Abstract:
In this thesis, The Representation of Madness through Male Characters in The
Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and The Picture of Dorian Gray, a
profound examination of the complex representations of insanity within two seminal
texts of Victorian literature is undertaken. Employing a psychoanalytic and a socio cultural approach, the thesis explores the intricate portrayals of male madness,
symbolically mirroring Victorian era societal anxieties.
Initially, this thesis aims to reflect Victorian society’s anxieties concerning
respectability and hidden desires by examining the narrative strategies developed by
Stevenson in The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Additionally, it reveals
how madness is framed and embodied within the male characters. Subsequently, the
thesis turns to Wilde's The Picture of Dorian Gray. By scrutinising the text's
nuances, it illuminates how the gradual moral decay and ultimate insanity of Dorian
Gray are constructed through the medium of the narrative.
In a comparative approach, the thesis unties the shared thematic concern of
male madness within these two texts, contending that both narratives represent
insanity as a profoundly symbolic, subjective experience that simultaneously reflects
and challenges Victorian societal norms and cultural values. It hypothesizes that
these representations are crucial to the broader cultural conversation about the
boundaries of sanity, masculinity, and morality during the Victorian era.
