This key facts covers Jekyll in the Novella within Jekyll (character) for GCSE English Literature. Revise Jekyll (character) in The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde for GCSE English Literature with 13 exam-style questions and 15 flashcards. This topic shows up very often in GCSE exams, so students should be able to explain it clearly, not just recognise the term. It is section 12 of 17 in this topic. Use this key facts to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.

📋 Jekyll in the Novella

Jekyll is present in all 10 chapters — but only directly narrates in Chapter 10 (his Full Statement)
He is described as "large, well-made, smooth-faced" — the physical ideal of respectable Victorian manhood
The novella is set largely in London's West End — the geography of Victorian respectability
Jekyll's will leaves everything to Hyde — the document that first alarms Utterson
The Deacon Brodie case (Edinburgh cabinet-maker by day, burglar by night) is a biographical source Stevenson knew personally
Jekyll funds Hyde's Soho house and signs blank cheques — he is materially responsible for Hyde's freedom

Practice questions for Jekyll (character)

In which chapter of the novella does Jekyll directly narrate his own story for the first time?

A. Chapter 1 — he introduces himself to Utterson
B. Chapter 5 — he explains the potion to Dr Lanyon
C. Chapter 10 — his Full Statement of the Case
D. Chapter 8 — he shouts through the locked door of the cabinet

1 markfoundation

Identify ONE technique Stevenson uses in the following extract, and explain its effect on the reader: "I stood already committed to a profound duplicity of life."

2 marksstandard

Quick recall flashcards

Mnemonic for Jekyll's arc: what does R-A-E stand for?

REPRESSED → ADDICTED → ERASED. R: Repressed — Victorian life drives desires underground; the experiment is planned. A: Addicted — transformations become involuntary; the drug meant to separate becomes the trap. E: Erased — Jekyll writes the truth knowing Hyde takes over permanently. Remember: each stage is Stevenson's structural argument about the cost of compartmentalisation, not just a sequence of events.

What are the three stages of Jekyll's arc?

REPRESSED → ADDICTED → ERASED. Repressed: decades of Victorian respectability drive desires underground; the experiment is planned, not impulsive. Addicted: control fails; transformations become involuntary; the potion that was meant to separate becomes the trap. Erased: one final act of authorship — Jekyll writes the truth knowing Hyde will take over permanently before anyone reads it. Stevenson gives Jekyll the last word, then takes it away.

The Vocabulary for Jekyll

The Two Fatal Errors on Jekyll

Jekyll in the Novella