In this novel, there are several distinct voices that Stevenson uses to build up plot and move the story from start to finish. These voices can be seen as different parts of Stevenson’s overall voice for the novel.
1.) Defining the undefinable. Most descriptions of Mr. Hyde, until the very end of the novel, touch on the theme that while he strikes other characters as disturbing to an extreme, it is difficult to put exact words to how or why. There are a number of examples of this throughout the story, and a good place to start is Mr. Enfield’s first conversation with Mr. Utterson. When Utterson asks, “What sort of man is [Hyde] to see?” (Stevenson 11), Enfield replies, “He is not easy to describe. There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something downright detestable. I never saw a man I so disliked, and yet I scarce know why” (Stevenson 11). (Note: this is a partial quote, and the rest is also relevant and worth a look.)
2.) Investigative. As Mr. Utterson becomes more deeply involved in figuring out the truth behind Dr. Jekyll’s strange behaviors, he begins to take on the voice of a detective. This comes out most clearly in certain parts of the dialogue.
For an example, see the conversations between Mr. Utterson and Poole that start in the chapter “The Last Night.”
3.) Self-Reflective. There are many letters in-text, as well as whole chapters, that come from a first-person perspective that not only relates past events but looks deeply into the thoughts and emotions felt by the given narrator. Often, these sections touch on complex themes and deeper overall meaning in more detail. See chapters such as “Dr. Lanyon’s Narrative” and “Henry Jekyll’s Full Statement of the Case.”
Saturday, June 10, 2017
How is the author's voice present in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Why is the fact that the Americans are helping the Russians important?
In the late author Tom Clancy’s first novel, The Hunt for Red October, the assistance rendered to the Russians by the United States is impor...
-
The poem contrasts the nighttime, imaginative world of a child with his daytime, prosaic world. In the first stanza, the child, on going to ...
-
There are a plethora of rules that Jonas and the other citizens must follow. Again, page numbers will vary given the edition of the book tha...
-
Robinson Crusoe, written by Daniel Defoe, is a novel. A novel is a genre defined as a long imaginative work of literature written in prose. ...
-
In the late author Tom Clancy’s first novel, The Hunt for Red October, the assistance rendered to the Russians by the United States is impor...
-
Lionel Wallace is the subject of most of "The Door in the Wall" by H.G. Wells. The narrator, Redmond, tells about Wallace's li...
-
"The Wife's Story" by Ursula Le Guin presents a compelling tale that is not what it initially seems. The reader begins the sto...
-
In Celie's tenth letter to God, she describes seeing her daughter in a store with a woman. She had not seen her daughter since the night...
No comments:
Post a Comment