Extra Credit Blog

In the novel Jekyll and Hyde women were portrayed as second class citizens, and were considered less important in society then men. Women were barely used in this story, and when they were used, they either played the role of a servant, or they got ran over. In the movie, however, Jekyll and Hyde are both interested in women. Jekyll wishes to marry a woman very much, and Hyde is attracted to another woman's appearance. The scene where the girl is ran over is not used in the movie, as it degrades women. I believe that in the movie Mamoulian didn't wish to include scenes that degraded women, because in this time period woman were becoming more popular in society. The scene where the girl gets run over is unbelievable as well. Girls don't usually go walking around in 3 AM by themselves. His point however is that women are important in society, and serve better roles than Stevenson makes them play. The audience will also enjoy a seen where love plays a role, as romance is a key factor in movies. It adds an extra factor which some viewers enjoy. The following reasons are the differences between the movie and the novel. There aren't much similarities between the women in the book and the movie. They both influence the plot. The girl that was run over and the woman that witnessed the murder were key individuals. Similarly, the woman who was interested in Jekyll then influenced Hyde. the woman Jekyll was to marry portrayed his impatience, but did not affect the theme or plot much. Therefore, the similarities and the differences of women were knowledgeable ones. Stevenson and Mamoulian portrayed women differently, and they each had their personal reasons for it.