Setting and Symbolism (Scottish Highers English): Revision Notes
Setting and Symbolism
Stevenson uses setting and symbolic objects throughout Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde to reinforce the novel's central themes of duality, secrecy and moral corruption. The physical locations and objects in the text operate on both literal and symbolic levels, creating deeper meaning for readers.
Darkness and fog dominate the novel's atmosphere
Stevenson repeatedly emphasises darkness and partial darkness throughout the novel. The less respectable areas of London are particularly associated with dark settings, which creates an atmosphere of danger and moral ambiguity.
Symbolism in Soho's Lighting
In Soho, where Hyde keeps a residence, the light constantly shifts and changes. Utterson observes "degrees and hues of twilight", a "haggard shaft of daylight" and "changing glimpses" of streets. This fluctuating light works symbolically to represent the narrative structure itself—just as Utterson can only see parts of the streets at different moments, readers and characters can only access fragments of the truth at any one time.
The partial darkness prevents full understanding, mirroring how Jekyll's secret remains partially hidden until the final chapters. This limited visibility becomes a metaphor for the novel's gradual revelation of truth.
Fog as a Physical and Symbolic Presence
Fog appears throughout the text as both a physical presence and a symbol. The fog is so dense that it covers entire streets, transforming familiar locations into places of secrecy. Stevenson personifies the fog, showing how it actively works against characters.
When Utterson visits Soho, the fog "cut him off" from his surroundings. The writer uses this technique to physically isolate characters from their environment and to restrict their ability to perceive events clearly.
The fog's symbolic function extends beyond atmosphere. When Jekyll's lecture theatre is described as "foggy", the fog appears to have moved indoors. This impossible detail symbolises how deeply Jekyll has concealed his secret—the fog has penetrated his private spaces, representing the way his lies and deception have spread through every aspect of his life.
Stevenson also uses moonlight to create dramatic effects. Carew's murder takes place under a scene "brilliantly lit by the full moon", which functions like a spotlight, making the violence more theatrical and shocking. Later, in 'The Last Night', the moon is described as "lying on her back". This personification suggests disorder and unnaturalness, as if Jekyll's transgression has disrupted the natural world itself.
London's streets function as threatening spaces
Stevenson presents the streets of London as dangerous locations where violence erupts. Both of Hyde's physical attacks occur on the streets, establishing them as places where civilised behaviour breaks down.
The writer constructs a nightmarish version of London that exists between reality and fiction. He achieves this through specific techniques:
- He provides vague descriptions of familiar settings, such as when Jekyll lives on "some square or other"
- He includes precise details about locations, noting that Jekyll's house is two doors in from the end of the street
- He mentions place names that did not exist in Victorian London, such as Gaunt Street
Creating an Unsettling Effect
This blending of real and invented details creates an unsettling effect for Victorian readers. The settings feel familiar enough to seem real, yet strange enough to feel threatening. This technique makes the horror more immediate because readers cannot dismiss it as purely fantastical.
The text frequently links streets to horror and nightmares. Utterson experiences an actual nightmare in which he imagines a terrifying city of "labyrinths". Later, Soho is described as "a district of some city in a nightmare", suggesting that Utterson's nightmare visions have materialised in the real world. This blurring between dreams and reality intensifies the Gothic atmosphere.
Streets are often presented as empty and isolated. When Poole fetches Utterson to Jekyll's house, Utterson feels "he had never seen that part of London so deserted". This emptiness is unnatural for a bustling area of the city. The strange desertion creates the impression that characters exist in a bubble of silence and mystery, cut off from the normal urban life surrounding them.
This isolation intensifies Utterson and Poole's growing anxiety as they approach the crisis.
Jekyll's house symbolises his divided nature
Jekyll's house operates as a physical representation of his dual personality. Like Jekyll himself, the building has two connected but contrasting sides. The respectable main house stands at the front with an "air of wealth", representing Jekyll's public persona as a distinguished gentleman. However, through a yard at the back lies a laboratory with a rear door that is "blistered and distained".
