Was Dr Jekyll Real?

 Was this character a Narcissist or a Psychopath - or Both? I'm not making the diagnosis here, just examining the story and it's origins.

Robert Lewis Stevenson was the creator of the classic, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. A classic horror novel that has captured the imagination of many and has been made into a motion picture several times.

It seems, along with nightmares and scientific journals, a man named Deacon Brody, was one of the inspirations for the characters Jekyll and Hyde. Brody was a distinguished and trusted gentleman of status who chose, or somehow was compelled by the demons in his own mind, to live a rather duplicitous life. 

Deacon Brodie was a respected businessman, a city councilor, a cabinetmaker, and a locksmith. Who was always dressed in his finest, and who was always present at the best social events. On the surface he lived a respectable life with a wife and children – but he also lived a secret life filled with gambling, drunkenness, cockfighting, two mistresses, and 5 illegitimate children. 

Narcissist, psychopath, schizophrenic, or multiple personalities - what do you think?

 Reference:
https://www.auldreekietours.com/2020/08/deacon-brodie-the-real-life-inspiration-for-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/ 
https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-31018496 
https://www.forbes.com/sites/abrambrown/2019/10/25/bogeyman-and-gentleman-the-real-life-dr-jekyll-and-mr-hyde/ 

Transcript

You are listening to An Ounce, Season 6, Episode 31, Was Dr. Jekyll Real? 

Robert Lewis Stevenson, in his mid-30’s, had contracted a persistent lung infection and an accompanying fever. Not a new experience for him. He seemed to be sickly his whole life. But this infection was bad enough that he and his wife relocated, in 1884, to Dorset on the English coast. 

The author remained exhausted for months, he had great difficulty in getting restful sleep, and when he did sleep, he was plagued by nightmares. As he slept and the frightful dreams came, he would thrash and groan. On one occasion as he cried out during one of these episodes his watchful wife, attempting to comfort him, woke him. And to her surprise, he scolded her. 

In a strange way, the state of mind he found himself in during the terrors of sleep were of great value to him. These nightmares became – for Stevenson – a type of research. A way to explore his mind. To connect with thought and creativity. To revisit slivers of information and experience. And from this disturbing patchwork he was composing his next work. 

Strange Case 

Robert Lewis Stevenson’s next work was the classic, “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”. 

Stevenson’s wife, Fanny, was reported to have stated that during this time of illness and night terrors, he had been deeply engrossed in an article in a scientific journal about the hidden side of the human mind. The subconscious part, with its hidden desires and machinations. And that the ideas from this article, along with the memories of a real and rather remarkable character, Deacon Brodie – along with his own tortured and creative mind – well, that’s where he got the inspiration to write the tale. 

The odd life of the real character on whom Jekyll and Hyde were based was Deacon Brodie. Brodie was a rather remarkable, unusual, and yes – very strange case. 

It seems deacon Brody was a distinguished and trusted gentleman of status who chose, or somehow was compelled by the demons in his own mind, to live a rather duplicitous life. 

Deacon Brodie was a respected businessman, a city councilor, a cabinet maker, and a locksmith. Who was always dressed in his finest, and who was always present at the best social events. On the surface he lived a respectable life with a wife and children – but he also lived a secret life filled with gambling, drunkenness, cockfighting, two mistresses, and 5 illegitimate children. 

The Two Lives of Deacon Brodie 

Brodie was very successful at keeping his two lives separated. Apparently, the two disparate social circles he moved in did not intersect. 

This second hidden life was expensive. He had expenses in the “losses” on his bets on cockfights and other gambling debts. He had to keep the entertainment budget funded to keep the liquor flowing. And supporting two additional illegitimate families was not cheap. The expenses were more than enough to drained Brodie’s resources, and caused a need for him to find an additional source of income. 

Thus, he started a new nocturnal career as one of Edinburg’s finest burglars. In his role as a fine cabinet maker and a locksmith, Deacon Brodie had the complete trust of the most noble households. A trust he betrayed by making his own copies of their key’s. And for over 20 years these keys that he made gave him access to the most valuable stuff in town. 

You might say Deacon Brodie had the keys to the city. 

Eventually the jig was up. He and a few accomplices botched the robbery of the Excise office. Brodie fled but was caught, tried, and convicted. It was quite a scandal. How could such a fine, trusted, and upright citizen get away with living a second life of debauchery and theft. 

On the first of October, 1788, at the age of 47, Deacon Brodie was hanged at the old Tollbooth Jail. Brodie arrived for his execution in high spirits. And was of course wearing his best and most stylish suit of clothing. 

Interestingly, the Tollbooth jail had recently installed highly effective and efficient new gallows. One that guarantied it’s victims a sure, quick, and clean breaking of the neck. None of this kicking and struggling – or just popping off the head with the body dropping to the ground. A gallows designed by the innovative and brilliant cabinet maker, Deacon Brodie. 

There are several small measures, or ounces, of wisdom to be found in the story behind the classic Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. There is much to be gleaned from this carefully woven examination of the civilized creature, and the beast, that live in each of us. But my I suggest An Ounce - just one among many for your review. 

We all go through our lives wearing a mask. A mask that we choose that shows us in the way we think we want to be perceived. There are those whose mask is minimal, sincere, real, and quite genuine. There are others for whom the mask is a complete deception projected to deceive, or to hide, or to pretend. 

Why is there a mask? Because all of us have within us struggle. A struggle with the duality of who we are – that we don’t want to share with the world. There is the part that seeks good, that is generous, that wants to lift. This positive portion of us exists, and is opposed to, the selfish, angry, vindictive, and frightened parts of us. In a way – we all have both Jekyll and Hyde within us. 

Poised between the two is an awareness and an ability to choose. An agency which makes us responsible to act, and think, and believe. 

So heres the Ounce: 

An acceptance that you are the captain of your own ship – you are in charge of you, your self. But, we are within a world with winds and currents that we do not control – we are however responsible for how we set our sails, and how we turn the rudder. 

We are agents unto ourselves. 

And, that’s it. An Ounce, submitted for your consideration.