The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde - Robert Louis Stevenson

I greatly enjoyed this book, although, as with most of the classics that have moved into pop culture, the original novella was not as I expected. It was better. In my mind, Jekyll had created Hyde to try to purify himself from the 'evil' within, and Hyde was a large, evil overbearing sort to Jekyll's weakness. At the end of the day, Hyde was too strong for Jekyll and won. In reality, Jekyll was a good but complex man who was looking for an escape to pursue the desires of his 'lower nature' without offending his pride and reputation. He is much more realistic as such. I'm forced to wonder what these desires were. Either way, he ENJOYED the freedom that came with being Hyde (a much smaller, younger man) until Hyde's lack of self-control stepped over the bounds that Jekyll deemed appropriate. His failing was the once he started down the slippery slope of giving in to his darker nature, his darker nature started taking over. His courage in committing suicide at the end merely highlighted this internal struggle between the complexities of the man.