrible. It makes for a great setting for bad things to happen.
Another literary device used is imagery. When Dr. Jekyll is creating the potion to turn into Mr. Hyde, Stevenson used descriptive words to hook the reader in. He wants the reader to be able to see the transformation of good to evil. This helps the audience better understand that although Mr. Hyde is part of Dr. Jekyll, they are not the same.




8.) Memorable Quotes
One memorable quote from Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is, “... with ape-like fury, he was trampling his victim under foot and hailing down a storm of blows…” This was memorable because it shows the audience how humans can revert back to beastly ways.
Another memorable quote is, “An ivory-faced and silvery-haired old woman opened the door. She had an evil face, smoothed by hypocrisy: but her manners were excellent.” This passage is describing Mr. Hyde’s housekeeper. It is memorable because it shows that even though she appears evil, she acts nicely. This is to show the audience that people are not always what they appear.
A final memorable quote from Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is, “Both sides of me were in dead earnest; I was no more myself when I laid aside restraint and plunged in shame, than when I laboured, in the eye of day, at the furtherance of knowledge or the relief of sorrow and suffering.” This was memorable because it shows that Dr. Jekyll is aware that he was both good and bad inside of himself. This was Stevenson’s way of showing the audience that everyone has two sides.

[Dev · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rating is solely for Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

other 4 stories are as followed

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐨𝐝𝐲 𝐒𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫 3/5
𝐁𝐨𝐭𝐭𝐥𝐞 𝐈𝐦𝐩 3.5/5
𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐦 4/5
𝐖𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧 2/5 (ngl I had no clue what was going on and could not care enough to pretend)

[Dorothy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not sure how it's a story about the "duality of good and evil" when Jeckyll is not at all a good person... Jeckyll was perfectly okay with Hyde committing his crimes and coming back to this personality. He was just not okay with losing his reputation, and he just wanted to get away with his sins.

I'd say the lesson of the story is more relevant today - you cannot trust that a person is incapable of doing immoral things just because they have a reputable personality

[Max · Rating 2 out of 5]

Jekyll and Hyde was a nice read with an interesting concept, but the other strange tales were just that- strange. The writing style and words used were very unique, I barely understood what was happening… I’m not smart enough to fully appreciate this.

[Connor Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde - 3.5 ⭐️

[Caitlin · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars

[Anna Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

DNF at 50% I loved the first two stories but the other ones are boring.

[Cameron Mcgill · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not what I expected and kind of boring to be honest. I only made it through the first 2 books.