Appearance
The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,
I thought this book had very little horror in it at all. Even in the 1800s, when Robert Louis Stevenson wrote it, I still don't see how it could be horrifying to people in those days. I thought this book did not have black and white answers to questions. I also thought this book was way to long with 54 pages. I think it could have been put into a 20-page book and still have the same content of a 54-page book. I think that this was also very boring. I mean the best part was when Dr. Lanyon wrote that Mr. Hyde came to his house, mixed up a potion, and he turned into Dr. Jekyll. That has very little excitement to it. When I was going to read this book I thought it was going to be very scary and that I would be on the edge of my seat. Well neither of those things happened. In fact I just wanted to get the book finished so I could start a more exciting book. Those are my feelings on the book The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.
The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,
This book is, without a doubt, Stevenson's best ever work. All his other books pale in comparison. This is the classic tale of suspense and horror, and we are kept hooked until the end. Since this is a rather short book, it can be easily read in one sitting. Got a rainy day, or even an hour to waste sometime? Well, this book is the perfect thing to read. Stevenson sure packs a lot of story and suspense into these few short pages! Highly reccommended.
The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,
The book is an allegory of someone who leads a dual lifestyle. by day Dr Jekyl is a respected physician, but he wants to see the evil side of his nature. So he creates a chemical that separates the two. And what does he become-a shorts, monkey like man who is as wild and violent as any coke fiend today. It reminded me of how many of our neighbors lead double lifes. Closeted homosexuals, drug users, are people who have two sides to themselves but don't show it. The sory mirrors Stevenson's own lifestyle. He had an affair with a married woman and suffered from tubberculosis. He had a reckless side to him but wouldn't show it. He wrote this book with one thing in mind-everyone wants to be able to do as they please, even if the things they want to do are evil, but do some people actualy do them?
The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,
The book is an easy read, some of the currency symbols did not translate to Kindle well, but did not detract from the story.
The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,
"The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is assured a place in the history of horror fiction because it the literary classic that represents the archetype of the werewolf (the human with the hiding inside). Along with Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley's "Frankenstein" (the Thing Without a Name) and Bram Stoker's "Dracula" (the Vampire) Robert Louis Stevenson's novella is part of the gothic foundation of the modern horror story. All have in common the fact that they promise to tell a story that might best be left untold, which, of course, is exactly the sort of story we want to hear.Given that Stevenson was writing when the genre of horror fiction was not recognized as such, it is surprising that "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is cast in the form of a mystery novel. Stevenson invites his readers to try and get ahead of the story, to put the clues together and come to the conclusion. Today it is nearly impossible to pick up this story and not know the "secret," but if you think back to the late 19th-century when this story was written you can get a sense for how Stevenson used the biases and limitations of his readers to his advantage in keeping them from what we might consider to be an obvious conclusion.More importantly, Stevenson is writing several decades before the writings of Sigmund Freud revolutionized the whole idea of human psychology. Yet we can certainly find evidence of the conscious and subconscious mind of which Freud would write. Stevenson reinforces this metaphor with the block of buildings that divides this particular part of London, with one side representing the civilized world of a respected physician and the other side the squalor of the world inhabited by an inhuman creature who gives in to his every earthly desire. The novella also speaks to the topic of evolution, with Hyde being described as "ape-like," reinforcing the idea that our most human attributes remove us ever further from the category of mere animal.Of the three classic horror novels, "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" is the most accessible. Not only because of its shorter length, but also because its evil is more realistic, even in terms of our imagination. We might be unable to reanimate the dead or to become the walking dead, but we can certainly relate to the idea of unleashing the beast buried with us. Even if we could not, we can recognize the "werewolf" in the real world in the form of serial killers who try to show a civilized face to us in public. This is not to say that the novella is simplistic, for Stevenson offers a sophisticated narrative. If this is one of those literary you have never read because you already know the story, then you should take out an evening to sit down and finally get around to reading it.
The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,
Let me first echo the sentiments expressed by others and comment on what a beautiful edition the Univ of Nebraska Press has produced. The margins are indeed wide and the type very readable. This edition is easily held, the illustrations nicely complement the text and the binding is quite durable. The introduction by Joyce Carol Oates is helpful albeit pedantic. Also, those who've read the Univ of Calif Press edition of Frankenstein will notice some overlap between this introduction and the one that Ms. Oates wrote for that particular edition. Nonetheless, the introduction is valuable.Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde is one of those stories, like Frankenstein and Dracula, that seemingly everyone has heard of and believes they understand("mythopoetic " in the language of Joyce Carol Oates). Much like the aforementioned works, the actual details of the story may come as a surprise to those who assume they know the story based solely on the popular understanding. For that reason alone I think the book is worth reading.Dr. Jekyll is a respected if somewhat reclusive London doctor who has, through the course of years of experimentation, managed to create a solution which brings to the fore his evil alter-ego. Unlike many gothic literary villains, Hyde is not imbued with superhuman strength or exceptional gifts of any kind. In fact he is of a smaller and less imposing stature than most men. What he does possess however is a complete lack of compunction with regards to others. Hyde for example ruthlessly runs down a small child who gets in his way. As others have pointed out, this book is about, at least in part, moral restraint. Mr. Hyde is a part of Dr. Jekyll. This part was heretofore kept in check by the mores inculcated by society through child rearing practices, education, laws, et al. An elixir that eradicates moral restraint rips at the fabric of society and reverses in one fell swoop what it has taken hundreds of years to create.As is the case with Frankenstein, Dr. Jekyll creates something that he can't control and which eventually destroys its creator.Although not created by a potion, I think we see many sections in this and other societies that are are marked by anomie. The inhumanity that the fictional Hyde displays can, not surprisingly, be seen in the non-fictional world on a daily basis. As such, there is a realism to the story which is missing from many horror stories past and present. The fact that such a short and captivating work exists in an attractively packaged edition makes this one classic that will be a joy to read for all.