Morality
Within each individual, there is the power to create and to destruct. There is a duality that forms the basis for what is to be a human in nature. Humanity, therefore, has the power to cause an individual to experience feelings such as anger, fear and a capacity to inflict pain and agony. These features coexist within each and every person alongside their ability to love, forgive others be happy and help other people. Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness encompasses facets of morality and duality within both bizarre and sensational genres. Many characters used by these authors secretly lead double lives and struggles with their true personalities as a result. By discussing Dr. Jekyll’s and Kurtz’s temptation, greed and the transformation scene, Stevenson and Conrad use the theme of dual personalities to illustrate the struggle of separating a character’s evil side with that of good state hence placing morality at stake.
Joseph Conrad in his proficiency writing during the 19th century studied the conflicting sides of human nature during his stay at the Belgian Congo. He witnessed both the human ability to kill and destroy and also their ability to heal and to show kindness. In his book, the heart of darkness, he made attempts to express these conflicting facets of the human nature. For him to do so in an effective manner, he created characters who would illustrate this duality facet of humans. He thus chooses characters such as Marlow and Mr. Kurtz who embodied the very two side of human morality. Conrad’s main motive for writing this novel was to reveal the truth about humanity. Similarly, Stevenson in his writing, he attempted to show that good and bad are not so much different but they are interrelated with each other. He, therefore, uses one person but explores him throughout the book as two different personalities, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Dr. Jekyll is the morally upright man but has for a long time conceded his secret darker side from the society. He, therefore, leads two different personalities but in the end his primitive side, Hyde overpowers his moral side, Dr. Jekyll. He observes that “the creature who crept into my house that was known as Hyde who haunted me…” (Stevenson 105). This, therefore, affects his ability to uphold morality.
Duality in its most extreme form is the major cause of moral regression. Mr. Kurtz as portrayed by Joseph Conrad is an incredible person. He is a man who came into Congo as an ambassador of pity, science, and development. He strongly believed that morality could be practiced in Congo and advocated for the common good of all people in Congo through “moving appeal to every altruistic sentiment” (Conrad & Moore, 78). However, the realities of life experienced in Congo had a rapid effect on Kurtz’s moral point of view, driving him towards extremes off the human conduct.
The desire for wealth has impeded morality within society. As illustrated in Stevenson’s book, Jekyll was expected to behave in a more respectable and responsible moral way. However, he wanted to experience fun and this led to his greater need to make Hyde. He figured that if he did this he would attract respect, experience fun and also become reputable within his society thus gaining him power. He was so happy about the new freedom that he now had through the new personality, Hyde. It is through his greed for power that he was motivated to do actions contrary to the standards that were set by the society thus jeopardized his morality. During Kurtz’s time in depths of the jungle, he released the basest needs and vices from the dungeon of his heart. He, therefore, became the embodiment of human savagery and had the mortal ability to destroy. He focused more on the material wealth of ivory and the vicious exercise of power (Conrad & Moore 10). Greed, as portrayed in Conrad’s work, plays a major role in impeding morality within the Congo society. This forms a great part of the abandonment of goodness in heart of darkness work. The white Europeans came to Africa majorly in search of ivory but most importantly, they were after power. Kurtz, in this case, harvested more ivory as compared to the other white Europeans stations. His power and greed eroded all of his morals thus transforming him into a thief as well as a murderer. Ivory, in this case, ruled the characters of the people in Congo. Their high regard for ivory jeopardized their morality (Conrad & Moore 50). The only thing that they thought of was to make profits all for selfish gains without any motive to benefit the rest of the population. The colonialists were thus regarded as selfish with no moral good in them. They prioritized making a personal profit before considering the well being of the humanity of the citizens they desired to profit from. Though Kurtz had once advocated for the good treatment of the inhabitants of the Congo, in his place he suggested to “exterminate all the brutes” (Conrad & Moore, 78). He transitioned from is the great principle of upholding morality that is, the great need to help, save and educate into the other side of humanity, that is, the need for destruction, the vicious exercise of power and murder. It is only on his deathbed that he was able to realize the truth of what he had really turned out to be. He understood that he was a victim of transformation from being an ambassador of morality into being a hindrance to morality. It is at this point that he articulated his great terror about man’s ability to be good and yet the most destroying being. It is thus through this duality facet that man’s morality is at stake. Conrad in this strongly believed that the moral behavior of people is effectively designed and censored varying approaches to morality. The strict moral values of the Europeans were thus impeded by their greed for power and wealth.
