Jekyll and Hyde Chapter 8

Jekyll and Hyde Chapter 8

1. Poole is clearly concerned about Jekyll

   • Utterson gets a surprise visit from Poole, who's worried about Jekyll's irrational behaviour
     • Poole avoids Utterson's questions
       • Utterson tells him to "be explicit" but Poole won't say what's happened
         • Lack of information increases suspense
     • Poole openly admits he's afraid
       • By admitting his emotions (rather than hiding them), he makes Utterson realise how serious the situation is
     • Poole's fear makes Utterson "frightened"
       • Which then "irritated" him
         • He's a rational person who's more comfortable dealing with facts than emotions

2. Terrified servants increase the suspense

   • When Utterson and Poole arrive at Jekyll's house, one of the maids is "hysterical" with fear
     • Utterson thinks this behaviour is "Very irregular, very unseemly"
       • Concerned with appearance of order
   • Utterson finds what has been making Poole so anxious
     • Poole has heard crying from inside the cabinet. He was given a desperate note for the chemist saying "For God's sake...find me some of the old"
       • Jekyll's desperation is clear from the anxious tone of his letter. There's mystery about why he needs the medicine so badly
     • Door to the cabinet remains locked - meals are left outside and taken when "nobody was looking"
       • Locked door is another barrier to revealing Jekyll's secret. There's a sense that something disturbing and dangerous is hidden behind it
     • Poole saw someone outside the cabinet - if it was Jekyll, it looked like he was wearing a mask
       • Mask is an important image. It explores the idea of dual personality - Hyde is a disguise which allows Jekyll to commit immoral acts without ruining his respectable reputation

3. Utterson struggles to find a rational explanation

   • Poole and Utterson have different explanations for what's been going on
     • Poole's convinced that Jekyll has been murdered by Hyde
       • He's sure it's Hyde because of the man's appearance and the sense of unease he felt around him
     • Utterson thinks Poole's explanation is a "wild" tale that doesn't hold up to reason
       • Believes that Jekyll has an illness which has changed his appearance and caused him to withdraw from society
         • Shows that Utterson is still looking for a rational explanation

4. Utterson decides to break the door down

   • Poole convinces Utterson that Hyde murdered Jekyll and that he's still in the cabinet with his victim
     • Poole says that his explanation is based on "feelings" not "evidence" but feels convinced by it
     • Highlights the lack of reliable evidence available to Utterson
   • Despite his anxiety, Utterson approaches breaking down the door in a typically logical way - delivers orders and tries to calm the servant's nerves
   • Locked door symbolises barriers to finding and accepting the truth of man's dual nature
     • Utterson and Poole are "appalled" that they've broken into Jekyll's cabinet - act goes against their usual restraint
     • Reluctant to disrupt the order of their civilised world
   • ...and finds Hyde dead on the floor inside
     • Utterson and Poole find Hyde's "sorely contorted" body - but Jekyll is nowhere to be found
       • "crushed phial" in Hyde's hand shows that he's committed suicide
     • Glowing fire and cosy room contrast with the horrible discovery of Hyde's body
       • Highlights the horror of what's happened to Jekyll's ordered existence
     • "commonplace" room shows that Jekyll was just an ordinary person - emphasises his concerns about the good and bad within him are relevant to everyone
     • Utterson finds a letter from Jekyll which he goes home to read with Lanyon's account
       • We're told "this mystery was now to be explained"

5. Hyde

   • Utterson sees "blasphemies" written on one of Jekyll's favourite religious texts
     • Shows how Hyde takes pleasure in undermining the good side of Jekyll's personality