Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

Fandom
Name:	Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
Abbreviation(s):	JnH
Creator:	Robert Louis Stevenson
Date(s):	5 January 1886
Medium:	Novella
Country of Origin:	United Kingdom
External Links:
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The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde is an 1886 novella written by Robert Louis Stevenson, the author of Treasure Island. It is one of the most famous examples of Gothic literature, and contains elements of science fiction and horror. It has been the subject of many adaptations, though most versions diverge from the plot of the original novella.

The novella follows Gabriel John Utterson, a dry but beloved lawyer, as he investigates the unusual circumstances surrounding his friend and client Dr. Henry Jekyll, and his relationship with the violent Mr. Edward Hyde. The last chapter, a letter written by Dr. Jekyll to Mr. Utterson, reveals that Jekyll and Hyde are the same person, and transform between bodies using a chemical compound which he can no longer create.

Fandom History

Science fiction enthusiasts and movie reviews in various fanzines are some of the earliest examples of Jekyll and Hyde within fandom.

Science fiction fanzines containing articles referencing Jekyll and Hyde:

• The Fantasy Fan: MY SCIENCE FICTION COLLECTION. Details the quirks of the sound disks for Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. The records are recorded two or three times normal speed, and must be slowed by one’s hand.
• Etherline: GLOBAL ROUNDUP. Reports the production of a colour version of Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde.
• Science Fiction Times: THE COSMIC REPORTER. . Reports the planning of a new production of a new version of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the fourth film version. Provides a review for 1920 version, finding both Jekyll and Hyde to be unsympathetic; and for the 1938 version, calling it a “masterpiece of comedy”.
• Mt. Holz Science Fiction Society Club Notice: MARY REILLY. Reviews the film Mary Reilly, finding that the portrayals of Jekyll and Hyde are the least differentiated versions of the characters, that Julia Roberts appears out of place in a Victorian setting, and that to understand what is happening, one must be familiar with the original story, but that viewers already familiar with the story will find the movie redundant. They ultimately gave the film a -1 on a scale from -4 to +4.

Adaptations

There have been more than 123 film adaptations of the Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde, and even more in other mediums.

Direct Adaptations

Most direct adaptations follow the storyline of the 1887 Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde play written by Thomas Russell Sullivan, which premiered just over one year after the publication of the novella. The play makes several changes to the original story. In the play, Jekyll is made to be a more morally good man; while Hyde becomes more unambiguously evil. It also adds several female characters, including Jekyll's fiancée Agnes Carew, and Rebecca Moore, whom Hyde expressed sexual interest in. Due to these changes, Jekyll and Hyde adaptations tend to make Jekyll into a more sympathetic victim at the hands of Hyde, and focus the story on Jekyll and Hyde's romantic endeavours.

Popular adaptations:

• Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde (1931): Award winning film featuring the most well known portrayals of Jekyll and Hyde
• Jekyll & Hyde: Musical which debuted in 1990, and released in 2001 on DVD
• MazM: Jekyll and Hyde: Adventure video game released in 2020

Indirect Adaptations

Indirect adaptations of the novella utilise the Jekyll and Hyde trope, without using the actual characters or storyline. The Jekyll and Hyde trope is when two characters embody one person. The two characters typically fall into a socially acceptable and a socially demonized archetype, and have different physical appearances. This trope is distinct from dissociative identity disorder; while the Jekyll and Hyde archetypes have different temperaments, the intent is for the characters to be two facets of the same personality, rather than distinct alters.

Popular versions of the Jekyll and Hyde trope:

