“All things therefore seemed to point to this: that I was slowly losing hold of my origin and better self, and becoming slowly incorporated with my second and worse. Between these two, I now felt I had to choose. My two natures had memory in common, but all faculties were must most unequally shared between them.” (48)
The beginning of “Henry Jekyll’s Full Statement of the Case” leading up to this passage explores the details of Jekyll’s struggle with who he is versus who wishes to be. When he says “Between these two, I now felt I had to choose”, he realizes that it is impossible for him to continue living with both combinations of good and evil and soon or later he will be forced to choose.
“Slowly” is repeated twice, along with “two”, and between”. These words are repeated because they are significant to his current struggle. Jekyll is battling between himself and it is slowly driving him to a place where the only way the conflict can be put to rest is by choosing one or the other.
This specific passage was intriguing to me because it is very relatable to the topic of identity. When I think of Identity I think of who I am, and when I think of who I am my thoughts transfer to what kind of person I want to be in order to be proud with who I am. In Jekyll’s case he wants to be good but struggles internally with evil and I think we can all relate with wanting to be a certain way but struggling with road blocks that enable us to be the way we envision ourselves.