Topic > The Problem of Evil in Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and Robert Stevenson's The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn once said: “The battle between good and evil runs through the heart of every man” . This problem is presented in the novel Frankenstein written by Mary Shelley and in the novel The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde written by Robert Stevenson. The novel Frankenstein is about the protagonist Victor Frankenstein and his quest to create a new life. This new life, also called creature, soon turns into his enemy and he is on the path to revenge. In the novel The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, a London lawyer named Mr. Utterson investigates a mysterious event between his old friend Dr. Jekyll and his evil side Edward Hyde. Both novels illustrate that in society a person may appear good to the human eye, yet the evil that lurks in an otherwise respected person may go undetected. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay. Victor and Dr. Jekyll both have an internal conflict as their creations were supposed to benefit them for good, but have brought harmful effects to their lives. Victor is saddened as his creation has led to situations of pure crime and evil. As William's death spread through society, Justine was convicted of committing the murder. As the trial begins, Victor reflects on the damage he has done to his family. With pain Victor reveals: "A thousand times I would have preferred to confess myself guilty of the crime ascribed to Justine... a declaration would have been considered as the raving of a madman, and would not have exculpated the one who suffered because of me." he should not have abolished his family, the internal conflict Victor experiences is that Justine is experiencing the suffering that Victor should be experiencing, Victor is responsible for the monstrous actions and should be convicted of the crime. Victor has a positive side as he understands the effects his creation has brought on Justine and William, but his evil side is portrayed as he is unable to be truthful about his actions. Inside still thought to be opinionated by society, Victor risks his own family to hide the terrible creation Victor has made. Furthermore, Victor not only describes the internal conflict due to his guilt, but the fact that life will change if people find out the truth. He believes that the monster's actions will represent him and Victor does not want to be seen as the person who created the monster. The evil Victor portrays letting his family members take the blame for the monster's actions, shows how Victor is the real monster even though he meant good intentions while feeling pained and feeling guilty. His inner conflict shows his good side as he doesn't want his family to be blamed for his actions, but at the same time he is in conflict with himself over what society will think of him for his creation, and this leads him to make bad decisions. in his life. Likewise, Doctor Jekyll has an internal conflict as his potion turns him into an evil person. Like when Doctor Jekyll leaves letters to Utterson explaining his double life as his good side turns to evil. This is when Dr. Jekyll states: "I observed that when I wore the guise of Edward Hyde, ... This, in my opinion, was because all human beings, as we meet them, are mixed of good and evil: and Edward Hyde, unique among the ranks of mankind, was pure evil.” The internal conflict that is depicted concerns the way Dr. Jekyll hasprepared the potion to express his feelings without feeling guilty, and at the same time not to lose his good name. Furthermore, it shows his internal conflict as he calls his transformed ego by a different name, Hyde is basically a disguise to cover, Doctor Jekyll's is in remorse because he likes being Hyde. Furthermore, it conveys that Dr. Jekyll is a depressed man who hid his violent impulses, feeling bad for not wanting to face the consequences of his actions. Both Doctor Jekyll and Victor have an internal conflict as their actions make them feel guilty, at the same time they both have an understanding of their good and bad sides, their internal conflict is the regret they feel when they turn to the evil side. This presents the internal conflict that both protagonists have, their evil side causes many horrible situations in their life. It presents that a man can be good or bad, but society can only see the pure side of the heart. Both Victor and Jekyll have evil sides, the shame they feel shows their empathy, but the evil side is superior as they do nothing to correct their actions. (need to move on to next topic) Both protagonists develop traits of secrecy as their inventions cause both men to make decisions that affect their relationship with people in society. Victor's creation makes him anxious as the monster cannot be discovered by his longtime friend Henry. As Henry reaches Ingolstadt, Victor explains how busy he is without going into detail. Victor soon invites Henry to his apartment, anxiously Victor reflects "I feared seeing this monster, but I feared even more that Henry would see it." Victor is more worried about Henry finding out what he's been working on for the past few years, rather than safety. Victor's secrecy ruins his relationship with Henry as he is not himself, Victor does not show the fear he has but rather shows pride to Henry to hide his emotions. Henry has always thought of Victor as an intelligent young man, Victor believes that if he explained away his suffering Henry would lose his admiration for him as a scientist. This causes their relationship to be very different as Henry would be put in a superior position while helping Victor, which Victor is not used to. Equally important, Doctor Jekyll develops traits of secrecy as he is afraid of ruining his well-known name. In the letter that Dr. Jekyll wrote before his death, he expresses his perception of his two sides by saying: “For this reason I have hidden my pleasures; ...I was already engaged in a profound duplicity of myself...I looked at them and hid them with an almost morbid sense of shame." Doctor Jekyll keeps his evil side a secret as he wants to portray a person with a high social status in society. Dr. Jekyll wants his actions to remain hidden, so that he can fit in with society. The decision to keep his evil side secret causes his evil side to be stronger and more harmful when released, this is due to why Dr. Jekyll's emotions are repressed for a long time. This affects his relationship with society as when Doctor Jekyll turns evil he ends up committing crimes, this makes him more vulnerable for people in society to find the truth about him. Ultimately, Dr. Jekyll and Victor both develop secrecy for selfish purposes, both are ashamed and want to keep their evil suppressed to maintain a high social status. This jeopardizes their relationship with friends and society. Both protagonists hide their evil side in the hope that society only knows about them because they are highly respected scientists, they are not suspected.933)