This novel has taken an unexpected turn within the last couple chapters. Hyde has practically fallen off the face of the Earth, never to be seen again, and the trio of friends - Lanyon, Jekyll, and Utterson - have all become sick in some sort of way. Jekyll and Lanyon are physically ill, yet Lanyon is in much worse condition. Utterson however seems to have more of an emotional sickness. Haunting thoughts and questions possess his mind, and worry for his friend has eaten away at his nerves. The murder case involving Mr. Hyde has kept everyone alert and on the edge of their seat, yet the news has faded into oblivion at the same time. Now, Jekyll is wallowing in solitude, hardly even allowing his dear friend Utterson to visit him in his current state. The door has been shut in Utterson's face countless times, and he has come to the point of almost hoping to be denied entrance. Lanyon, on the other hand, became even sicker and died in his sleep; making the trio of friends nothing more than a pair of bitter men, growing apart more and more each day. There is no doubt that Utterson truly cares for Dr. Jekyll, but one's patience and energy can only make it for so long.
In addition to the tension between the friends, Utterson inherited an envelope from Lanyon during the poor man's funeral. Within the envelope was another enclosure, sealed and marked as "not to be opened until the death or diappearance of Dr. Henry Jekyll." Utterson was curious, but would feel unloyal if he were to open it before stated, so he tucked it into a corner in his safe. More questions aroused to me from the text after reading these passages. Why is Jekyll being so sullen and withdrawn? What do all the letters given to Utterson mean? What did Utterson mean by "Henry Jekyll forge for a murderer!" on the last page of chapter 5? And when will we see Hyde again? These questions will hopefully soon be answered, but for now I am still trying to understand the general vast mysteries of this book.
I can easily relate to your response because it has to deal with the great mystery that the overall plot of the whole book is wrapped around. Which in a way is a difficult concept to understand. Although I think for right now, as of our last recent chapters, the plot revolves around never returning to originality. Ever since the murders have happened and terrible sicknesses have effect the trio, they cannot just go back to being happy and carefree. These simple events touched their lives in such a way that changes them forever. Overall I think that's what your trying to get at. Although perhaps try more of show don't tell and making response less of a summary. Yet ultimately great job using large vocabulary and parallel sentences.
ReplyDeleteI really liked some of your diction like "eaten away at his nerves"; it gives a different effect than just plainly stating that Utterson is fearing for Jekyll's sanity. I can really tell that you understood what we currently read and you took it into a level so that people could really understand what is happening in the novella. Maybe next time you could try to make it less of a summary and do more of an analysis or maybe something creative. Otherwise, this is a good response.(:
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