Jekyll and Hyde - Victorian Gentlemen
Most of the characters in this novel follow the path of a victorian gentleman, however,
Stevenson uses this to further distance certain characters from the notion of being
‘respectable’.
From the first chapter, the overarching theme of repression appears to the reader, vividly.
Mr. Utterson “the lawyer” is said to be “austere with himself”. The verb “austere” portrays
his clear mindset to control his mannerisms in the view of the public and repress
unnecessary emotions or thoughts. This is further implied as we learn that “he had not
crossed the door of one (theatres) for twenty years.” Even though Utterson “enjoyed it”, his
austerity appears to be stronger than his desires. Stevenson describes Utterson to the
reader in the first chapter, to represent the predictable victorian gentleman, so he can be
used as a foil in the novel; as Utterson follows the social order of behaving accordingly by
“mortifying the taste for vintages”, we can contrast him to others and learn further about
their respective roles in the novel. In the Victorian Era when this novel was set, men who
were not “austere”, were despised by the public and had a lack of authority. On the other
hand, Utterson is directly named as “the lawyer” to the reader, to emphasise his position in
the hierarchy of Victorian Society.
Linking to the previous thesis, the character of Hyde is introduced to us from a mere story
of a horrific scene. Hyde is seen to have “trampled calmly over a girl” in public. The verb
“trampled” suggests a lack of respect Hyde has for his fellow citizens, which is further
supported by the proposition “over” as if Hyde dismisses the child’s innocent life under his
feet. This is intensified by the oxymoronic juxtaposition of the adverb “calmly” to show his
thoughts toward his violent act; Hyde is suggested as relaxed and with a caring soul as he
holds to remorse for his actions. Stevenson created Hyde, to compare with the “respected”
victorian gentleman of Utterson that we have already met. Hyde seems to “audibly”
illustrate his terror in public, whereas, Utterson only appears “loudly in the acts of his life”.
The theme of repression again falls in this point as Hyde never retracted his steps, but
continued to “trample calmly over”. Stevenson depicts Hyde as a direct opposite of
Utterson, linking to the contextual theme of Good and Evil, which appears throughout this
novel and others in the current time. The audience, in the Victorian Era, were “caged” in a
Jekyll and Hyde - Victorian Gentlemen
battle between repression and hidden indulgences in the backstreets of “Soho”. Stevenson
makes it clear that repression can control a person’s desires, which can only lead to a better
life. If this rule is broken, an inner devil of Hyde will “come out roaring”.
There is a final bridge between victorian gentlemen and the animalistic character of Hyde:
the transformation. When Jekyll mutates, his face “grew pale to the very lips and a
blackness came about his eyes”. The colour-deprived semantic field of “pale” and “blackness”
illustrates a negative, physical effect on Jekyll due to the inner “devil” that lives within him.
The “pale[ness]” is personified by the verb “grew” to suggest that Hyde is escaping onto
Jekyll’s face directly. From this, his face lacks colour and blood, which could suggest a
diminishing amount of happiness and life in him. Stevenson uses physiognomy here to show
that a person’s characteristics can be expressed from their appearance; Hyde's seen to have
a sense of “blackness” in him, connoting the idea of death and horror from a gothic point of
view. The reader would recognise the technique of using facial characteristics to judge
people’s attitudes as this was very popular in the Victorian Era; one has to look smart and
approachable in public, or they will be dismissed from being part of society. This is
supported when we witness the “trumps slouched” near the dying parts of London; due to
their lack of money and investment in their appearance, they have been left to rot without
shelter. Victorian Gentlemen were to dress accordingly to the society, or this can lead to
their downfall in the hierarchy.