The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr.

Hyde is a novella written by Scottish writer Robert Louis

Stevenson, and published in 1886. The novel falls into the Gothic genre - a literary genre originating
from the 18th century, which describes a sinister, grotesque, or mysterious atmosphere.

The opening pages of “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde “ contain many conventions of the
gothic genre. On the first few pages, we see a big quantity of similes. For example, “his affections, like
ivy, were the growth of time, they implied no aptness in the object”. This means that Mr. Utterson does
not choose friends carefully, but becomes attached to people who are around for a long time. Another
interesting example of a simile is when the narrator describes the apothecary. The phrase states that the
apothecary was “as emotional as a bagpipe”. This comparison makes it seem like the apothecary is not
emotional since bagpipes are not living objects.

On page 3 we can see an example of descriptive language. The narrator describes a busy street in
London that drove a thriving trade on the weekdays. The shop fonts are described as “rows of smiling
saleswomen” and the street itself “shone out in contrast to its dingy neighbourhood”. In these quotes,
the narrator is telling us about the positive side of London, however, he then goes into the negative. He
describes one of the buildings as “sinister”, with no windows and a “blind forehead of discoloured wall”.
The narrator uses juxtaposition to show us how even the capital of the first global industrial power at
the time was still infamously filthy.

Gothic genre novels are famous for their mysterious and sooky characters. In the first chapter, we get
introduced to a character called Mr. Hyde. When Mr. Enfield tells us about him the first time, he says
that the man “trampled calmly” over a child and left her screaming on the ground. The word “calmly”
suggests Hyde had no compulsions over harming the child, and the contrast between this and
“screaming” emphasizes how callous he was. Enfield also called the man “some damned Juggernaut” to
emphasize the power of Hyde´s evilness, which is a bit ironic because before he was described as “a little
man”. A little further in the text, Stevenson uses a simile when describing Mr. Hyde: “really like Satan.”
This shows that Hyde is an abominable human being who doesn't have a conscience. Although this
might not have a major effect on the reader nowadays, it shocked Victorian readers due to their
religious beliefs.

To sum up, ‘The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde’ fits the Gothic genre perfectly with its
description of the dark streets of London and mysterious characters. Stevenson carefully chooses the
physical location for the scenes, as the atmosphere and environment of a Gothic novel directly
contribute to the feeling of fear and uneasiness. The villainous character of Mr. Hyde is complex and
makes the reader feel a bit spooked and uncomfortable.