BUILDING TENSION:

At the start of Chapter 2 we get the first paragraph concerning the will. It tells us that Hyde is a nasty man and we now think he is blackmailing Dr Jekyll.

The next thing to happen in this chapter is Mr Utterson’s ivsit to Dr Lanyon. We discover tha thte relationship between Dr Lanyon and Dr Jekyll has soured. We wonder why this has happened when they are supposed to be childhood friends. We are told that Lanyon now thinks of Jekyll as a ‘scientific heretic’.

Mr Utterson returns home and dreams of Mr Hyde and London. Mr Utterson couldn’t see Hyde’s face and the streets of London were unfamiliar and hidden by the fog. Children were harmed and Jekyll was stalked.

Mr Utterson continues to search for Mr Hyde and finally discovers him. We get a description of Hyde as a person. During the search period, Mr Utterson does nothing else, every spare minute goes towards finding Hyde. He has become obsessive and paranoid about Hyde. Hyde is described as grotesque and arrogant.

In chapter 3 Mr Utterson goes to speak to Dr Jekyll. Dr Jekyll is his usually cheery self until Hyde is mentioned, at which point he becomes snappish and changes the subject. We wonder why he will not be honest about his connection with Hyde.

RELEASING TENSION:

Mr Utterson reveals the truth to us as he finds Hyde in the locked room where Dr Jekyll was. This is not unusual as he is the ‘detective’ figure in the novel and so he should be the one who reveals the truth.

The truth that is revealed is that Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde are the same person. If you were not familiar with the story this may have been difficult to work out as a lot of the clues were covered up, especially by Mr Utterson.

The truth is revealed in the lab. This is noteworthy as the lab is where the whole story begins. It is where Dr Jekyll first created Mr Hyde.

The truth is revealed after Dr Jekyll commits suicide.

It is important that the truth is revealed after Jekyll’s death as the news about his connection with Mr Hyde can no longer harm his living reputation.