Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are two separate entities - yet they exist as one.
In the beginning and until the end, the two characters are different, and we perceive them to be two different beings - only to realize that it is not the case. Stevenson uses this marked contrast to make his point: every human being contains opposite forces within him or her, an alter ego. Correspondingly, to understand fully the significance of either Jekyll or Hyde, we must ultimately consider the two as constituting one single character. Indeed, taken alone, neither is a very interesting personality; it is the nature of their interrelationship that gives the novel its power.
Despite the two contrasting characters, their relationship in fact involves a complicated dynamic. While it is true that Jekyll largely appears as moral and decent, engaging in charity work and enjoying a reputation as a courteous and genial man, he is never the embodiment of true good, and shows glimpses of his "Hyde" nature even as Jekyll. In other words, although Jekyll undertakes his experiments with the intent of purifying his good side from his bad and vice versa, he ends up separating the bad alone, while leaving his former self, his Jekyll-self, as mixed as before. Jekyll succeeds in liberating his darker side, freeing it from the bonds of conscience, yet as Jekyll he never liberates himself from this darkness.
Jekyll therefore has a partial success - and Jekyll ascribes his results to his state of mind when taking the potion - and that he was motivated by dark urges when he first drank the liquid, showing that he did it of free will, and of will of the Hyde within him. He seems to imply that, had he entered the experiment with pure motives, an angelic being would have emerged. However, one must consider the subsequent events in the novel before acquitting Jekyll of any blame. For, once released, Hyde gradually comes to dominate both persona, until Jekyll takes Hyde’s shape more often than his own. In fact, by the end of the novel, Jekyll no longer remains - and Hyde seems to possess a force more powerful than Jekyll originally believed. Rather, Jekyll’s drinking of the potion seems almost to have afforded Hyde the opportunity to assert himself. It is as if Hyde, but no comparable virtuous essence, was lying in wait.
The dominance of Hyde poses questions to us: is it that evil is greater than the good of us?We begin to wonder whether any aspect of human nature in fact stands as a counter to an individual’s Hyde-like side. We may recall that Hyde is described as resembling a “troglodyte,” or a primitive creature; perhaps Hyde is actually the original, authentic nature of man, which has been repressed but not destroyed by the accumulated weight of civilization, conscience, and societal norms. Perhaps man doesn't have two natures but rather a single, primitive, amoral one that remains just barely constrained by the bonds of civilization. Moreover, the novel suggests that once those bonds are broken, it becomes impossible to re-establish them; the genie cannot be put back into the bottle, and eventually Hyde will permanently replace Jekyll—as he finally does. Even in Victorian England—which considered itself the height of Western civilization—Stevenson suggests that the dark, instinctual side of man remains strong enough to devour anyone who, like Jekyll, proves foolish enough to unleash it.
It is also possible to state that Jekyll was trying to transgress into the realms of god, as seen when he tries to separate personalities. In the bible, a group of people attempted to build buildings as tall as the sky so that they can reach God - and God had punished them for attempting such an action. Similarly, Jekyll is punished by the creation of Hyde, and his ultimate death in the end of the story.
In the beginning and until the end, the two characters are different, and we perceive them to be two different beings - only to realize that it is not the case. Stevenson uses this marked contrast to make his point: every human being contains opposite forces within him or her, an alter ego. Correspondingly, to understand fully the significance of either Jekyll or Hyde, we must ultimately consider the two as constituting one single character. Indeed, taken alone, neither is a very interesting personality; it is the nature of their interrelationship that gives the novel its power.
Despite the two contrasting characters, their relationship in fact involves a complicated dynamic. While it is true that Jekyll largely appears as moral and decent, engaging in charity work and enjoying a reputation as a courteous and genial man, he is never the embodiment of true good, and shows glimpses of his "Hyde" nature even as Jekyll. In other words, although Jekyll undertakes his experiments with the intent of purifying his good side from his bad and vice versa, he ends up separating the bad alone, while leaving his former self, his Jekyll-self, as mixed as before. Jekyll succeeds in liberating his darker side, freeing it from the bonds of conscience, yet as Jekyll he never liberates himself from this darkness.
Jekyll therefore has a partial success - and Jekyll ascribes his results to his state of mind when taking the potion - and that he was motivated by dark urges when he first drank the liquid, showing that he did it of free will, and of will of the Hyde within him. He seems to imply that, had he entered the experiment with pure motives, an angelic being would have emerged. However, one must consider the subsequent events in the novel before acquitting Jekyll of any blame. For, once released, Hyde gradually comes to dominate both persona, until Jekyll takes Hyde’s shape more often than his own. In fact, by the end of the novel, Jekyll no longer remains - and Hyde seems to possess a force more powerful than Jekyll originally believed. Rather, Jekyll’s drinking of the potion seems almost to have afforded Hyde the opportunity to assert himself. It is as if Hyde, but no comparable virtuous essence, was lying in wait.
The dominance of Hyde poses questions to us: is it that evil is greater than the good of us?We begin to wonder whether any aspect of human nature in fact stands as a counter to an individual’s Hyde-like side. We may recall that Hyde is described as resembling a “troglodyte,” or a primitive creature; perhaps Hyde is actually the original, authentic nature of man, which has been repressed but not destroyed by the accumulated weight of civilization, conscience, and societal norms. Perhaps man doesn't have two natures but rather a single, primitive, amoral one that remains just barely constrained by the bonds of civilization. Moreover, the novel suggests that once those bonds are broken, it becomes impossible to re-establish them; the genie cannot be put back into the bottle, and eventually Hyde will permanently replace Jekyll—as he finally does. Even in Victorian England—which considered itself the height of Western civilization—Stevenson suggests that the dark, instinctual side of man remains strong enough to devour anyone who, like Jekyll, proves foolish enough to unleash it.
It is also possible to state that Jekyll was trying to transgress into the realms of god, as seen when he tries to separate personalities. In the bible, a group of people attempted to build buildings as tall as the sky so that they can reach God - and God had punished them for attempting such an action. Similarly, Jekyll is punished by the creation of Hyde, and his ultimate death in the end of the story.