Lanyon’s Secret

“Rather, as there was something abnormal and misbegotten in the very essence of the creature that now faced me- something seizing, surprising and revolting- this fresh disparity seemed but to fit in with and to reinforce it; so that to my interest in the man’s nature and character, there was added as to his origin, his life, his fortune and status in the world.” (39)

This passage is interesting because Dr. Lanyon is the only character to wonder about Mr. Hyde’s personality and not just his persona. Lanyon is the first character to view Hyde as a person and not a sum of his parts or deformities. Dr. Lanyon knows there’s something wrong with Mr. Hyde but he wants to know Hyde’s origin, not his crimes. This is a contrast to most of the reactions to Hyde’s face and most of the thoughts on identity in the novel because almost all of the characters do not ask themselves these questions about Hyde but rather fear him blindly. However, like everyone who encounters Hyde, Lanyon also has trouble organizing his thoughts and struggles to describe Hyde in one long, messy sentence rather than a succinct description of his face. This implies that the majority of the characters have trouble with analyzing another’s identity when it is so different from their own. Utterson easily describes Lanyon and Jekyll because they are friends, but he grapples with his description of Hyde as well.

Lanyon is the only character to wonder about Hyde as a person and his origin. Tellingly, he is also the first to find out the truth when Hyde transforms into Jekyll in front of him. None of the other characters reactions to this reveal are shown but Lanyon’s is- he dies from the shock of finding out that his best friend was responsible for the murder of Sir Danvers Carew. His curiosity about Hyde’s life is what killed him. We also never discover Utterson’s reaction to Lanyon’s narrative or Jekyll’s confession nor the consequences of learning Jekyll was Hyde and therefore a murderer. Presumably, both Lanyon and Jekyll’s accounts were taken to the grave but the reader is left with no answer to this question.

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Smyth

My name is Kitson Smyth and I use they/them pronouns. I’m from Manhattan and The Bronx. I have four siblings and four parents, and my extended family is scattered across the U.S., Argentina, and England. I am a Spanish and English double minor. I work for the Offices of LGBTQ Services and Residence Life and Housing. I’m a Spanish TA and tutor. I love dogs, reading, and cooking at home.