Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
Robert Louis Stevenson wrote Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde in the southern English seaside town of Bournemouth during 1886. He had moved there in 184 to benefit from the sea air and warmer climate for his health. The novella emerged from a specific dream that Stevenson experienced after days of struggling with a plot. His wife Fanny recalled waking him in the small hours of one morning when he cried out in horror. He told her angrily why she had woken him because he was dreaming a fine bogey tale about the first transformation scene.
The writing process itself became a frantic literary feat. Lloyd Osbourne, Stevenson's stepson, remembered reading nearly half the book aloud while Stevenson came downstairs in a fever. They were still gasping when Stevenson went back upstairs to write again. Osbourne doubted if the first draft took longer than three days. Stevenson rewrote the story over a period of three to six days before refining it further for four to six weeks.
Biographers have debated whether Stevenson used drugs during this intense rewriting phase. William Gray's revisionist history A Literary Life suggested he used cocaine. Other biographers claimed he used ergot. However standard accounts from his wife and son state he was bed-ridden and sick while writing. Mrs Stevenson read the draft and offered criticisms in the margins. Robert called her into the bedroom and pointed to a pile of ashes where he had burnt the manuscript. Scholars debate whether he really burned his manuscript since there is no direct factual evidence for the burning.
Gabriel John Utterson walks with his lighthearted cousin Richard Enfield down a by-street in a bustling quarter of London. They reach the door of a mysterious unkempt house that has been locked for months. Enfield recounts how a malevolent-looking man named Edward Hyde deliberately trampled a young girl after a minor collision. Enfield forced Hyde to pay the family a large sum of money to avoid scandal. Hyde brought Enfield to the door and gave him a cheque signed by Dr Henry Jekyll, Utterson's friend and client.
A year later in October a servant sees Hyde beat Sir Danvers Carew to death on an October night. The police contact Utterson who leads officers to Hyde's apartment in Soho. Hyde has vanished but they find half a broken cane which Utterson recognizes as one he had given to Jekyll. For two months Jekyll reverts to his former sociable manner before abruptly refusing all visitors in early January. Dr Hastie Lanyon dies of shock after receiving information relating to Jekyll.
In late February during another walk with Enfield Utterson starts a conversation with Jekyll at his laboratory window. Jekyll suddenly slams the window shut and disappears shocking and concerning Utterson. In early March Jekyll's butler Mr Poole visits Utterson saying Jekyll has secluded himself in his laboratory for weeks. Utterson and Poole break into the laboratory and find Hyde's lifeless body grotesquely draped in Jekyll's clothes suggesting suicide.
The novella frequently examines the duality of human nature expressed as an inner struggle between good and evil. Victorian society struggled with concepts of evolution and assumed humans could degenerate into something more ape-like and primitive. This anxiety known as devolution became prominent when Darwin published The Origin of Species. As Mr Hyde is described as a more primitive version of Dr Jekyll Stevenson explored these fears through gradual bestiality.
Scholars have argued that addiction or substance abuse serves as a central theme throughout the text. Daniel L. Wright describes Dr Jekyll as suffering from the ravages of addiction rather than just conflicting personalities. Patricia Comitini argues the central duality exists not between Jekyll and Hyde but between them and Utterson who represents the rational unaddicted ideal Victorian subject. The lack of prominent women in the novel points to a homosexual interpretation since there is focus on romanticizing bachelor boyhood for men.
The Labouchere Amendment criminalized homosexuality at the time the book was written. The discourse on sex had become secret and repressed desire whereas homosexuality was not even to be thought about. Some things Dr Jekyll did as Mr Hyde were too embarrassing to confess even on his deathbed following historically noted secrecy and shame of homosexuality in the Victorian era.
The book was initially sold as a paperback for one shilling in the UK where such books were called shilling shockers. The American publisher issued the book on the 5th of January 1886 four days before the first appearance of the UK edition issued by Longmans. Scribner's published 3,000 copies with only 1,250 bound in cloth. Stores did not stock it until a review appeared in The Times on the 25th of January 1886 giving it favourable reception.
