Curiosity Killed THIS Cat (Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde - Robert Louis Stevenson)

Name: Dollanganger

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Product:	Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde - Robert Louis Stevenson
Date:	23/07/05 (486 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Fantastic narrative and tale that blows any adaptation out of the water

Disadvantages: Alas, you may find the ending, erm, a tad familiar

The well told tale of the scrupulous, if tragically ill-fated, Dr. Jekyll has become one of the world’s most famous parables. A true case of curiosity killing the cat if ever there was one, this novella hit the stands in the 19th century with a clatter. Before your screen adaptations, before the plays, the operas, before the television series…before we all knew exactly how the story would end, before we already knew Dr. Jekyll’s dark secret, before all this people merely had a short book chock-full of gothicism, intrigue and a rather shocking climax. It’s sad that, today, this story is such a culturally recognised one that you’d be hard tested to find someone who would be genuinely surprised by the revelations it beholds. Sad, yes, but not the end of the matter. ‘The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ is, without a doubt, one of the greatest classics in literature, and it’s also a damned fine read…unsurprisingly.

Now, forget which one (or three) of the many, many, many adaptations of this story you have seen. I can tell you right now that none, and I mean NONE of them will have been a true reflection of the original novella. The tale of the foolish doctor hell-bent on taking his studies into deeper realms of science than ever before has since never been portrayed in the superior, chilling way as it was in the novel. Whilst adaptations tend to be narrated from Hyde’s point of view himself, the novella, you may be surprised to find, is actually narrated from the point of view of several characters, the most notable being John Utterson, a character who has been tragically discarded despite being the driving force of the book’s introduction, making it highly doubtful anyone other than readers will have heard this character’s name. The narrative is in fact very complex; multi-layered, from differing points of view and only at the very end from Jekyll’s own perspective. Some may think this is disappointing. On the contrary, the slow paced, achingly intriguing build up of clues from several different characters makes for a far, far more suspenseful read. Almost emulating the join-the-dots formula of a mystery thriller, this narrative only allows you to nibble at the bone, before finally allowing a succulent bite at the very end. Or, it did originally, anyway. You may already know the outcome, but by having the story unfold in such a different manner as we have become accustomed to, there is at least still some semblance of shock to be found, thank goodness.

Characterisation is a funny thing to discuss in this review. After all, the whole point of the plot (aside from the more serious parable to consider) is that Jekyll and Hyde’s characters remain somewhat of a mystery. There is hardly scope for complex development, yet by the end of this short, exhilarating ride you will undoubtedly feel a great affinity with the foolish Henry Jekyll. This feeling of empathy and familiarity is derived from the full portrait of the character you manage to cobble together from the various viewpoints displayed. So, whilst Jekyll never fully comes into the limelight himself, by the end of the novel there is a fairly illuminating stance on his good character, and you cannot help but feel sympathy for him.

Now, imagine we had been alive when this novel was first published. Not only would we have had the advantage of reading the story untainted, with no thoughts as to the shock revelation, but we would be in the same frame of mind as Stevenson when he penned the story, making the novel far more personal. Unfortunately, unless you’re harbouring an age untold of, we don’t have this pleasure. What we can take pleasure in, though, is the fact that this is a book of it’s time that we can delve into, clearly gauging the era in which it was written. From this point of view, this novel gives us a bird’s eye view of the reaction to Darwin’s evolution theory. You may not believe me, but the notion of man and animal having a shared duality is a major theme of this novel, and it’s extremely interesting to read Stevenson’s thinly veiled views on Darwin’s revelations.

It is the complex and various themes of this novel that, in my opinion, really mark it out. The question of duality, the existence of good and evil, the power/destruction of knowledge…these themes are explored with intelligence and a hunger that conveys just how much Stevenson enjoyed writing this book. He poses the reader several explicit and several hidden questions, suggesting he in no way patronises or underestimates his readership, which is something I always appreciate. By the end of the novel the possibility that humankind could very well harbour within two such polar opposite moralities becomes a chilling case for wonderment. And even amidst this psychological element, there is still a very much fictional Gothic, horror-like spark. Comparisons to Poe, in this case, are fully justified, as Stevenson’s portrayal of Victorian London is menacing and exciting, as is his very dark creation of Hyde.

There are so many reasons to read this book, I simply couldn’t go into them all. If you thought the films were good, then read this, and be set to be impressed. The intriguing, slow building narrative combined with a horrific premise makes for compelling reading. It shouldn’t be forgotten that this is very much a book of its time, which is no bad thing; I’d take Stevenson’s Victorian, sophisticated horror any day ahead of your Hollywood scream fest.

I hope I’ve made at least one of you curious enough to seek out this novel. Though beware, because, as poor Dr. Jekyll discovered himself, curiosity really can kill…

Summary: Literary classic that you have to read in order to appreciate its original genius