Weird Studies Episode 202 – The Human is Two: On 'The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde'
30 snips
Nov 26, 2025 Delve into the duality of human nature with a discussion on the Gothic classic that forever changed our view of identity. Explore connections between Jekyll and Hyde and modern themes in media like 'Severance' and 'Mulholland Drive.' Discover the uncanny power of doppelgangers and the moral quandaries of splitting one's conscience. Unpack the story's prophetic implications with psychoanalytic theories and the anxieties of Victorian society. Reflect on the interplay of fog, urban nightmares, and the deeper truths of existence.
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Twin Sisters Encounter
- Phil Ford recounts repeatedly seeing twin sisters who behaved like strangers and read the same book while walking.
- The episode shows how doubles in everyday life can feel eerily uncanny before explanations arrive.
The Human Is Two
- Jeff Kripal's line 'the human is two' maps doubleness across anatomy, psychology, society, and spirit.
- The hosts use this to read Jekyll and Hyde as an expression of deep, layered duality.
Vertical Duality And Atavism
- Jekyll/Hyde stages a vertical duality of higher and lower natures, evoking Victorian anxieties about evolution and atavism.
- Stevenson uses Darwinian language to cast Hyde as an atavistic, deformed lower form.
