How Does Stevenson Engage His Readers? Essay

In Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde Stevenson uses many ways of engaging his reader throughout the novel. He applies these methods in this way to keep the reader interested in the book. To start off with, Stevenson uses Narrative Methods. These methods add to the suspense and heighten the emotional impact. One use of narrative methods is the fact he tells the story from several perspectives. One chapter of the book is set out as a type of police report with the maidservant recalling what happened the night that Danvers was murdered. The way you can tell it is a report of some kind is because of the extra bits of information added – â€Å"(as the maid described it)† (page 47, line 2). This chapter, apart from giving you a different view of events, makes the readers realise that this man was an important figure in society and this story has gone from a mystery story (with the mystery being the nightmare Enfield had, the door and the strange man named Hyde) to a murder-mystery story as now there is a killer on the loose. This will give the story a frightening twist for the readers but the use of the language makes them keep reading particularly as it Hyde is revealed to be the killer in chapter 4. This twist gives the readers momentum to keep reading as they have already learnt that Hyde has no conscience really and has an inhuman side which can snap at any moment making him all the more dangerous but making the story all the more exciting – â€Å"And then all of a sudden he broke out in a great flame of anger, stamping with his foot, brandishing the cane, and carrying on like a madman† (page 46-47). This helps as all of the Narrators (bar the maidservant) were all reliable figures in society and truthful characters who never dream of lying. Mr Utterson – â€Å"Mr Utterson the lawyer was a man of rugged countenance, that was never lighted by a smile† (Page 29 line 1), this explains he did not have a sense of humour and would not joke around but tell the story as it is. This will help keep the reader interested as if it was a story told by a tramp then the Victorians would never have believed it as they have no reason to be truthful whereas Utterson is a lawyer and was well respected so there’s every reason to trust him. Stevenson introduces him as a calm, gentle man, who just wants to lead a quiet life (making him all the more believable) – â€Å"He was austere with himself; drank gin when he was alone† (Page 29 line 9.) This sentence is very important as well as it tells the reader that he is very strict with himself and sets himself boundaries . What also attracts the reader’s attention is they think that the story has finished chronologically at the end of chapter 8. The Victorians didn’t like mystery stories finishing with loose ends not tied up, so he leads on to the two real documents by saying – â€Å"They trudged back to his office to read the two narratives in which this mystery was now to be explained†. This ends the chapter on a cliffhanger, therefore adding to the suspense and inviting the reader to get involved with the conclusion of the mystery. Stevenson made sure not to reveal that that Hyde was Jekyll until the end when the story was over, although he had left clues – Hyde’s and Jekyll’s writing was similar. Also in chapter 8 when they find that Hyde was wearing oversize clothes that looked suspiciously like Jekyll’s and he infact does pretend to be Jekyll. Chapters 9 and 10 give the story a sense of authenticity as they are â€Å"real† documents. In chapter 9 Utterson receives a letter that was meant for Lanyon from Jekyll. There is a sense of urgency about the letter – â€Å"I had already sealed this up when a fresh terror struck my mind† (Page 75 line 29). This shows he wasn’t thinking clearly and he was rushed, leaving the audience to think why? And therefore reading on. Chapter 10 is a full summary of the book. It ties up all the loose ends as it is a letter from Jekyll himself summarising all the events that have taken place. This particular chapter uses a lot of emotional sentences from Jekyll – â€Å"Under the strain of this continually impending doom and by the sleeplessness to which I now condemned myself† (Page 95 line 13-14) and also â€Å"A mist dispersed; i saw my life to be forfeit. This tells how Jekyll feels he has nowhere to go in life and feels despondent. He recalls all of Hyde’s action and how he â€Å"enjoyed the leaping pulses and secret pleasures† but how he knew admits Hyde was sadistic and mental – â€Å"No man morally sane could have been guilty of that crime†. This is because it was a stupid thing from Hyde’s point of view as know he is a wanted man and cannot roam the streets freely anymore – â€Å"To be tempted, however slightly, was to fail†. Jekyll starts to think suicide’s the only way to stop the maniacal Hyde – â€Å"and when I know he fears my power to