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Reviews tagging 'Mental illness'
El extraño caso del Dr. Jekyll y de Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson
22 reviews
thequeercaseofmarius's review against another edition
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
“…I thus drew steadily nearer to that truth, by whose partial discovery I have been doomed to such a dreadful shipwreck: that man is not truly one, but truly two.”
The legacy that Dr Jekyll and his alter ego, Mr Hyde, have left on the Western world is a strange one. Almost 140 years later, most people can still recognise these characters when they appear onscreen, perhaps even know of the original story they are from, and yet surprisingly few people can say that they’ve actually taken the time to read the novella. I’m here to tell you that it is absolutely worth your time to do so.
While The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde unfortunately hasn’t aged as well as some of its contemporaries, its historical value is nonetheless fascinating as it presents a unique and complex insight into the 19th century psyche. However, I did find without the historical context it’s incredibly easy to miss a lot of the story. The Penguin edition with notes by Robert Mighall phenomenally helps with this, and I couldn’t recommend this version more.
You can tell that Robert Louis Stevenson was an incredibly intelligent man, well-read on the current sciences of his time with equally impressive creativity to boot. I thoroughly enjoyed his writing style, I found it to be very vivid, moody, and even frightening at times. His use of suspense and terror as well is nothing short of remarkable, and I came to notice this more when reading the short stories I was previously unfamiliar with; The Body Snatcher and Olalla. They were great reads, I would say just as much as Jekyll and Hyde was.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Body horror, Murder, Ableism, Addiction, Blood, Mental illness, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, and Gore
Moderate: Suicide, Incest, Child abuse, Cannibalism, Classism, Alcoholism, and Physical abuse
Minor: Death of parent, Sexism, and Racism
I do believe it would be wrong to read these works without a level of cynicism. Partly what makes this collection so interesting, but also so backwards, was just how pseudoscientific Victorian era science really was. When reading Stevenson’s work, you start to realise how we have actually held onto many of these pseudoscientific beliefs in our collective unconscious, and noticing this has given me the incentive to finally dismantle it. However, if you find that rampant ableism is too much for your sensibilities, I would give this book a miss.multimindz's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
I have DID.
This is the book everyone thinks of when I mention my disorder or they discover it - and then fire/evict/threaten me?
I usually would say "People can be stupid" but this is far beyond the pale. It's sh*tty writing that confused me from start to finish. DID can change your demeanor (doesn't make you trample others, you're thinking of what people without DID do ... and then hunt for an excuse dumb people will believe), even your accent and vocal timbre - but you still have the same body and face. The more concerning people in this story are the ones without the DID, given how coldhearted they are the nanosecond someone shows any sign of mental malady. No compassion, all hate and "should have been born a better person".
Everyone, you're all aware this is a fictional story written by a guy who read the first known case of Dissociative Identity Disorder in the West (some guy in France in the 1800s was discovered to have it) in the newspaper and went "I have a crappy idea, let me share it with the world!" - and not a How-To guide on how to treat people with disorders, especially DID, right?
If anyone in the work had a shred of compassion - or, better yet, took a minute to think outside their gravely myopic egos - it would have at least been minorly better written.
The book was dreck, long story very short.
This is the book everyone thinks of when I mention my disorder or they discover it - and then fire/evict/threaten me?
I usually would say "People can be stupid" but this is far beyond the pale. It's sh*tty writing that confused me from start to finish. DID can change your demeanor (doesn't make you trample others, you're thinking of what people without DID do ... and then hunt for an excuse dumb people will believe), even your accent and vocal timbre - but you still have the same body and face. The more concerning people in this story are the ones without the DID, given how coldhearted they are the nanosecond someone shows any sign of mental malady. No compassion, all hate and "should have been born a better person".
Everyone, you're all aware this is a fictional story written by a guy who read the first known case of Dissociative Identity Disorder in the West (some guy in France in the 1800s was discovered to have it) in the newspaper and went "I have a crappy idea, let me share it with the world!" - and not a How-To guide on how to treat people with disorders, especially DID, right?
If anyone in the work had a shred of compassion - or, better yet, took a minute to think outside their gravely myopic egos - it would have at least been minorly better written.
The book was dreck, long story very short.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Death, Mental illness, and Suicide
It's a crappy fiction book about Dissociative Identity Disorder, not a How-To guide on how to treat people with DID. Try reading books on trauma disorders (because DID is a severe trauma disorder) instead. The kind that depicts people with DID as humans. Because, though probably deeply surpising - we are. Billions of better books to read out there, pick one of those. Even a bottom shelf AI book is better than this bookriverofhorton's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
This was a very interesting and in places somewhat unexpected read. I knew the basic premise that Jekyll and Hyde share the same body with Jekyll being the 'good' side and Hyde being the 'bad' side , but I hadn't anticipated the subtext of repressed homosexuality contained within the Hyde character. I also hadn't expected one of the characters to be accepting of this, but questioning of the perceived choice of partner . I also went into this expecting some discussion of substance use based on other media, but I wasn't expecting the suicide towards the end, I did find this to have been well done within the context of the story however.
