It may come as a surprise that I am drawn mostly to Mr. Utterson. You have Mr. Hyde, the man commonly hated who remains mysterious in his actions and lifestyle. And then you have Dr. Jekyll, a well respected man who seems to be hiding a dark secret. But it it is Mr. Utterson who in my eyes, conveys a more hidden message.
When cain's heresy was mentioned in the begining of the book, I did not think too much of it. However, Once I re-read that section It made me think of how well it described him and his beliefs. Mr. Utterson still looks for the good in people, which is why in his mind he wants to continue to think that his friend Jekyll is still a good man, and has not changed. By representing people who may be guilty as a lawyer, he is still helping them because he believes that there is hope. It could be because he can't let go, but he still has faith in Mr. Jekyll.
Another reason why I am so drawn to him is because I believe he represents a theme of faith. Friday in class one of the words that caught my eye was religion. I believe Dr. Jekyll represents Abel, the good brother who is killed. Which would make Mr. Hyde Cain, and that makes him a negative influence. Going again by religion, as the story of Cain and Able continues Cain is punished for killing Abel, and the same would happen in this story. Not to compare a fictional character such as Utterson to God, But he is described as a respected man with high statrue. And he looks for the best in people and has faith that they will do the right thing.
Very interesting points here! It forced some questions in my mind. I agree that Utterson does come across as very god-like in terms of the purity factor. He seems to be the only character that does not possess an evil side? However, I don't know that he is all-knowing or all-powerful as a God would be. In fact, this lack of knowledge and power is what humanizes him. I like that you extended the connections that could be made with the allusion to Cain's heresy and even challenged the initial idea that Utterson was purely Cain-like.
ReplyDeleteWell Maybe comparing him to God was too far but I was thinking further into a theme of religion. More to the point of him being god-like, he looks for the best in his long time friend; he has hope for good in him. Just as God looks to forgive sinners, Utterson hopes that somewhere his friend has not changed.
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