Jekyll and Hyde: topic sentences

Religion topic sentence 1 + quote

Religion is portrayed as providing clear guidance and instruction on how one should live their life Ch2, Utterson

“until the clock of the neighbouring church rang out the hour of twelve, when he would go soberly and gratefully to bed”

Religion topic sentence 2 + quote

Furthermore, characters turn to religion for safety in times of fear and danger- Ch 9, Lanyon

“‘O God!’ I screamed and again ‘O God’ again and again”(ch9)

Religion topic sentence 3 + quote

For Jekyll, religion is stifling and he wishes to break free- Ch 8, 10- Jekyll

“I was the first that could thus plod in the public eye with a load of genial respectability, and in a moment, like a schoolboy, strip off these lendings and spring headlong into the sea of liberty”(ch10)

Religion topic sentence 4 + quote

Essentially, religion cannot supress the evil nature of man- Ch 10

“Before the course of my scientific discoveries had begun to suggest the naked possibility of such a miracle, I had learned to dwell with pleasure, as a beloved daydream, on the thought of separation of these elements”(ch10)

Duality topic sentence 1 + quote

Stevenson makes the dual nature of man explicit through his physical descriptions of characters- Ch 2

“Jekyll grew pale to the lips, a blackness came about his eyes”(ch3)

Duality topic sentence 2 + quote

Alongside physical portrayal, a mental awareness of man's dual nature seems to be portrayed as deeply enticing- Ch 9, 10

“Before the course of my scientific discoveries had begun to suggest the naked possibility of such a miracle, I had learned to dwell with pleasure, as a beloved daydream, on the thought of separation of these elements”(ch10)

Duality topic sentence 3 + quote

Once the dual nature of one’ personality is embraced, it is portrayed as liberating- Ch 10

“sold a slave to my original evil and the thought in the moment delighted me like wine”(ch10)

OR

“I was the first that could thus plod in the public eye with a load of genial respectability, and in a moment, like a schoolboy, strip off these lendings and spring headlong into the sea of liberty”(ch10)

Duality topic sentence 4 + quote

Fundamentally, one side of man’s nature seems to eventually dominate the other- Ch 7

“the smile was struck out of his face and succeeded by and expression of terror and despair as froze the very blood of the two gentlemen”(ch7)

Jekyll character development topic sentence 1 + quote

Jekyll is depicted as a man of science in a world controlled and restricted by religion- Ch 10

“Before the course of my scientific discoveries had begun to suggest the naked possibility of such a miracle, I had learned to dwell with pleasure, as a beloved daydream, on the thought of separation of these elements”(ch10)

Jekyll character development topic sentence 2 + quote

The pressures of conformity clearly influence Jekyll’s behaviour- Ch10- repression, creating Hyde

“I was the first that could thus plod in the public eye with a load of genial respectability, and in a moment, like a schoolboy, strip off these lendings and spring headlong into the sea of liberty”(ch10)

Jekyll character development topic sentence 3 + quote

In reaction to conformity, Jekyll seeks to embrace freedom and knowledge- Ch 9

“A new province of knowledge and new avenues to fame and power shall be laid open to you, here, in this room upon the instant; and your sight shall be blasted by a prodigy to stagger the unbelief of Satan”(ch9)

Jekyll character development topic sentence 4 + quote

As the novel ends, we see the acknowledgement that Jekyll’s scientific exploration has discovered evil within man- Ch 10- duality

“I thus drew steadily nearer to that truth by whose partial discovery I have been doomed to such a dreadful shipwreck: that man is not truly one, but truly two”

Evil topic sentence 1 + quote

Evil takes many forms in the novella but the most explicit examples are the violence inflicted upon innocent victims- Ch 1, 4

“And the next moment, with ape-like fury, he was trampling his victim under foot and hailing down a storm of blows, by which the bones were audibly shattered”(ch4)

Evil topic sentence 2 + quote

This evil is extended beyond violence to a complete disregard for all of humanity- Ch 10

“the smile was struck out of his face and succeeded by and expression of terror and despair as froze the very blood of the two gentlemen”(ch7)

Evil topic sentence 3 + quote

Furthermore, evil is not always a physical presence, but also takes the form of blasphemy and attacks on religion- Ch 10- Jekyll and Hyde

“That child of Hell had anything human; nothing lived in him but fear and hatred”(ch10)

Evil topic sentence 4 + quote

Essentially, evil has the ability to control and influence the body and soul- Ch 10- transformation

“The most racking pangs succeeded: a grinding in the bones, deadly nausea, and a horror of the spirits that cannot be exceeded at the hour of birth or death”(ch10)