The Hyde Inside

One day, I've got to read The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Of course, I already know the story; upstanding scientist Dr. Jekyll makes a potion that alters his appearance and personality, turning him into the evil Mr. Hyde, but the problem is that, apparently, that's only part true. From what I've heard, the potion doesn't alter Jekyll's personality, only his appearance. Dr. Jekyll is still the same person, but in the disguise of Mr. Hyde, he releases his inhibitions and gives in to his base desires, which he otherwise would have repressed. Mr. Hyde wasn't a separate personality; he was a part of Dr. Jekyll's personality, and he wasn't created by the potion; he had been part of Jekyll all along.

Like Dr. Jekyll, we all have a Mr. (or Ms.) Hyde inside of us. We all have carnal and/or evil desires that we know we shouldn't act on. Sometimes, we suppress these desires, as Dr. Jekyll did when he acted as Dr. Jekyll, and sometimes, we give in, as Dr. Jekyll did when he acted as Mr. Hyde, but I don't think we can ever truly get rid of them, at least not without help.

Suppressing the carnal/evil parts of our natures is a short-term solution, if that, and giving in to them isn't a solution at all. We need to learn how to deal with our Mr. Hydes in the long run, if not once and for all. Given that Mr. Hyde is a part of our personality, or more poetically, our hearts, we need to find a way to change our hearts, and I know just the One to help us.

Following the Gospel and teachings of Jesus Christ can change a person for the better. It can help us develop Christlike traits, replacing the un-Christlike traits we were born with or developed in mortality. We can overcome the Natural Man, permanently, by following the Son of God.

Like Dr. Jekyll, we each have a dualistic nature. We each have a dark side and a light side. Instead of following Dr. Jekyll's example by walking in darkness at some times and following the light at other times, or his earlier example of locking our dark side in a box and pretending it isn't there, we would do well to acknowledge our dark sides (at least to ourselves and to God) and to try to overcome them. Merely repressing them doesn't work in the long run, and giving in to them doesn't do any good at all. Instead, we need to learn what our dark traits are and to seek to undermine them by practicing their related, opposing virtues. A stingy man might practice generosity, or example, and a lazy man might practice diligence. If we practice the Christlike attributes that conflict with the dark parts of our personalities, we may be able to overcome them for good.

We each have a Mr. Hyde inside of us. We can try to hide it, like Dr. Jekyll did, but the only real, long-term solution to the problem over our negative personality traits is to develop positive personality traits (Christlike Attributes) to undermine and replace them.