Architectural Symbolism of Duality
This architectural division symbolises Jekyll's character: outwardly respectable but inwardly corrupt. The Hyde aspect of his personality remains connected to him but hidden from public view. The physical structure of the building mirrors the psychological structure of Jekyll's divided self.
Hyde uses the building as a place of concealment. After his brief meeting with Utterson, Hyde escapes into the house "with extraordinary quickness" and shuts the door behind him. This action demonstrates how the building functions as a hiding place where Hyde can disappear from public scrutiny.
Jekyll deliberately maintains separation between different parts of the house. He does not usually invite friends like Utterson into his laboratory, preferring to host social dinner parties in the main house instead. The laboratory is described as a "dingy windowless structure", perfectly designed to prevent outsiders from observing what occurs inside.
After Carew's murder, when Utterson visits Jekyll in his laboratory, he experiences a "sense of strangeness" while passing through the lecture theatre. This mysterious atmosphere reinforces the idea that the laboratory represents a hidden, transgressive space within Jekyll's respectable property.
As Hyde gains more power over Jekyll, the house becomes increasingly sinister. It transforms into a "house of voluntary bondage", suggesting that Jekyll has chosen to imprison himself there. This mirrors how he attempts to lock Hyde away within himself. Jekyll views the house as protection, a place where he can hide his secrets from the world.
The Laboratory as Symbol of Shame
The laboratory carries particular symbolic weight in representing Jekyll's shame. He has transformed it from a space for ordinary scientific work into a location for dark experiments that violate natural and moral laws. At the novel's conclusion, Jekyll locks himself in the laboratory and dies there, unable to face the world's judgement. The laboratory becomes both his refuge and his tomb, symbolising how his attempts at concealment ultimately destroy him.
Symbolic objects reinforce key themes
Several objects in the novel function symbolically to develop themes about respectability, violence and duality.
Expensive Possessions in Soho
The expensive possessions in Hyde's Soho house belong to Jekyll. These refined objects represent the presence of the respectable gentleman existing within the rougher part of the city. Their presence in Soho demonstrates how Jekyll's respectable identity cannot be completely separated from his Hyde persona.
The cane that Hyde uses to murder Carew was originally a gift from Utterson to Jekyll. As an object, it symbolises the Victorian gentleman and represents civilised society. However, its use as a murder weapon demonstrates Stevenson's argument that civilised, respectable people remain capable of savage violence.
The cane's transformation from gift to weapon embodies the novel's exploration of how respectability can mask brutality. This symbolic transformation reveals that the tools of civilised society can become instruments of violence in the wrong hands.
Jekyll's cheque book initially appears to solve problems caused by Hyde's behaviour. Jekyll uses it to pay off the family of the girl Hyde trampled, demonstrating how wealth can suppress scandals. However, after murdering Carew, Jekyll burns the cheque book. This symbolic destruction shows that money cannot help him manage a scandal of this magnitude. Some transgressions exceed what wealth and respectability can conceal or repair.
The Mirror's Symbolic Function
The mirror in Jekyll's laboratory serves as a symbolic object that emphasises the theme of doubling. When Jekyll sees his reflection as Hyde, the mirror confirms that Hyde is his double, another version of himself rather than a separate person. The mirror forces Jekyll to confront the physical reality of his transformation.
Key Points to Remember:
- Stevenson uses darkness and fog to create atmosphere, symbolise mystery, and represent how truth remains partially hidden throughout the narrative
- London's streets blend real and fictional elements to create threatening, nightmarish spaces where violence occurs and characters experience isolation
- Jekyll's house has two contrasting sides (respectable front, shabby laboratory) that symbolise his dual nature and his attempts to separate his public persona from his private sins
- The laboratory specifically represents concealment, shame, and transgressive science, ultimately becoming Jekyll's prison and tomb
- Symbolic objects (the cane, cheque book, mirror, and possessions) develop themes about respectability, violence, wealth's limitations, and duality