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New
New
Year 11
AQA

'Jekyll and Hyde': repression and fragmented identities

I can explore how and why Stevenson presents Jekyll as losing control of his fragmented identity.

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New
New
Year 11
AQA

'Jekyll and Hyde': repression and fragmented identities

I can explore how and why Stevenson presents Jekyll as losing control of his fragmented identity.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. The Indutrial Revolution saw an increase in psychological conditions (anxiety, depression and feelings of alienation).
  2. Strict moral codes of behaviour often led Victorians to live double lives, leading to a fragmentation of identities.
  3. Many believed psychological conditions signified weakness or moral failure.
  4. Dr. Jekyll’s battle between good and evil reflects the Victorian ideas of repressed desires and loss of self-control.
  5. After his initial transformation, Jekyll begins to lose control over Hyde and grows weaker while Hyde gains strength.

Keywords

  • Fragmented - broken into smaller parts, often referring to something once whole or unified

  • Repression - unconscious suppression of desires, thoughts, or emotions, often due to societal or personal pressures

  • Efficacy - the ability to produce a desired or intended result; effectiveness of something

  • Psychoanalysis - a therapeutic method for exploring unconscious thoughts, developed by Freud

  • Alienation - feeling isolated or from others, society, or one's own identity

Common misconception

There were lots of treatments available to Victorians to help them recover from psychological conditions.

While there were lots treatments available, many showed serious misunderstandings about human psychology. They were ineffecive, some were inhumane and many left patients with long-term psychological damage.

Before embarking on the second learning cycle, you may wish pupils to have their own go at building a line graph showing Jekyll's loss of control in Chapter 10 or you may wish to make copies of the graph on the slide deck but leave blank spaces for pupils to add their own quotes from the chapter.
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Teacher tip
equipment-required

Equipment

You will need access to Chapter 7 'Incident at the Window' from 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde' by Robert Louis Stevenson. You can find a copy in the additional materials.

content-guidance

Content guidance

  • Depiction or discussion of discriminatory behaviour
  • Depiction or discussion of mental health issues
supervision-level

Supervision

Adult supervision required

copyright

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on
Open Government Licence version 3.0
except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
In 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde', what does Dr. Jekyll hope to achieve through his experiments?
immortality and freedom from illness
wealth and a life of luxury
Correct answer: the separation of good and evil in human nature
fame in the scientific community
Q2.
How does Dr. Jekyll feel after first transforming into Mr. Hyde in 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde'?
terrified
Correct answer: powerful and free
confused
weak
Q3.
In 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde', who discovers the truth about Dr. Jekyll’s transformation while Jekyll is still alive?
Poole
Mr. Enfield
Correct answer: Dr. Lanyon
Mr. Utterson
Q4.
In 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde', what does Utterson find when he and Poole break into Jekyll’s laboratory?
Jekyll, unconscious
Correct answer: Hyde, dead by suicide
an empty room
Dr. Lanyon’s body
Q5.
What is dramatic irony?
Correct answer: when the audience or reader knows something the characters do not
when characters say the opposite of what they mean
when a story ends in an unexpected way
when two characters argue dramatically
Q6.
What is foreshadowing?
the climax of a story
a character recalling past events
an unexpected plot twist
Correct answer: a hint or clue about what will happen later in the story

6 Questions

Q1.
What of these were major causes of psychological conditions during the Industrial Revolution?
increased access to education
Correct answer: overcrowded living conditions and poor working environments
greater social equality
Correct answer: strict moral codes of behaviour leading to repressed desires
Q2.
How were patients with psychological conditions from the lower classes typically treated during the Victorian era?
with therapy and counselling
discreetly, with compassionate care
Correct answer: subjected to harsh treatments
told to stay at home and not work
Q3.
In 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde', what emotion does Dr. Jekyll display in Chapter 7: 'Incident at the Window' when he withdraws suddenly?
anger
Correct answer: abject terror
confusion
happiness
Q4.
Which of the following best describes repression?
conscious suppression of unpleasant memories
forgetting important details due to trauma
Correct answer: unconscious suppression of desires and emotions
awareness of emotional conflict
Q5.
In 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde', what realisation does Jekyll have about his ability to control the transformations into Hyde?
he remains confident in his control
Correct answer: he realises he is slowly losing control
he believes Hyde is harmless
he stops transforming altogether
Q6.
In 'The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde', what is the significance of Jekyll’s first involuntary transformation into Hyde without the potion?
Correct answer: it marks the point where he can no longer control Hyde
it proves the potion is no longer needed
it shows that Hyde is weakening
it shows that Jekyll's scientific work is flawed

Additional material

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