Friendship

Friendship is one of the main themes of the novel. Mr. Utterson and Dr. Jekyll have been friends since school. Mr. Utterson is deeply concerned when Dr. Jekyll writes his own will and leaves all his belongings and money to a stranger. For this reason, Mr. Utterson begins investigating Dr. Jekyll’s heir, which causes Dr. Jekyll to insist that Mr. Hyde is an innocent who has no ill will toward Dr. Jekyll.

As the novel progresses, Mr. Utterson continues to worry for Dr. Jekyll. Dr. Jekyll’s odd behavior, such as locking himself away for weeks at a time, refusing to see friends, and asking his servants to repeatedly go to a chemist to ask for samples of the same chemical over and over again increase Mr. Utterson’s concern. If not for Mr. Utterson’s concerns over his good friend, Dr. Jekyll’s story...