• In The Hulk, Dr. Bruce Banner transforms into the Hulk when angered. The Hulk has a large, strong figure, and an angry disposition, making him prone to destruction. Bruce Banner is eventually able to harness the immense strength of the Hulk for good when he joins The Avengers. The use of the trope within a superhero context provides an interesting angle regarding the themes of good and evil, overcoming internal struggle, and self-acceptance.
• In Fight Club (1999), the Narrator does not realise that he and Tyler Durden are the same person for most of the film. Throughout the movie, he and Tyler seem to physically interact, and often fistfight with each other, and the Narrator seems to observe Tyler as he interacts with others. Fight Club (1999) utilises this trope quite effectively to portray self hatred, the damaging effects of toxic masculinity, and the struggle between the desire to conform and to resist.
• In The Substance (2024), while Sue and Elizabeth do not physically share a body, only one can hold consciousness at a time (for the most part), and their consciousness is transferred via blood transfusion. Since Sue was created from Elizabeth's body, when she holds consciousness, she must inject herself with Elizabeth's spinal fluid daily to survive; and as Sue takes over their shared time, it results in the rapid deterioration of Elizabeth's body. The Substance's use of the trope through the lens of body horror highlights the themes of self hatred, body image, women's beauty standards and aging, and self-destruction.

Media Referencing Jekyll and Hyde

Media inspired by or referencing Jekyll and Hyde without being a direct adaptation has become very popular within the fandom niche. These typically feature Jekyll and Hyde among other characters from Gothic literature.

Popular examples:

• The Glass Scientists is a webcomic by Sage Cotugno featuring Jekyll and Hyde as it's main characters. The webcomic takes place in a post-Frankenstein London, where Henry Jekyll and Robert Lanyon (Hastie Lanyon in the novella) have founded The Society for Arcane Sciences, an institution supporting rogue scientists. The comic explores Jekyll's struggle with self repression and self hatred, Hyde's impulsivity and avoidance of emotional connection, and their journey to self acceptance and happiness. The Glass Scientists is the most popular of any adaptation within the Jekyll and Hyde fandom.
• Gothic Whore, or the Novel Lyric Hunt is an album by Chonny Jash inspired by various characters from Gothic literature. The second and third songs on the album, The Ballad of Dr. Jekyll and The Mr. Hyde Jive, take place from the perspectives of Jekyll and Hyde, respectively.
• The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen is a DC comicbook series and film which reimagines characters from Gothic literature as members of a pantheon of superheroes.

Fan Opinion of Adaptations

Since most adaptations of Jekyll and Hyde significantly alter the plot, they are a source of some discourse within the fandom.

• The Glass Scientists is the most popular adaptation within the fandom, with a significant portion of fans of the novella having read the webcomic, and vice versa. A large amount of fanart and fanfiction is tagged under both The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde and The Glass Scientists fandoms, creating a symbiotic relationship between them; if an individual is part of one fandom, they are likely to engage with the other at some point. The Glass Scientists is a relatively uncontroversial adaptation, receiving an overwhelmingly positive reaction within the Jekyll and Hyde fandom.
• The Jekyll & Hyde musical is a point of some contention between fans. While it is a popular musical outside of the fandom, the musical takes many liberties with the plot, and more closely resembles the 1931 movie than the original novella. It is popular among some fans, who find that Jekyll's interaction with the Board of Governors, the addition of female characters, and the music enhance the plot. Others find that the changes to Jekyll and Hyde's personalities and actions, by which Jekyll becomes more good and Hyde more evil dilutes the original intentions of the story. The choice to give both Jekyll and Hyde love interests, particularly in het pairings, is another point of dislike for some fans. The song Confrontation is almost universally beloved by fans, regardless of their opinion on the musical.
• The MazM videogame is popular among some members of the fandom, with many fanartists' depictions of Jekyll and Hyde being based on their video game designs. The videogame is one of few adaptations which remains faithful to the original novella, making it quite uncontroversial within the fandom.
• Since many direct adaptations of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde tend to diverge from the source material and polarize the ethics of Jekyll and Hyde, many fans have made the claim that The Substance is the best adaptation to date. These statements tend to refer specifically to Elizabeth and Sue's relationship as the best portrayal of the relationship between Jekyll and Hyde, as Elizabeth willingly turns into Sue even though doing so directly harms her, and they are perfectly 'good' and 'evil', but rather socially acceptable and not. Others argue that while The Substance contains the Jekyll and Hyde trope, Elizabeth's motivation to become Sue in order to adhere women's beauty standards rather than the desire to act impulsively without consequence alters the message significantly, and disagree with the assessment. Similar claims have been made about Fight Club, to a lesser extent.