Overall, I enjoyed this story and will likely re-read it in the future
Overall, I enjoyed this story and will likely re-read it in the future
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gore, Mental illness, Child abuse, Suicide, Blood, Addiction, Chronic illness, Confinement, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Body horror, Death, Drug abuse, Drug use, Physical abuse, Self harm, Terminal illness, and Violence
orchidlilly's review against another edition
mysterious
reflective
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Well narrated, I liked the prose. points docked for being a generally ablest mess. I can condemn the past, and you know what? I think I will.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Mental illness, Death, and Suicide
Minor: Addiction, Alcohol, Body horror, Gun violence, Murder, Medical content, Classism, and Drug use
paintinyourwing's review against another edition
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I'm not sure where to start here... This was not what I expected at all! I can't exactly explain how this is a 5 star read for me because that youl spoil the entire book - even if pretty much everyone knows what the story is about.
What really sold me on this was exactly that: I thought I knew the story, and in a way I did but it goes so much deeper. The POV it's written in + the way the book and chapters are structured just keep you guessing until the very end.
The writing is amazing and easy to understand and follow; considering when it was written, and there is a bit of wordplay and even some humour in there (though I'm not sure if that was intended).
What I loved the most is that it doesn't leave any loose threads, the last chapter answers every question - even those I didn't think to ask.
The ending had my mind blown, in all honesty... I listened to the audiobook and had to repeat the last few minutes 3 times and I just absolutely loved it! Speaking of the audiobook; the version I listened to was read by David Barnes - and WOW that was a great choice! His pronunciation, accent and overall tone of voice was just perfect for this story. His tempo was a little slow but that rather added a layer of calm tension in my opinion.
It's a short (audio-)book at about 3h, and would be at 2,5h at 1,5x speed without sounding odd, according to other comments I've seen. Aka it wouldn't be a big waste of time even if you didn't love it so I'd still highly recommend it!
If I did go into the story more I'd probably still sit here tomorrow so I'll leave it at this: there's many more layers to the story than I thought and the more I listened, and the more I'm thinking about it now, the more I figure out and it's still mind boggling to me!
What really sold me on this was exactly that: I thought I knew the story, and in a way I did but it goes so much deeper. The POV it's written in + the way the book and chapters are structured just keep you guessing until the very end.
The writing is amazing and easy to understand and follow; considering when it was written, and there is a bit of wordplay and even some humour in there (though I'm not sure if that was intended).
What I loved the most is that it doesn't leave any loose threads, the last chapter answers every question - even those I didn't think to ask.
The ending had my mind blown, in all honesty... I listened to the audiobook and had to repeat the last few minutes 3 times and I just absolutely loved it! Speaking of the audiobook; the version I listened to was read by David Barnes - and WOW that was a great choice! His pronunciation, accent and overall tone of voice was just perfect for this story. His tempo was a little slow but that rather added a layer of calm tension in my opinion.
It's a short (audio-)book at about 3h, and would be at 2,5h at 1,5x speed without sounding odd, according to other comments I've seen. Aka it wouldn't be a big waste of time even if you didn't love it so I'd still highly recommend it!
If I did go into the story more I'd probably still sit here tomorrow so I'll leave it at this: there's many more layers to the story than I thought and the more I listened, and the more I'm thinking about it now, the more I figure out and it's still mind boggling to me!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Mental illness, and Addiction
Moderate: Drug use and Murder
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
burdiebird's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcohol, Death, Murder, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Suicide, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Addiction, and Mental illness
ellaticonstellation's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Toxic relationship, Confinement, Body shaming, Death, Drug use, Medical content, Mental illness, Self harm, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Murder, and Violence
meganpbennett's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
True story: when watching The Avengers (2012) for the first time, after meeting Dr Banner, my mom said, "I take it that was Hulk?" to which I replied, "that was Dr. Jekyll." Turns out I owe poor Bruce an apology. While there are similarities between the two men, reading the book for the first time showed that, as in a lot of classic Victorian horror texts, the adaptations have taken on a life of their own, the monsters from the stories becoming those from the movies, not the books.
As discussed in the introduction to the Signet Classics edition (by no more than Vladimir Nabovok himself), the story is a mediocre detective story, going through the motions of a Victorian mystery. It is, however, a splendid look at how good and evil exist within each person, and how attempting to alter the balance within oneself is not a good idea.
As discussed in the introduction to the Signet Classics edition (by no more than Vladimir Nabovok himself), the story is a mediocre detective story, going through the motions of a Victorian mystery. It is, however, a splendid look at how good and evil exist within each person, and how attempting to alter the balance within oneself is not a good idea.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Murder, Violence, Body horror, Gore, Blood, Suicide, Mental illness, and Death
greenrequiem's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness and Addiction
Moderate: Violence and Murder
soph1768's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, and Dysphoria
Moderate: Mental illness
Minor: Violence, Suicide, and Murder