STUDY SHEET - DR JEKYLL AND MR HYDE by Robert Louis Stevenson

1. What genre does the book fit into?

2. When was the book published?
3. What are the major themes of the book?
4. Is there a moral to the story concerning mans pursuit of knowledge? Can
science go too far and unleash the forces we cannot control? Give examples.
5. Describe each character in a few sentences.
- Dr Jekyll
- Mr Hyde
- Mr Utterson
6. When does Mr Hyde first appear in the book and what was his link to Dr Jekyll?
7. When did you first realize that Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde were the same person?
Describe the events in the story that led you to this conclusion.
8. Why was Mr Utterson worried about Dr Jekylls will? In what way does the will
change afterwards? What may be the reason for this change?
9. Describe the murder and what happened afterwards.
10. How do people feel when in presence of Mr Hyde? Why is this so, in your
opinion?
11. What did Jekyll hide from people as a young man and why?
12. Do you think that the potion that Dr Jekyll drinks can be a metaphor for
something? If yes, what for?
13. What did dr Jekyll decide after the murder of Carew?
14. Why does Dr Jekyll keep changing into Mr Hyde although he was aware of
his evil?
15. What happened in the park?
16. What happened to Hyde in the end?
17. Dr Jekyll says that there is good and bad in everyone. Do you agree or
disagree with him? Give examples of people that you know about.
18. Read the excerpt from Dr Jekylls story. How do you interpret these words?
Can you relate them to your own life?
The years passed, and I grew older and more sensible. But it was too late to change
my double life. And then, through my scientific studies, I learned something important.
I learned that man has two sides a good side and an evil side. I knew that this was
true of me. I was honest about it. As a doctor, I tried to learn more and to help sick and
suffering people. The other part of me was also honest about its search. Slowly it
became clear to me that man is not just one person. He is two people.
' Can I separate the two sides ?' I asked myself. ' Can I make two people - one good,
one bad - from a single person? If I can, life will be much easier. The bad person can
live in his own bad way, without hurting the good person and people's opinion of him.
And the good person's good name will be in no danger because of the other person's
bad actions. It seems wrong that we have to live with both persons in the same body

19. How do you cope with your Mr Hyde? Give examples.