Stevenson's best-known works are chiefly historical adventure stories. Treasure Island, with its tale of pirates, treasure maps and a one-legged ship's cook named Long John Silver, is usually taken to be a novel for children. Kidnapped, Catriona and The Master of Ballantrae raid Scottish history in the era of the Jacobite rebellions for stories of swash and buckle. Probably Stevenson's best and most challenging fiction, however, is his short novel, The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde. Through a succession of cleverly interlocking narratives, Stevenson gradually reveals the truth behind the strange case. Dr Jekyll, convinced of the duality of man, has developed a drug which enables him to separate the good from the evil in his personality. The evil is embodied in the alter ego the drug releases, the morally repulsive Mr. Hyde. At first Jekyll is able to move easily between the two personalities and Hyde is firmly under control but this does not last. Hyde begins to assert himself whether Jekyll wishes his appearance or not. Soon, Jekyll realizes to his horror, his transformation into Hyde will be permanent. Stevenson described The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde as 'a fine bogey tale' and certainly it hasmany of the elements of a traditional story of the supernatural but it also draws much of its power from the anxieties that lurked beneath the surface of Victorian society. Just how solid were the foundations of the civilization on which the era prided itself? Were rationality and morality merely veneers painted on the surface of much deeper and darker instincts? Stevenson's tale undermines the belief that vice and virtue can be easily distinguished and readily separated. Both Dr Jekyll and Mr. Hyde lurk within us all and the refusal to acknowledge our dark side can only lead to tragedy.

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