Notes on in-class essay on The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

1. Notes on in-class essay on The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Mr. Cleon M. McLean Department of English Ontario High School

2. Fabulous example • Similar to the Romantic painting, “The Raft of the Medusa”, which invites the viewer to share in the misery of its subjects, just so Stevenson’s novel invites the reader to solve the mystery of the peculiar Mr. Hyde. • Thank you, Brianna Villapando

3. MLA Documentation Style • In a tête-à-tête (a private conversation)with Mr. Enfield, Mr. Utterson says of Mr. Hyde, “If he be Mr. Hyde…I shall be Mr. Seek” (Stevenson5).

4. MLA Documentation Style • The venerable Doctor Jekyll must quest to find/have a balanced life, or he will find that “…between these two [Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde], I [Jekyll] now felt I had to choose” (Stevenson 48).

5. Vocabulary • Disreputable—having a bad reputation • E.g., The disreputable Mr. Hyde killed the Parliamentarian, Mr. Carew. • Venerable—commanding respect because of great age or dignity • E.g., The venerable Dr. Jekyll worked like a 14th century alchemist in his pursuit of the improbable. • Doppelgänger—a ghostly double or counterpart of a living person. • E.g., Mr. Hyde is Dr. Jekyll’s doppelgänger.

6. Vocabulary, continued • Countenance—appearance, especially the look or expression of the face. • Disposition—the predominant or prevailing tendency of one's spirits; natural mental and emotional outlook or mood; characteristic attitude. • E.g., Mr. Hyde had a rather unsettling disposition. • Paradigm—an example serving as a model; an exemplar. • The archangel Michael and fallen-angel Satan are a paradigm for the Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde contrast, respectively.

7. Vocabulary • Reclusive—to be in solitude; hermit-like • Bequeathed—to dispose of personal position by last will. • E.g., Dr. Jekyll bequeathed his estate to Mr. Hyde.

8. Modes of Persuasions • Pathos(emotional appeal, esp. pity) • Logos (logical appeal) • Mythos (underlying system of beliefs) • Ethos(distinguished character sentiment or morality) • Bathos: From the Greek word for “deep,” bathos is the comedy created when, for example, a character who attempts some grand feat, trips and falls. • The Sublime:The idea of loftiness is very much desirable in literary, so the sublime is the sort of ascension (with a mixture of pain and danger) into more than just the beautiful.

9. Spelling • Separate • Parallel • Beginning…not begging • interest • Where=place=donde • Were=past tense verb=estan • Convey—means to say • Portray—means to show

10. FYI • Compare apples with apples! • E.g.: • WRONG: The Enlightenment Period was a time of logos—i.e., the mind, whereas Romantic writers wrote about mythos—i.e., the heart. • RIGHT: Enlightenment writers approached literature with a conscious interest in logos—i.e., the mind; whereas Romantic writers favored mythos—i.e., the heart.

11. FYI • Do NOT say that the author forces the reader. This is clearly a negative act. Rather, you may say that the author invites/encourages the reader. • Dr. Jekyll is the embodiment of virtues, while Mr. Hyde is evil personified. • Kindly use transitional phrases at the beginning of ALL of your body paragraphs. This will at least remind the reader that you are conscious of structure.

12. FYI • What is different about the two sayings: • Man’s lighter and darker natures. (wrong, because it means man has 2 light and 2 dark sides) • Man’s light and dark natures. • The reader savors the process of the investigation, for it delves fathoms deeper into the human psyche than the shallow end of the solved mystery. • Axiom: Instant gratification takes too long.

13. FYI • Gothic genre is NOT Victorian! It is Romantic. • Keep things parallel, especially with respect to Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. • WRONG: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are bad and good personified. • RIGHT: Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde are good and bad personified, respectively.

14. FYI • Capitalize “G” in Gothic • Good: Mr. Hyde is the character that… • Better: Mr. Hyde is the character who… • Note: You should never use “which” to refer to a person. E.g., The man which is outside. 