Part 6: The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: Character Answers

Read the excerpts from chapter one of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.Excerpt 1:Mr. Utterson the lawyer was a man of a rugged countenance that was never lighted by a smile; cold, scanty and embarrassed in discourse; backward in sentiment; lean, long, dusty, dreary and yet somehow lovable.Excerpt 2:[Hyde] is not easy to describe. There is something wrong with his appearance; something displeasing, something down-right detestable. I never saw a man I so disliked, and yet I scarce know why.

Which statement best describes how Dr. Jekyll is different than Mr. Hyde in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde?

Read the excerpts from chapter eight of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.Excerpt 1:Poole, who had kept all the way a pace or two ahead, now pulled up in the middle of the pavement, and in spite of the biting weather, took off his hat and mopped his brow with a red pocket-handkerchief. But for all the hurry of his coming, these were not the dews of exertion that he wiped away, but the moisture of some strangling anguish; for his face was white and his voice, when he spoke, harsh and broken.Excerpt 2:Mr. Utterson’s nerves, at this unlooked-for termination, gave a jerk that nearly threw him from his balance; but he recollected his courage and followed the butler into the laboratory building through the surgical theatre, with its lumber of crates and bottles, to the foot of the stair. Here Poole motioned him to stand on one side and listen; while he himself, setting down the candle and making a great and obvious call on his resolution, mounted the steps and knocked with a somewhat uncertain hand on the red baize of the cabinet door.

Read these excerpts from The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.Excerpt 1, from Chapter 1:[A]ll these were points against [Hyde], but not all of these together could explain the hitherto unknown disgust, loathing and fear with which Mr. Utterson regarded him. "There must be something else,” said the perplexed gentleman. "There is something more, if I could find a name for it. God bless me, the man seems hardly human!Excerpt 2, from Chapter 8:"Ay, ay,” said the lawyer. "My fears incline to the same point. Evil, I fear, founded—evil was sure to come—of that connection. Ay truly, I believe you; I believe poor Harry is killed; and I believe his murderer (for what purpose, God alone can tell) is still lurking in his victim’s room. Well, let our name be vengeance.

Read the excerpts from chapter one of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.Excerpt 1:That evening Mr. Utterson came home to his bachelor house in sombre spirits and sat down to dinner without relish. It was his custom of a Sunday, when this meal was over, to sit close by the fire, a volume of some dry divinity on his reading desk, until the clock of the neighbouring church rang out the hour of twelve, when he would go soberly and gratefully to bed.Excerpt 2:[Dr. Lanyon] was a hearty, healthy, dapper, red-faced gentleman, with a shock of hair prematurely white, and a boisterous and decided manner. At sight of Mr. Utterson, he sprang up from his chair and welcomed him with both hands. The geniality, as was the way of the man, was somewhat theatrical to the eye; but it reposed on genuine feeling.

Which description(s) characterize Dr. Jekyll in this excerpt? Check all that apply.

Which sentence uses indirect characterization?

Which statement(s) describe the steps for studying character development? Check all that apply.Consider the character’s actions at the beginning of the story.Recall other characters from various literary sources.Analyze how the character reacts to plot events throughout the story.Study the character’s behaviors at the end of the story.Imagine what might happen to the character after the story concludes.

Which statement best describes how Mr. Utterson’s view of civility and proper behavior changes throughout The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde?

Read these excerpts from chapter 8 of The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.Excerpt 1: "This is a very strange tale, Poole; this is rather a wild tale my man,” said Mr. Utterson, biting his finger. "Suppose it were as you suppose, supposing Dr. Jekyll to have been—well, murdered what could induce the murderer to stay? That won’t hold water; it doesn’t commend itself to reason.”Excerpt 2: "No, sir, that thing in the mask was never Dr. Jekyll—God knows what it was, but it was never Dr. Jekyll; and it is the belief of my heart that there was murder done.”"Poole,” replied the lawyer, "if you say that, it will become my duty to make certain. Much as I desire to spare your master’s feelings, much as I am puzzled by this note which seems to prove him to be still alive, I shall consider it my duty to break in that door.”