cut him off by suicide† (Page 96 line 15-16), as he has â€Å"terrors of the scaffold†. The last page of the book is the most emotional and well-written page of the whole book as Jekyll writes â€Å"his wonderful selfishness† but also â€Å"ape-like spite†. There he turned some con about Hyde into a pro but also made a con seem more than a con. This will tell the reader how emotionally attached to Hyde, Jekyll really was and how this decision was probably the hardest he has had to make in his life. The last few lines Jekyll has made up his decision in the sense he has gone from contemplating suicide to being definite – â€Å"And indeed the doom that is closing on us both† (Page 96 line 6-7). Stevenson also makes you feel sorry for Jekyll – â€Å"I know how i shall sit shuddering and weeping in my chair, or continue with the most strained and fearstruck ecstasy of listening, to pace up and down this room (my last earthly refuge)† (Page 96 line 11-13). That quote makes you think it’s taking every bit of strength to make these decisions and to do the simplest tasks and by this stage the readers eyes are glued to the page. The ending is a cliffhanger, in the sense you do not know anyone else’s reactions to Jekyll’s confession. It ends – â€Å"Here, then as i lay down the pen, and proceed to seal up my confession, i bring to life of that unhappy Henry Jekyll to an end†. That line tells you that he will kill himself but does not tell you how the others react which the readers will put the book down and think about it – in shock due to the confession but also thinking about it some more. My penultimate method is the setting that Stevenson used. He brought the â€Å"evil† immediately into the readers’ lives due to the fact he relates to London which was the most densely populated place in the UK. He also used middle class and well respected gentlemen which told the readers that not all people were perfect and not all the well off led boring lives. Stevenson uses winter as a month where â€Å"bad† things happen as both the murder of Danvers and the girl getting trampled was in Winter late at night. He uses to points of views – a characteristic and a psychological point of view. Characteristic – Mr Hyde’s resides in Soho which was a pocket of poverty and crime whereas Hyde lived in the West End (represents Hyde/Jekyll relationship) Also the respectable view of the entrance to Jekyll’s house to the back door which Hyde uses (represents two sides of the character) Psychological – The misty, dreary London seems to echo the unsettled mood of the characters and the dark mystery of the story – â€Å"The square when they got there was full of wind and dust, and the thin tress in the garden were lashing themselves along the railing† (Page 63 line 17-20). These settings help to set the scene and add the tension as they usually involve a â€Å"cold, windy night† which makes a chill run down the spine therefore wanting the reader to know more. My final method is the way Stevenson has used morals and the likes of the Victorian people in his favour. He has given us the moral – you can never trust appearances, as charming Dr. Henry Jekyll led this duel life with the bloodthirsty Mr Hyde. But also don’t let anything control you – â€Å"I am now finishing this statement under the influence of the last of my old powders†. He is reliant on a source which has driven him to suicide. It is also hypocritical as it’s saying â€Å"if we repress our dark side, it will become stronger†. This is true as Jekyll said of not changing to Hyde for two months – â€Å"But time began at last to obliterate the freshness of my alarm, I once again compound and swallowed the transforming draught†. Stevenson also included a lot more questions than there were answers. The Victorians enjoyed this as although the main loose ends tied up they had a feeling of authority as they got to decide some of the outcomes. As the Victorians found literature as a type of â€Å"escapism† where they could escape from their boring, old lives Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde was the perfect novel which fitted all the criteria of a good, mystery/horror book that the Victorians could escape to and therefore engage them! In conclusion to the question, How Does Stevenson Engage His Readers, I think he engages them by using all these different methods – narrative, setting, and what the people in the era it was written liked. I think he engaged the Victorians though particularly on the latter as they had something to relate to e.g. Soho – a lot lower – middle class people lived round there who would buy this book and therefore read it to the end as it is of particular interest to them. This is the same for all of London though. For most people though this story kept them engaged by the excellent descriptions, the use of emotions and the suspense involved. Once a murder had taken place no one was ever going to put the book down!