“You start a question, and it’s like starting a stone. You sit quietly on the top of a hill; and away the stone goes, starting others . . .”

Story of the Door ~ Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

1. Once you’ve played with fire, is it easier to burn down the house or to control the urge? The popularity of the story of Jekyll & Hyde plays on our fear of the uncontrollable—or, our lack of self-control. Perhaps we all know the story because we can all relate to it. The idea of having an alter ego you have no control over appeals to our human nature. What would it be like if we lost control of our morals and values?



2. a. What do you think is the message of the story?
   
   b. What if, in the end, Jekyll was able to conquer Hyde? How would this outcome affect the message of the story and the readers’ or audience’s response to it?



3. In the novel, Hyde is responsible for his own death. However, in the play, Jekyll is the one who poisons and kills Hyde. Does this imply that in the novel, Jekyll continues to maintain influence over Hyde through the transformation process, while in the play a total separation has occurred? Why or why not?



4. Most people today know the secret of Jekyll and Hyde. Stevenson’s readers would have been unfamiliar with, and kept in suspense of, the connection of Jekyll and Hyde until the end of the novel. In the play we are made aware of it right away.
   
   a. Why wasn’t the original approach kept?
   b. What other elements have been substituted in the play?
   c. Are there any advantages to now be had: availability for new concepts or deeper probings?
   d. Do you believe that this approach still maintains Robert Louis Stevenson’s intent for the story?



5. What are prevailing themes in the story of Jekyll and Hyde? In what ways is this story universal?



6. In what genre would you classify this novel—crime, mystery, suspense, thriller . .? What qualities of the novel support your answer?



7. Today you may label someone a “Jekyll & Hyde” if they are continually switching back and forth between two extreme personalities. Stevenson wrote the novel to shed light on the two opposing sides (hypocrisy) of Victorian society. Do you think that his story still sheds light on society today? Or do you think that the term is so widely used that this type of person is now to be expected and therefore easily dismissed? Give examples to support your answer.



8. Jekyll was often “at war with himself” (inner thoughts vs. outward actions). What sort of everyday instances can you think of where you may be “at war with yourself” and encountering this concept of dual character?



9. The play does not use the character name of Utterson. How does this deletion add to or detract form the story, its narrative form, and the outcome? How does the playwright still represent Utterson in other ways?

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