Question

Read the excerpt from The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

Men have before hired bravos to transact their crimes, while their own person and reputation sat under shelter. I was the first that ever did so for his pleasures. I was the first that could plod in the public eye with a load of genial respectability, and in a moment, like a schoolboy, strip off these lendings and spring headlong into the sea of liberty. But for me, in my impenetrable mantle, the safety was complete. Think of it—I did not even exist! Let me but escape into my laboratory door, give me but a second or two to mix and swallow the draught that I had always standing ready; and whatever he had done, Edward Hyde would pass away like the stain of breath upon a mirror; and there in his stead, quietly at home, trimming the midnight lamp in his study, a man who could afford to laugh at suspicion, would be Henry Jekyll.

How is Hyde different than the criminals-for-hire mentioned in the excerpt?

A. Hyde is more cruel and violent than other criminals.

B. Hyde expresses remorse for his crimes.

C. Hyde works diligently to cover up his crimes.

D. Hyde is capable of vanishing to escape suspicion.

Answer 1

It is D. Hyde is capable of vanishing to escape suspicion.

Answer 2

The excerpt expresses how Mr. Hyde could commit a crime that Dr. Jekyll would or even could not know about, therefore, could not incriminate himself even though they share the same body. This is made even more clear when the text calls Henry Jekyll "a man who could afford to laugh at suspicion", because he would not be the one who had done something wrong. It would have been someone else entirely. Mr. Hyde says it himself: "Think of it—I did not even exist!"

The answer is: D. Hyde is capable of vanishing to escape suspicion.