GCSE Study Notes and Revision Guides
Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde (Grades 9–1) York Notes
Robert Louis Stevenson
Plot and Action
Plot summary: What happens in The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde?
Overview, Chapter 1 – The door, Chapter 2 – The search for Hyde, Chapter 3 – Jekyll is introduced, Chapter 4 – The Carew murder, Chapter 5 – Jekyll is ill, Chapter 6 – Lanyon dies, Chapter 7 – Jekyll at the window, Chapter 8 – Hyde’s suicide, Chapter 9 – Lanyon’s letter, Chapter 10 – Jekyll’s statement, Revision focus: Make sure you know what happensChapter one: Story of the door
Summary, Why is this chapter important?, Key character: Mr Gabriel John Utterson, Key setting: The door to Jekyll’s laboratory, Key theme: Hyde’s unnaturalness, Key theme: Medicine, Key theme: Making mistakes, Top tip: Writing about EnfieldChapter two: Search for Mr Hyde
Summary, Why is this chapter important?, Key theme: Jekyll’s will, Key theme: Science, Key context: Damon and Pathius, Aiming high: Introducing Jekyll’s dual nature, Key quotation: The horror of Hyde, Key context: Dr Fell, Key setting: Jekyll’s house, Revision focus: Jekyll’s house and laboratoryChapter three: Dr Jekyll was quite at ease
Summary, Why is this chapter important?, Key character: Dr Henry Jekyll, Key quotation: Jekyll’s opinion of Lanyon, Key theme: Jekyll’s will, Exam focus: Writing about tension and dramaChapter four: The Carew murder case
Summary, Why is this chapter important?, Key context: London fog, Key setting: Victorian London, Top tip: Presenting violence, Aiming high: Unnerving insightsChapter five: Incident of the letter
Summary, Why is this chapter important?, Key setting: Jekyll’s laboratory and cabinet, Key structure: Hyde’s letter, Key style: Gothic, Revision focus: Jekyll’s secretChapter six: Remarkable incident of Dr Lanyon
Summary, Why is this chapter important?, Key quotation: Hyde’s disappearance, Key theme: Conjecture, Key theme: MysteryChapter seven: Incident at the window
Summary, Why is this chapter important?, Aiming high: The objective correlative, Key structure: The mid-point, Key language: The language of horror, Revision focus: Enfield, Key language: Jekyll as prisonerChapter eight: The last night
Summary, Why is this chapter important?, Key context: Poison, Key quotation: A wild night, Key character: Utterson, Key context: Social class, Exam focus: Writing about effects, Key structure: Jekyll’s documentsChapter nine: Dr Lanyon’s narrative
Summary, Why is this chapter important?, Key theme: Science, Exam focus: Writing about science, Aiming high: Links with the legend of Faust, Key character: Hyde, Key quotation: The realisationChapter ten: Henry Jekyll’s full statement of the case
Summary, Why is this chapter important?, Key context: Capital punishment, Revision focus: Jekyll, Key context: Captives of Philippi, Key quotation: The duality of human nature, Revision focus: Documents, Key theme: Good and evil, Aiming high: Milton on good and evil, Key context: Addiction, Exam focus: Writing about Jekyll’s struggleCharacters
Dr Henry Jekyll
Jekyll’s role in the novella, Jekyll’s importance to the novella as a whole, Exam focus: Writing about Jekyll, Aiming high: Jekyll’s language, Top tip: Learning about Jekyll’s characterMr Edward Hyde
Hyde’s role in the novella, Hyde’s importance to the novella as a whole, Exam focus: Writing about Hyde, Aiming high: Hyde’s appearanceMr Gabriel John Utterson
Utterson’s role in the novella, Utterson’s importance to the novella as a whole, Exam focus: Writing about Utterson, Aiming high: Stevenson and the lawDr Hastie Lanyon
Lanyon’s role in the novella, Lanyon’s importance in the novella as a whole, Exam focus: Writing about Lanyon, Aiming high: Lanyon’s languageMr Richard Enfield
Enfield’s role in the novella, Exam focus: Writing about Enfield, Aiming high: Asking questionsPoole
Poole’s role in the novella, Exam focus: Writing about Poole, Top tip: Writing about Poole’s faithfulnessInspector Newcomen
Newcomen’s role in the novella, Exam focus: Writing about Newcomen, Top tip: Writing about Newcomen’s detachmentSir Danvers Carew and Mr Guest
Carew’s role in the novella, Exam focus: Writing about Carew, Guest’s role in the novella, Exam focus: Writing about GuestThemes, Contexts and Settings
Themes
Duality, The duality of human nature, Aiming high: Body and soul, Good and evil, Aiming high: Writing about the nature of evil, Friendship, Science, Key quotation: Science does not discriminate, Appearance and realityForm, Structure and Language
Progress Booster
Planning your answer
Plan quickly and efficiently, Stage 1: Generate ideas quickly, Stage 2: Jot down useful quotations (or key events), Stage 3: Plan for paragraphs