Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
(Robert Louis Stevenson)

The plot of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde revolves around the moral dilemma of a lawyer named Gabriel John Utterson. The moral quandary involves Dr. Henry Jekyll who is both a friend and a client of his, having given him a holographic copy of his will. Utterson is not happy with the will, as it designates that if something should happen to Jekyll, everything should go to a man named Edward Hyde.

One evening Utterson and his cousin, Richard Enfield are walking through a London neighborhood when Enfield tells him about an incident he witnessed - a strangely misshapen, small and evil-looking man assaulted and beat a young girl. To appease the family, the man gave them a check with the signature of the wealthy and respectable Dr. Henry Jekyll. Enfield thinks that the check was a forgery but it turns out to be valid. Utterson goes home and looks at Jekyll’s will again and reviews Jekyll’s instructions that he wants his estate left to Mr. Hyde. Utterson later confronts Jekyll about the will but his client refuses to discuss it. As a lawyer, and as a friend, Utterson is unhappy about this and wishes Jekyll would be less secretive.

Just under a year later a man named Sir Danvers Carew is walking in the SoHo neighborhood on a cool and foggy night - he is an elderly man, a prominent Member of Parliament and generally respected and liked. He stops to speak to Edward Hyde, who is on the street – within a short time he assaults and kills Carew. A servant girl in a house nearby looks out of the window and recognizes Hyde – he has visited her master in the past. The police do not find Hyde in his living quarters. There is public outrage about the death of Carew but Hyde is not apprehended. When Utterson confronts Jekyll again about Hyde, the doctor assures Utterson that nothing is wrong but that he will sever his relationship with the man. Utterson is once again left with personal and professional misgivings, further complicated when the signatures of Jekyll and Hyde are said to be similar by his clerk, Mr. Guest, something of a handwriting expert.

Time passes and Hyde seems to have disappeared. Dr. Jekyll has come out of seclusion and seems to be his old self again. This does not last long though, and Utterson soon goes to see their mutual friend, Dr. Lanyon. He finds Lanyon in poor health and very depressed – he states, much to Utterson’s shock, that he does not want to see Jekyll again. He tells Utterson that he has left a written statement explaining everything. Within a few weeks Lanyon is dead. Utterson feels that Hyde may be behind everything but is somewhat relieved that whenever he goes to Jekyll’s Poole turns him away and says his master is too ill to see him.

Utterson and his cousin Enfield then witness the transformation of Jekyll into Hyde, the horrifying result of the man taking drugs. They soon discover that Jekyll/Hyde has locked himself in his laboratory, where they find him dead. In a letter Jekyll confesses to his fascination with the duality of personality, his drug use and admits to his suicide, fearful of Mr. Hyde taking over his personality completely. Lanyon’s narrative fills in some of the gaps of how the eminent Dr. Jekyll deteriorated through drug use and how his alter ego, Edward Hyde, came to dominate.

Settings

The Streets of London

The neighborhoods and streets of London are a setting in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde for it is there that Mr. Utterson learns about Hyde and Hyde commits a murder. The author paints an atmospheric picture of the streets creating the perfect place for the elusive Hyde to move about in obscurity.

Edward Hyde’s Living Quarters

Hyde lives in a building that stands out in its respectable surroundings due to its dinginess and general neglect. There is evidence of vandalism. Next to the house is a door that leads into a mysterious court. The house has an air of mystery and negativity.

Gabriel John Utterson’s Home

The home of an eminent lawyer, it is respectable and while not luxurious, fit for a man of his profession and stature. Utterson does most of his quiet thinking there and much of his contemplation on the case of Hyde takes place there.

Dr. Jekyll’s Home

The home of a successful doctor, it is in a good neighborhood and maintained by an extensive staff of servants. Mr. Poole, the butler, is aware of all the comings and goings in the house. It is connected by a back passage to the court next to Mr Hyde’s.

Dr. Jekyll’s Laboratory and Office

On the same property as Jekyll’s house, the laboratory is dingy and windowless. Inside is an unused operating theater and Dr. Jekyll’s office, known as a “cabinet”. It is where Hyde mixes his drugs and ultimately his corpse is found.