The View of Human Nature Presented in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

What view of human nature does Stevenson present in the novel The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde? The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Question: What view of human nature does Stevenson present in the novel â€Å"The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde†? Throughout Stevenson’s life he experienced things by looking at them in two different perspectives. He later went on to exhibit his experiences by writing a novel about split personality called â€Å"The strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde†. This essay will comment and explain Stevenson’s view of human nature within the novel. What is human nature? In my opinion human nature is the natural disposition of a human being, his/her inborn inclination to act,†¦show more content†¦Ã¢â‚¬Å"Men of high social classes were expected to live honourable lives [Dr. Jekyll]. They live in smart houses in the rich west end†, normally the smartest areas of the city. This citation eludes the most fortunate people of the Victorian era. However, a few minutes walk from the rich west end laid a completely new London, SOHO, one of the poorest areas of London. In SOHO â€Å"dirty children roamed past ragged washing in the streets and criminals stalked the night [Mr. Hyde]†. We can see that the unfortunate community of people were living in less favourable properties which was unsafe and deficient to enable comfortable lifestyles similar to that of their counterparts. In the novel Victorian England is described through vivid scenes and the expected morals of society are presented through role models such as the lawyer (Mr. Utterson). The novel makes numerous references to, and uses aspects of the Victorian society within its plot. Reputation and background more than financial status determined the acceptance of an individual into a society. Appearance was also a factor upon which people were judged as in the novel the characters turn out to be as they are first described. An example of first impressions is given when Mr. Utterson’s talks with Mr. Hyde for the first time. â€Å"He gave an impression of deformity without any nameable malformation†. He is saying that Mr. Hyde looked half-developed but could not tell what it was, as science hadShow MoreRelatedStevenson and Conrad: The Duality of Human Nature 778 Words   |  3 Pagesperiod of immense transition in many aspects of human life. In 1859 Charles Darwin published The Origin of Species, a work that opposed the traditional way of perceiving religion. Candyce Klin author of â€Å"Darwinism as A Cultural Issue†, states that The Origin of Species proposed the theory that all living creatures had to compete within their own preconditions in order to survive. 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