The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is a Novella written by Robert Louis Stevenson. It is a Gothic Fiction which is a genre of literature that uses fiction, horror and Romanticism all together. Gothic fiction has elements that we can also see in The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde such as an atmoshphere, suspense and mystery, supernatural occurrences and the use of gothic vocabulary. In this extract in chapter 5 Mr Utterson has recieved a letter signed by Dr Jekyll. Mr Utterson And Mr Guest conclude that the letter signed from Mr Hyde and the letter from Dr Jekyll is the same handwriting therefore it must of been written by the same person. In this essay i will analyse this extract and explain how stevenson used literary devises to create and convey different meaning. Also i will try to explain how the devices stevenson uses contribute to the novella, by giving it a sinister atmospher and giving a deeper insight into characters.
Pathetic Fallacy, attributing human feelings to inhuman things and creating a environment that reflects emotion or a characters personality, is used in this extract to create a certain mood and idea. One example is " the fog still slept on the wing above the drowned city" firstly the idea that the city is drowned sets a mood/atmosphere that the city has something bad in it which is causing it to be drowned. Also connotes that the city is quite a dark, dull and gloomy place to be. The idea that the fog is sleeping means that the fog is not moving away. Fog is a symbol of Dr Jekyll becoming overwhelmed by Mr Hyde in this book, so the fact that it is sleeping (not moving) refers to
Mr Hyde as the fog, who is still waiting to overwhelm Dr Jekyll once again. Another example of pathetic fallacy in this extract is "the lights glimmered", the word glimmered connotes dim, weak and unsteady light, and that only small amount of light can fill the city.
Motifs in this extract are used such as " letter", "door" , "house", "lamps", "handwritin" and "windows". The words "letter" and "handwriting" are relevent in this extrat because the chapter is about the letters from Mr Hyde and Dr Jekyll and all about why the handwritingsare the same on both letters. This whole questioning of the letters creates a suspensful atmosphere as we do not know at that moment what the outcome will be. Also gothic is driven by symbolic imagery like the motif above so the motifs reallt create the atmosphere and setting.
The phrase " a bottle of particular old wine that had long dwelt unsunned in the foundation of his house" that we read about in this extract is about Mr Utterson retrieving a bottle of good wine from "the foundations of the house". In order for wine to be good and to stay "good" it has to be neglected " left unsunned" to remain healthy. This is similar to Dr Jekyll that in order to stay in his "good" character he has to neglect and keep Mr Hyde hidden inside himself and away. The idea of neglecting wine to keep it good creates a dark atmosphere because to neglect something or someone is to show no care or thought for it.
Stevenson uses words with dual meanings throughout the novella, one word that he used in this etract is " carbuncles". This can mean a severe absess filled with bacteria or a bright red gem the use of this word brings another negative image of the city because it has a idea that it is being infected like a carbuncle.
To conclude Robert Louis Stevenson, the author of " The strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde" uses a variety of literary devises to create moods, atmosphere and to suggest ideas. Without the use of several literary devices the story would be plain with no deeper insight or meanings or way to describe what is occuring in the novella.
Good structure, and some really insightful analysis! You are making tremendous progress.
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