Within the next six months close to 40 thousand copies were sold according to Graham Balfour's account from 1901. By 1901 it was estimated to have sold over 250,000 copies in the United States alone. Stevenson's biographer wrote that success was probably due rather to moral instincts of the public than conscious perception of artistic merits. It was read by those who never read fiction and quoted in pulpit sermons and religious papers.
Although initially published as a shilling shocker the novella became an immediate success and one of Stevenson's best-selling works. The phrase Jekyll and Hyde entered vernacular usage to refer to people with outwardly good but sometimes shockingly evil nature. This cultural impact transformed what began as cheap entertainment into a defining work of gothic horror literature.
The first stage adaptation followed the story's initial publication in 1886 when Richard Mansfield bought rights from Stevenson. He worked with Boston author Thomas Russell Sullivan to write a script adding female characters to the originally male-centred plot. The resulting play added elements of romance to the narrative structure. The first performance took place in the Boston Museum in May 1887 creating horrified reactions through lighting effects and makeup for transformation scenes.
After successful ten weeks in London during 1888 Mansfield was forced to close down production. Hysteria surrounding Jack the Ripper serial murders led newspapers to mention him as possible suspect for crimes. When Mansfield appeared in London newspapers as potential suspect he shut down production immediately. Stage adaptations soon moved across England then towards his home country of Scotland where they continued to thrive.
Richard Mansfield remained mostly known for his dual role depicted in double exposure photographs from 1895. The play added to cast of characters and some romantic elements that continued in later adaptations. The hysteria around real-world murders created unique pressure on actors playing murderers on stage who became considered suspects themselves by public opinion.
There have been numerous adaptations including over 120 stage and film versions alone since the novella's publication. A 1920 film titled Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde stands among early cinematic interpretations of the story. Many audio recordings exist with famous readers including Tom Baker Roger Rees Christopher Lee Udo Kier Anthony Quayle Martin Jarvis Tim Pigott-Smith John Hurt Ian Holm Gene Lockhart Richard Armitage John Sessions Alan Howard Rory Kinnear and Richard E Grant.
A 1990 musical based on the story was created by Frank Wildhorn Steve Cuden and Leslie Bricusse. Several video games have also emerged such as the 1988 Nintendo Entertainment System game Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. The 2001 PC game Jekyll and Hyde and the 2018 game MazM: Jekyll and Hyde continue this multimedia legacy.
S.G. Hulme Beaman illustrated a 1930s edition while Mervyn Peake provided memorable illustrations for the newly founded Folio Society in 1948. These visual interpretations complemented textual adaptations across different media formats. The story has inspired as many interpretations as it has film adaptations according to James Campbell writing for The Guardian in December 2008.
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Common questions
Where and when did Robert Louis Stevenson write Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde?
Robert Louis Stevenson wrote the novella in Bournemouth during 186. He moved to this southern English seaside town in 184 to benefit from the sea air and warmer climate for his health.
How long did it take Robert Louis Stevenson to complete the first draft of Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde?
Lloyd Osbourne doubted if the first draft took longer than three days. Stevenson rewrote the story over a period of three to six days before refining it further for four to six weeks.
What specific event involving Edward Hyde leads to the death of Sir Danvers Carew in October?
A servant sees Hyde beat Sir Danvers Carew to death on an October night. The police contact Utterson who leads officers to Hyde's apartment in Soho where they find half a broken cane which Utterson recognizes as one he had given to Jekyll.
When was the American edition of Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde published by Scribner's compared to the UK edition?
The American publisher issued the book on the 5th of January 1886 four days before the first appearance of the UK edition issued by Longmans. Stores did not stock it until a review appeared in The Times on the 25th of January 1886 giving it favourable reception.
Who performed the first stage adaptation of Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and when did it premiere?
Richard Mansfield bought rights from Stevenson and worked with Boston author Thomas Russell Sullivan to write a script adding female characters to the originally male-centred plot. The first performance took place in the Boston Museum in May 1887 creating horrified reactions through lighting effects and makeup for transformation scenes.