The dominance of the evil aspect in the different characters used by Conrad and Stevenson implies that the darker side of humans often resides not far below the surface. In Stevenson’s work, the conflicting appearances of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde explore the issue of moral behavior and the likelihood of having a plurality of human consciousness. By virtue of splitting Dr. Jekyll’s consciousness into two that is, the decent side and the suppressing needs that runs centrally to the society’s moral expectation, Stevenson displays the struggle played out in each and every one of us. Dr. Jekyll observes that ‘I saw that, of the two natures that contended in the field of my consciousness, even if I could rightly be said to be either, it was only because I was radically both’ (Stevenson, 108). Through Hyde, the highly regarded Dr. Jekyll is liberated from the restraints imposed by the society. This is to mean that Mr. Hyde has nothing to fear about and is thus a representation of darkness as he only comes out roaring during the night. This risks Dr. Jekyll’s reputation and moral being as he has to choose between being good or evil. All his efforts to remain morally good are suppressed by his evil nature. Ultimately, Dr. Jekyll has to choose between being Mr. Hyde and Dr. Jekyll. To become the latter will only mean that he has lost his fight for morality and has given in to his immoral needs. His noble aspirations are thus washed down the drain and are forever doomed by his friends. It is a struggle to maintain morality for Dr. Jekyll as it only means that he has to struggle to give up all of his sensual and disreputable appetites that are majorly indulged by Mr. Hyde.
Restraints and temptations are dualities that imply that all people possess good and evil aspects. However, the choice to uncover the restraint required to preserve humanity is totally left to the judgment of each individual. Most of the people fail to realize these restraints required from them to maintain humanity and thus they are unable to maintain morality. Desires and impulses can often inspire ambitions. At the same time, these desires are capable of bringing ruin to a man hence putting their morality at stake. This is because they can coerce an individual into committing treacherous and evil actions. For instance, a person’s lack of restraint is exemplified when Marlow argues that, “the helmsman had no restraint, no restraint-just like Kurtz- a tree swayed by the wind” (Conrad & Moore, 79). Before, the helmsman was an inhabitant of the Congo. However, he became accustomed to the European ways after associating with sailors while on their trip. The residents of Congo were physically and mentally stronger since they were not enticed by material wealth. Associating with the proud educated men, therefore, caused helmsman to be careless and this resulted in his untimely death. Instead of him upholding his original ideals, the man’s inability to restrain himself through self-control indicates his newly identified weakness. Similarly, Jekyll in Stevenson’s work indicates that he was driven by the dark desires. For instance, his ambitions and pride emerged once he first drank the liquid that led to the emergence of his evil side (Stevenson 18). It is implied that if the potion was taken from a rather more pure place within a sober mind of Jekyll, then a kinder side of him would have emerged instead of the dark side. Nevertheless, Jekyll’s addiction to his evil being moved out of control as he transforms into Hyde even without taking the portion. Hyde is taking control over Jekyll as he is becoming stronger, “I announced to my servants that a Mr. Hyde (whom I described) was to have full liberty and power...” (Stevenson 117). Jekyll is, on the other hand, becoming weaker as he is trying so hard to control Hyde. It is therefore quite evident that once humans lack the power to restrain themselves from letting their evil side out more often, then morality is eroded and it just fades away from them just like Hyde transformed Jekyll. Falling into the temptation of meeting the desires and passions of the darker side, an individual is easily transformed into being an evil being whose morality has been eroded.
Conrad and Stevenson employ literary devices of symbolism that displays the duality theme of human nature. Both of these two authors use light and dark symbolism throughout their work. They also use the personification approach to preserve the conflicting yet very important theme of the duality of humans. It is through this that the authors are able to fully express human’s goodness and evil within a given individual. However, through their characters and wide range use of literary symbolism, they are able to fully express how the double nature of humans has in one way or another affected the morality of humans.
In conclusion, it is quite clear from the above discussion that evil is something that surrounds us all. Evil has the ability to overcome and destroy almost everything within us and to the society at large even when there are a few attempting to maintain morality. Humans thus have a choice just like Jykll and Kurtz to make tough decisions and choices to make in their fight for morality and evil. It is this struggle that at most times drives people to give in to primitive side hence resulting in failure in maintaining morality amongst them. The great writings by Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness in the nineteenth century greatly affected perceptions associated with split personality. It was the temptation and great desire to the discovery that draws out Jekyll’s and Kurtz need to create a new self that would separate their primitive side from that of their developed ones. It is at this point that morality is placed in a risky position following the two personalities created by one person.
Work cited
Stevenson Robert, L. The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Cambridge University Press, 2014.
Conrad, Joseph, and Gene M. Moore. Heart of Darkness and Other Stories. London: Wordsworth, 1999. Print.
