The strange case of Dr

Ani Misirliyan
Kathryn Bellows
(H) English 2A
24 November 2014
Curiosity Kills the Cat
In The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, written by Robert Stevenson, curiosity becomes a prominent issue that leads people into dangerous situations that cannot be escaped. Many characters show curiosity throughout this novella, such as Mr. Utterson. Mr. Utterson obtains a job as a lawyer, which by definition makes him a curious character. He enjoys solving other people's issues, and getting into people's personal lives. This causes him to get involved in other character's problems, which ultimately leads all of them into hazardous circumstances. An example of this occurs when Dr. Lanyon leaves Mr. Utterson two letters, both written by him. The first letter discussing the reason behind his death, and the other letter is not to be opened until after Dr. Jekyll’s death. Mr. Utterson, although tempted to open the second letter, decides not to. For example, Mr. Utterson states, "A great curiosity came on the trustee, to disregard the prohibition and dive at once to the bottom of these mysteries, but Professional honour and faith to his dead friend were stringent obligations; and the packet slept in the inmost corner of his private safe"(Ch. 6). Mr. Utterson usually acts on his feelings of curiosity, but in this instance he refrains. If he opens the letter, he could attempt to rescue Dr. Jekyll from his tail of unfortunate events; however, Mr. Utterson experiences so many incidents where his curiosity guides him into trouble; therefore, he decides to stay out of their business. Unfortunately, his curiosity could have helped his friend, Dr. Jekyll, for the better. The setting also shows curiosity and its consequences throughout the events that occur. For example, curiosity leads to Dr. Jekyll's creation of Mr. Hyde. As a man of science Dr. Jekyll remains curious about everything. For instance, Dr. Jekyll's curiosity causes him to wonder how the lower class lives and how they survive. He also wants to know what happens to an individual's personality when they turn evil. He takes these two ideas and decides to create a new version of himself to find out what his personality would change into; this way he can live a double life. Dr. Jekyll develops a formula that transforms him into this other version of himself. He states, "But the temptation of a discovery so singular and profound at last overcame the suggestions of alarm. I had long since prepared my tincture; [...] I compounded the elements, watched them boil and smoke together in the glass, and when the ebullition had subsided, with a strong glow of courage, drank off the potion"(Ch. 10). Once he knows his formulas capabilities, he has the urge to continue using it, and to continue exploring the new version of himself. However while transforming into Mr. Hyde, Dr. Jekyll does not realize the quantity of damage this evil character causes. He finds himself falling in love with the rush he experiences while transforming into Mr. Hyde. Once Dr. Jekyll sees how much damage he has inflicted on their society, it is too late to destroy Mr. Hyde. He has grown too powerful, causing Dr. Jekyll's curiosity to kill him. Conflict can also demonstrate curiosity. For example Dr. Jekyll deals with many internal conflicts while deciding whether or not to put Mr. Hyde away for good. Before Dr. Jekyll creates Mr. Hyde, he always tries to do good things. While in the personality of Dr. Jekyll, he knows that destroying Mr. Hyde is the right thing to do, but he has grown to love Mr. Hyde and he does not want to give him up forever. Dr. Jekyll tries to stay himself for a while; causing everything to go back to normal, and Dr. Lanyon, Mr. Utterson, and Dr. Jekyll begin hanging out again. However after about three months, things take a turn for the worse. Dr. Jekyll's servants state, "The doctor, it appeared, now more than ever confined himself to the cabinet over the laboratory, where he would sometimes even sleep; he was out of spirits, he had grown very silent, he did not read; it seemed as if he had something on his mind. Utterson became so used to the unvarying character of these reports, that he fell off little by little in the frequency of his visits" (Ch. 10). Dr. Jekyll grows sick of his own goody-goody personality; he wants to feel that rush of transforming into Mr. Hyde. The thought of this rush haunts him until he cannot take it. He decides that he can afford to be Mr. Hyde for one more day, but this time he cannot get rid of Mr. Hyde, and he finally understands the mistake he made. Sadly, for the last time, he realizes all the damage he has created and decides to lock himself in his laboratory to keep himself from hurting others. However, the pain of staying as Mr. Hyde grows too high, and they both disappear forever.