1.1 - The Author in Context
Robert Louis Stevenson's biography and early influences
Robert Louis Stevenson, born in 1850 in Edinburgh, grew up in a prosperous family known for engineering but chose writing instead, defying their expectations. His strict Calvinist background, which stressed concepts of sin and moral judgement, deeply shaped his exploration of human nature's darker sides. Chronic health issues, likely tuberculosis, forced extensive travels that exposed him to diverse cultures and reinforced his ideas about physical and moral vulnerability.
Key biographical elements
- Family background - From lighthouse engineers, Stevenson rejected this path for literature, creating personal tension.
- Religious upbringing - Calvinism's focus on innate sin influenced his interest in internal moral conflicts.
- Health and travel - Illness led to journeys across Europe and the Pacific, broadening his perspective on human frailty.
Contextual connection
Stevenson's rejection of family traditions mirrors Victorian tensions between individual desires and societal duties, much like Jekyll's struggle to suppress his "darker" impulses in the novella.
Impact of Victorian society and science on Stevenson
The Victorian era featured rapid industrial growth and strict moral codes, which Stevenson critiqued through his writing. Scientific developments, including Darwin's theory of evolution (proposing humans descended from animals), questioned religious certainties and highlighted primal instincts. Emerging psychology explored the subconscious mind, inspiring Stevenson's depiction of split personalities. Society valued outward respectability but hid widespread hypocrisy, such as secret vices amid empire expansion.
Influential Victorian elements
- Scientific progress - Darwin's ideas suggested inherent "savagery" in humans, echoed in Hyde's animalistic traits.
- Social hypocrisy - Strict codes masked underlying corruption, which Stevenson exposed through Jekyll's double life.
- Moral repression - Emphasis on self-control often led to internal conflict, a key theme in his work.
Contextual connection
Victorian fascination with psychology, including early ideas about the id (primitive impulses) versus ego (rational self), directly informs Jekyll's experiment to separate "good" and "evil" within one person. The era's empire-building and industrial change created wealth disparities, reflecting Stevenson's critique of how respectable facades conceal destructive urges, as seen in Jekyll's transformation into the unrestrained Hyde.
Edinburgh's influence on themes of duality
Stevenson's experiences in Edinburgh, with its divided cityscape - the affluent New Town versus the shadowy Old Town - sparked his fascination with duality, the concept of two opposing sides coexisting in one entity. This urban contrast symbolised hidden aspects of human nature, where respectable exteriors masked dangerous undercurrents. His own nocturnal explorations of the city's underbelly further fuelled stories about moral splits.
Ways Edinburgh shaped his writing
- Urban divide - The contrast between polished districts and slums represented internal human conflicts.
- Personal rebellion - Stevenson's adventures in disreputable areas mirrored his break from family norms.
- Symbolic inspiration - This setting influenced portrayals of characters leading double lives.
Contextual connection
Edinburgh's Calvinist heritage, emphasising predestination and sin, connects to the novella's exploration of inevitable moral downfall, evident in Jekyll's realisation that "man is not truly one, but truly two".
Stevenson's purpose and personal connections to the novella
Stevenson wrote Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde to warn against the dangers of suppressing natural instincts, showing how this leads to catastrophe. His own moral struggles, including rebellion against upbringing and health battles, paralleled Jekyll's internal war. The novella critiques scientific hubris and societal repression, using the transformation to illustrate unchecked desires' destructive power.
Key purposes and connections
- Critique of repression - Stevenson argued that denying darker impulses causes them to dominate, as with Hyde overtaking Jekyll.
- Personal parallels - His illness and travels reflected themes of human weakness and duality.
- Broader message - The story highlights risks of overreaching science in a morally rigid society.
Contextual connection
Influenced by his Calvinist roots and Victorian debates on evolution, Stevenson's purpose was to expose how rigid moral codes foster hypocrisy, leading to personal ruin as depicted in Jekyll's failed attempt to control his "evil" side.