Reviews with content warning for Murder - The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Other Tales of Terror

An obscure and mystifying read. This book had me thinking of things I had yet to thoroughly contemplate and ask questions about—like, good and evil, and how both reside in us, and if there is a natural predilection to one over the other? Or is it that we simply choose one because that’s how we’re conditioned to think? Is good and kindness inherently selfish since many are doing it in hopes of getting to a better place?? I don’t know. It also invoked in me a sense of sympathy. We all have vices and sinful cravings. Dr Jekyll became incredibly enthralled by them, as well as conflicted by the polarisation of his mind and thoughts. He lost sight of things for a while, then tried to rid himself of his overwhelming compulsions to transform into Mr. Hyde, but he relapsed after 2 months of being clean of his evil self. The way it all happened was a reflection on—what felt to me like—addiction, in a general sense.

I liked the atmosphere in this book, i.e. the constant fog and overall dreariness. I wasn’t horrified by Dr Jekyll—his actions? Yes. Him in appearance? No. This was probably because everything about him and the wickedness he exudes is incredibly vague, and my imagination couldn’t conjure something terrifying from his descriptions, which I hardly remember much about besides the fact that he’s short and has indistinct, unfathomable and foggy “deformities”. All I had pictured in my head was a short and angry man. Every character felt so suppressed in their emotions/inner strifes, as they hardly ever verbalised personal matters—this is more patent at the end when both of Mr. Utterson’s (MC) friends reveal the truth through written letters rather than telling him. But even though they didn’t, I’m not disappointed. I thoroughly enjoyed the ending. Everything was leading to Dr Jekylls admission, and having it written the way it was in the end just felt fitting, and I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way; it was vague and it was indirect, which is the embodiment of this book.

I feel I would’ve given this book a higher rating had I not spoiled it for myself prior to reading it—the ending would’ve definitely been much more of a shock—but because I did spoil it, I found myself not grappling for the next page, but rather just restlessly waiting till Mr. Utterson finally knew the truth. Though, the ending was much more insightful and not as concise as just “hey, I was Mr Hyde all along”. No. It explained much more—which I’m grateful for.

Something I found interesting to know was how 2 years after this book’s publication, Jack the Ripper was terrorising the streets of London (which is where this book was set in), and because of this, stage plays of this book had to be discontinued out of consideration for the disastrous climate of the time: ‘ The London public drew parallels between Jack the Ripper's reported medical skill and Dr. Jekyll's medical background as described in "The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde." ’.

Overall, I liked the writing style and recurring obscurity. I liked that it was concise and didn’t drag on. I’m just annoyed at myself for spoiling the book before I had read it, thus dampening an experience that could’ve been much more entertaining and bewildering.
•••

My edition included ‘The Body Snatcher’, which I gave a 3.5 stars. The ending was quite fantastic, and I thoroughly enjoyed how quick and shocking the whole story was. I got to learn, from the footnotes, about Robert Knox and the Burke and Hare murders—which was an appalling case.
•••

My edition also includes ‘Olalla’. I gave this a 3.5 stars, too. I had a soft spot for the romantic yearning in this story, as well as the Gothic setting and themes. Though not explicitly mentioned what the mother is, it’s still quite clear either way, and it is the evil she happens to be that causes a rift between the main character and Olalla, her spoilt genetic line, too, bringing them further apart. It was littered with religion, peculiar characters, an isolated setting, volatile weather, mutual pining, and a fiend(?). It was short and easy to enjoy.

Content Warnings

michayla13's review

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challenging dark reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

grayscale08's review

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dark mysterious tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.5

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