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Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde


            Robert Louis Stevenson's novel, Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, has been called a "perpetual masterpiece of psychological terror that sprang from the deepest crevices of Stevenson's own subconscious -- a nightmare from which his wife awakened him" (Lombardi). The phrase "Jekyll and Hyde" is synonymous with man's internal war between good and evil (Auclair). Stevenson's story of the kindly scientist who drinks a potion that transforms him into a stunted, evil version of himself is a story of horror, which preceded modern psychology. .
             Sigmund Freud's psychoanalytic theory states that an individual's personality is divided into three different parts: the id, ego, and superego. The id consists of unethical, irrational, driving instincts for sexual gratification, aggression, and general physical and sensual pleasure. The superego represents the outer expectations forced on the personality by society and culture. The ego acts as the mediator between the impulses of the id and the superego. The ego allows the personality to cope with the inner and outer demands of its existence. The balance of these three parts determines a person's personality (Stevenson 1). Freud's theory explains that humans can be ruled by their hidden impulses and passions instead of their rational thoughts. The imbalance of the id, ego, and superego is reflected in the double life of Henry Jekyll. .
             In the novel Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Dr. Jekyll discovers a way to separate his benevolent and malicious sides into two different individuals. While Henry Jekyll is an honest, respectable doctor Mr. Hyde is a younger but deformed man who indulges in filthy pleasures. Jekyll began experimenting in order to live a carefree lifestyle so he could fulfill his internal lusts and desires as Mr. Hyde without fear of tainting his own good name. Dr. Jekyll believes " that man is not truly one, but two" and because of this he is able to live out his evil passions while maintaining his social stature (Stevenson 79).


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