Read the excerpt from The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

"We have common friends,” said Mr. Utterson.

"Common friends,” echoed Mr. Hyde, a little hoarsely. "Who are they?”

"Jekyll, for instance,” said the lawyer.

"He never told you,” cried Mr. Hyde, with a flush of anger. "I did not think you would have lied.”

"Come,” said Mr. Utterson, "that is not fitting language.”

The other snarled aloud into a savage laugh; and the next moment, with extraordinary quickness, he had unlocked the door and disappeared into the house.

Which statement best describes how Mr. Hyde is characterized in the excerpt?

The author uses direct characterization to show readers that Mr. Hyde is a sinister man.
The author uses direct characterization to show readers that Mr. Hyde has a strange appearance.
The author uses indirect characterization to show that Mr. Hyde is lonely and misunderstood.
The author uses indirect characterization to show that Mr. Hyde is rude and uncivilized.

The correct answer would be the last option. Based on the given excerpt above from The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, the statement that best describes how Mr. Hyde is characterized in this excerpt is that the author uses indirect characterization to show that Mr. Hyde is rude and uncivilized.

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MrsTate MrsTate · Answer 2 · 2018-08-01T01:13:05+02:00

The author uses indirect characterization to show that Mr. Hyde is rude and uncivilized.

Indirect characterization is when the author shows the traits of the character through his or her speech, thoughts, actions, effects on others, and looks. For example a character who looks unclean with ragged torn clothing would be characterized as poor or homeless. The author doesn't specifically say this, but rather shows it through details. Direct characterization is when the author specifically tells you a character trait. For example, Sam was always dishonest; he never told the truth to anyone about who he really was. In this example Sam is being directly characterized as dishonest. In the excerpt, Mr. Hyde is never directly characterized. His traits are never explicitly stated. Instead the reader must infer them which is indirect characterization. In this excerpt, Mr. Hyde is not shown as being lonely or misunderstood. He's just plain rude.