Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde
It’s fall y’all, and Halloween is upon us. To celebrate, I read Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. Even if you forget who the “bad guy” is (tbh Jekyll sounds more malevolent even though he’s the “good” one), most people know what “Jekyll and Hyde” refer to. I think it’s pretty cool that a novella published in 1886 supplied a catchphrase that’s still thrown around today. For instance, I’m Dr. Jekyll when I’m at a lovely Chili’s restaurant and I’m Mr. Hyde when I’m hangry.
Stevenson wrote the novella feverishly. Literally-- he suffered from some intense health issues, and he finished the novel in a frantic, bedridden state. Stevenson's earlier work includes Treasure Island. If you’ve seen the GOAT Muppet Treasure Island, you know that that story is damn good.
Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is Victorian Era gothic fiction, so it’s perfect for when you want a little spooky contemplation on man’s capacity for good and evil. Dr. Jekyll—a generally good-natured man revered in society—sees a darkness in himself that he decides to set free. Ultimately, the darkness devours him.
I’ll state the obvious: Nineteenth-century English is different than the form of English used today. Hot. Take. If you recoil at the language used by Charles Dickens, Edgar Allen Poe, or Herman Melville, then this probably isn’t your cup of pumpkin-spiced latte. *Seasonal*
That being said, it’s a novella. It’s short! It’s a wonderful way to test if you can appreciate the writing that you hated in high school. At the time, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde broke ground in both writing style and theme, and it continues to be an enjoyable and interesting book to read. It receives 4 out of 5 flames.
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