Character Analysis and Key Quotes
The first page presents a comprehensive breakdown of the main characters in Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, along with their defining characteristics and significant quotes.
Dr Jekyll emerges as a complex protagonist, characterized by his scientific ambition and social respectability.
Character Traits: A well-respected medical doctor with supernatural interests, socially acceptable behavior, and charitable nature.
Quote: "You must suffer me to go my own dark way" - This quote reveals Jekyll's awareness of his dangerous path.
Mr Hyde represents the manifestation of Jekyll's darker nature.
Highlight: Hyde is described using animalistic and demonic imagery, emphasizing his role as the embodiment of evil.
Quote: "Like satan" and "black, sneering coolness" - These descriptions emphasize Hyde's malevolent nature.
Mr Utterson serves as the story's moral compass.
Character Analysis: As a lawyer and Victorian gentleman, he embodies reliability and respectability while maintaining curiosity about the mystery surrounding Jekyll and Hyde.
Quote: "If he be Mr Hyde, I shall be Mr Seek" - Demonstrating Utterson's determination to uncover the truth.
Dr Lanyon represents scientific rationalism.
Definition: His character serves as a foil to Jekyll, representing conventional scientific thinking opposed to Jekyll's experimental approach.
Supporting characters include:
- Poole: Jekyll's loyal servant, representing working-class Victorian values
- Sir Danvers Carew: An elderly gentleman of high social standing
- Enfield: Utterson's friend who witnesses Hyde's violent nature
- The maid: Provides a romanticized account of Carew
Vocabulary: "Troglodytic" - primitive or prehistoric, used to describe Hyde's nature
Example: The fog imagery in quotes like "fog slept above the drowned city" represents the moral ambiguity and mystery of Victorian London.