University of Northern Iowa Dept. of English Language and Literature student writing award of excellence for critical essay, 2008
Dualism in literature; English literature--19th century; Stevenson, Robert Louis, 1850-1894. Strange case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde; Wilde, Oscar, 1854-1900. Picture of Dorian Gray; Lee, Vernon, 1856-1935. Dionea;
Duality appears as a common theme in late-Victorian literature. Duality serves as a way for the modern reader to analyze late-Victorian literature and common late-Victorian culture as well. Through studies of pieces of literature such as Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, The Picture of Dorian Gray, and "Dionea" readers can see this common theme. Despite the prevalence of duality and the both/and perspective in late-Victorian literature the idea of duality itself was not traditionally accepted in late-Victorian culture. Victorians preferred to look at things in an either/or perspective. I will write about Robert Louis Stevenson’s Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Oscar Wilde’s The Picture of Dorian Gray, and Vernon Lee’s "Dionea" and analyze the duality of the main characters in terms of late-Victorian culture and the both/and and either/or perspectives as well as prove that these three works of literature implicate their historical and modern readers in a negative social way.
Department of English Language and Literature
©2008 Lauren McDonald
McDonald, Lauren, "Duality in Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, The picture of Dorian Gray, and "Dionea"" (2008). Student Writing Awards. 4.