Book Anatomy · Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde: Dialogue and voice
16 lenses on dialogue and voice for Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson. Count lenses are exact for our text. AI lenses are our reading and cite only quotes that passed a word for word check.
Jump to: C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16
C1. Share of words in dialogue, whole book and per chapter. Count
24% dialogue. See the full lens on the book page.
C2. Each character's number of lines and share of speech. Both
Mr. Utterson speaks most, with 42% of attributed speech.
| Character | Lines | Words | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mr. Utterson | 91 | 865 | 42% |
| Poole | 39 | 582 | 28% |
| Mr. Enfield | 16 | 320 | 15% |
| Dr. Jekyll | 13 | 147 | 7% |
| Dr. Lanyon | 9 | 78 | 4% |
| Mr. Hyde | 9 | 55 | 3% |
| Mr. Guest | 5 | 35 | 2% |
Dialogue comprises 23.7% of the book. Utterson dominates with roughly 40% of all speech. Jekyll speaks significantly in Ch 3 and 10. Lanyon speaks in Ch 9. Minor characters (Enfield, Poole, Guest) have brief exchanges.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 9, Ch 10
C3. Speech fingerprint: line length, pet words, questions, exclamations. Count
Top speaker Mr. Utterson (42%). See the full lens on the book page.
C4. Dialogue tags: "said" against other verbs, and adverbs on tags. Count
'Said' is 55% of dialogue tags. Adverbs on tags: 5 in all, most often coolly, slowly, complainingly.
| Tag verb | Count |
|---|---|
| said | 120 |
| returned | 22 |
| asked | 16 |
| replied | 15 |
| cried | 11 |
| added | 10 |
| continued | 7 |
| began | 7 |
| observed | 4 |
| repeated | 3 |
C5. Action beats used in place of tags. Both
20% of paragraphs with speech carry no tag verb at all. Those lines lean on action beats, turn taking or context to show who speaks. (rough estimate from word lists)
Action beats replace tags sparingly. Most dialogue uses 'said' or 'replied.' Chapter 9 uses physical description during the transformation: 'he seemed to swell, his face became suddenly black' instead of dialogue tags.
Chapters: Ch 9
he seemed to swell—his face became suddenly black and the features seemed to melt and alter (Ch 9, para 31)
C6. Subtext: where people say one thing and mean another. AI
Subtext is heavy. Jekyll says 'I can be rid of Mr. Hyde' (Ch 3) but means he cannot. Utterson says he will help Hyde (Ch 3) but means he will protect Jekyll. Lanyon says 'I wish to see or hear no more' (Ch 6) meaning he is dying from horror.
Chapters: Ch 3, Ch 6
the moment I choose, I can be rid of Mr. Hyde (Ch 3, para 11)
I wish to see or hear no more of Dr. Jekyll,” he said in a loud, unsteady voice (Ch 6, para 6)
C7. Dialect and class markers, and how they are spelt. Both
Very few spelt dialect forms in speech. (rough estimate from word lists)
Class markers appear in formal address: 'Mr.', 'Dr.', 'Sir.' Servants use deferential language. No strong dialect; the book uses standard Victorian English. Utterson's speech is formal and careful; Enfield's is gossipy but educated.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 8
C8. How exposition is carried in talk. AI
Exposition is carried through Enfield's story (Ch 1), Utterson's conversations with Jekyll and Lanyon (Ch 2 to 3, 6), and the handwriting comparison (Ch 5). Chapter 9 to 10 use first-person narrative to expose backstory rather than dialogue.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 5, Ch 6, Ch 9
there’s a rather singular resemblance; the two hands are in many points identical (Ch 5, para 33)
C9. Longest speeches and what each one does. Both
The longest single speech runs to 841 words.
