The End of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde: An In-Class Essay

The End of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde:

An In-class Essay

During the last three weeks, we have gone into some depth picking out themes of Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

You’ll recall that, in conjunction with our discussion on the theme of transformation, we read and reviewed an article by psychologist Judith Viorst entitled, “Childhood’s End.” Throughout the article, Viorst discusses the nature of adolescent experience as one involving a figurative death—in some ways murder—of attachment to old perceptions we’ve had of ourselves, of others, and our parents. It is a state of constant flux; change is the norm. As Viorst states, “…change is unstoppable at adolescence—changes in our body and in our head—and while we are making the trip from early to middle to late adolescence, normality is defined as a sate of disharmony” (150). She adds, “This disharmony need not be constant, and it need not even be visible; sometimes, indeed, it is quiet and covert” (150).

In the midst of this disharmony, meanwhile, we must all deal with that ever-urgent question: Who am I? This question is undergirded by the necessity to take responsibility for ourselves which, in turn, requires that we develop a greater sense of social responsibility to—in the words of developmental psychologist Erik Erikson—“ ‘pass through the crisis of identity’ ” (151). This crisis of identity is what Erikson coins, “identity confusion,” that takes us through flights of exultation and into the depths of isolation or despair. In many ways, this struggle to create a stable identity for ourselves involves a reconciliation of sorts, an assessment of what is realistic and what is merely an impossible ideal. Viorst puts it this way: “To hew [i.e. cleave] to unrealizable goals and impossible dreams of perfection is to guarantee a perpetual sense of inadequacy, is to guarantee that whatever we do will never be good enough, is to guarantee failure time after time after time” (152).

That said, I call to mind our lost friend, Dr. Jekyll (a.k.a. Mr. Hyde), suffering from an identity crisis that ultimately consumes his entire being. Keeping in mind all that we have read, all that we have discussed, and all that we have written in or out of class, construct a well-developed, five paragraph essay in which you consider the nature of adolescence and its application to the confusion in which Dr. Jekyll finds himself.

Make a thesis statement in which you form a general assumption that can branch into three specific ideas that address the issue above. Make your claims regarding adolescence by using Viorst as your guide. You are more than free to paraphrase her claims and use them as your own. Remember that with each claim you make regarding adolescence and its application to The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, you should construct a respective paragraph that revolves around that claim.

Each of your body paragraphs should include either a quote or paraphrase from both Viorst’s article and the novel. If you are quoting or paraphrasing an instance from the text, you can begin with a transitional phrase such as: For example; Jekyll says; Viorst states; Viorst puts it this way; For instance when; etc. Be sure to refer to all events from the novel in the dramatic present tense.

Lastly, end with a conclusion in which you consider your own adolescent experience and how your identity confusion or your own sense of growth or change ties in with Jekyll/Hyde’s struggle.

This will be an open-note, open book test. However, any notes you bring in should be on an index card. You may not write the essay ahead of time. Rather, you should jot an outline down on your note cards and transform your idea into a body from there during class time.

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