| Words | Where | Opens with |
|---|---|---|
| 841 | c1p8 | I was coming home from some place at the end of the world about ... |
| 158 | c8p33 | All this last week you must know him or it whatever it is that ... |
| 143 | c9p28 | to settle what remains Will you be wise will you be guided will you ... |
| 127 | c3p11 | this is very good of you this is downright good of you and I ... |
| 125 | c8p41 | It was this way I came suddenly into the theatre from the garden It ... |
| 114 | c6p11 | but I share his view that we must never meet I mean from henceforth ... |
Ch 1, para 8: “Well, it was this way,” returned Mr. Enfield: “I was coming home from some place at the end of the world, about three o’clock of a black winter …
Ch 8, para 33: “Well, Mr. Utterson, you are a hard man to satisfy, but I’ll do it yet,” said Poole. “All this last week (you must know) him, or it, whatever …
Ch 9, para 28: “And now,” said he, “to settle what remains. Will you be wise? will you be guided? will you suffer me to take this glass in my hand and …
Ch 3, para 11: “My good Utterson,” said the doctor, “this is very good of you, this is downright good of you, and I cannot find words to thank you in. I …
Ch 8, para 41: “That’s it!” said Poole. “It was this way. I came suddenly into the theatre from the garden. It seems he had slipped out to look for this drug …
Ch 6, para 11: As soon as he got home, Utterson sat down and wrote to Jekyll, complaining of his exclusion from the house, and asking the cause of this unhappy break …
Longest speeches: Enfield's story (Ch 1), Jekyll's explanation of his will (Ch 3), Lanyon's full narrative (Ch 9), Jekyll's confession (Ch 10). Each reveals character motive and advances the mystery.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 3, Ch 9, Ch 10
that man is not truly one, but truly two. I say two, because the state of my own knowledge does not pass beyond that point. (Ch 10, para 1)
I knew myself, at the first breath of this new life, to be more wicked, tenfold more wicked, sold a slave to my original evil (Ch 10, para 4)
The veil of self-indulgence was rent from head to foot. I saw my life as a whole: I followed it up from the days of childhood (Ch 10, para 19)
C10. Who wins each argument, and how power shifts in talk. AI
Utterson wins arguments through persistence and moral authority (Ch 3, 5). Jekyll wins by refusing to explain (Ch 3, 6). Lanyon wins by silence (Ch 6). Power shifts when Utterson stops asking and starts acting (Ch 8).
Chapters: Ch 3, Ch 5, Ch 6, Ch 8
I do not care to hear more,” said he. “This is a matter I thought we had agreed to drop (Ch 3, para 7)
C11. Banter and humour patterns. AI
Humour is minimal and dark. Enfield's gossipy tone in Ch 1 provides light relief. Utterson's dry observations offer occasional irony. The book's tone is predominantly serious and Gothic, with no banter.
Chapters: Ch 1
C12. Blind test: can you tell who speaks without the tag? AI
Utterson is identifiable by formal, careful phrasing and moral concern. Jekyll by evasion and scientific language. Lanyon by refusal and formal distance. Enfield by gossipy, narrative style. Hyde does not speak directly until Ch 9.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 6, Ch 9
C13. Catchphrases and verbal tics. Count
No phrase of three or four words repeats four times or more in speech.
C14. Interruptions, silences and broken off lines. Count
4 spoken lines break off with a dash or dots: 16.13 per 1,000 paragraphs of speech.
C15. Voice in letters, diaries and documents. Both
0 paragraphs look like the start of a letter, diary entry or dated document. (rough estimate from word lists)
Letters and documents carry distinct voices. Hyde's letter (Ch 5) is brief and threatening. Lanyon's narrative (Ch 9) is formal and horrified. Jekyll's confession (Ch 10) is introspective and scientific, revealing his internal struggle.
Chapters: Ch 5, Ch 9, Ch 10
he had means of escape on which he placed a sure dependence (Ch 5, para 11)
C16. Forms of address between characters and how they change. Both
Forms of address in speech by third of the book: 10, 22, 14.
| Form | Times |
|---|---|
| sir | 45 |
| my dear | 1 |
Utterson addresses Jekyll as 'Henry' (familiar) and 'Dr. Jekyll' (formal). Jekyll addresses Utterson as 'my dear Utterson' (affectionate). Lanyon uses 'Dear Lanyon' (formal). Servants use 'sir' and 'master.' Forms of address remain stable throughout.
Chapters: Ch 1, Ch 2, Ch 3, Ch 6
Ask Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde a question about its craft (free beta)
Answers cite chapter and paragraph, and every quote is checked against the text. (3 free questions a day).
Weekly email: coming soon
One short email a week on new AI tools for authors. Sign up opens soon.