How Stevenson Uses Setting and Place in The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde

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10/11/08

How Stevenson Uses Setting and Place in “The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde”

The major issue facing Victorian society was the inconsistency of their lives. They wished to appear as pure as possible, to reflect the bible whereas they whispered and chuckled over “infamy and incest.”  The duality of Stevenson’s personality was due to the fact that he was a bohemian child though his parents were conformists .He was an invalid who wished to be in two places at once.  All this accounted for the fact that he was always trying to live a double life.  Jekyll and Hyde is the quintessential novel of this double life.  He and his father had a difficult relationship: his father was Jekyll to Stevenson’s Hyde.        

In 1886 after a voyage to the Americas Sir Robert Louis Stevenson dreamt up the story of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde which he set in the same period mainly in Soho and the West End in London. He felt if he wrote about the familiar then he could make it more realistic and terrifying. It is easier to paint pictures with words and scare your reader if you know the period well. Perhaps he drew on facts from previous murders written about in the press such as Jack The Ripper.

“The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde” is centred around four settings in London which allows the reader to experience these in detail.  Interestingly, the homes seem to reflect their occupants’ characters.  We are not told a great deal about Utterson’s house, which seems strange considering the attention to detail provided in other areas of the book. It is made to look austere but well kept. He lives alone and does everything precisely; his routine is governed by the clock of the church which is near to his house. He keeps his important work in a safe in his study. Stevenson makes Utterson’s home lonely which is also Utterson’s character - he is a lonely man. Mr Utterson is a very private man, a bachelor who lives in the sort of house we would imagine, few ornaments and definitely no flowers in vases.  We are told it has a writing desk, the safe which contains Dr Jekyll’s will, and a “great dark bed”.  The author makes a point of mentioning the fire as if it is representative of Utterson’s warm character which gives the reader a sense of security. The lawyer is made to sound a little drab which makes me think that his home was probably the same, and provides a good contrast with that of Dr Jekyll.  Mr Utterson seems to be a strong character and is the connection between the other characters.  The story is dependent upon the interaction between Dr Jekyll, Mr Hyde, Mr Utterson and Dr Lanyon.

  The interior of Dr Jekyll’s house by contrast is highly detailed and shows how wealthy he is. The house is in an area which had once been sought after but has now come down in the world. Many of the houses in the street had been converted into flats, but the doctor’s house has remained untouched. It is a typical Victorian house with a large front door and hall.  Even the hall has a fire burning in it and the rooms contain expensive oak furniture.  Mr Utterson thought the hall “the pleasantest room in London”.  

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Dr Jekyll has a laboratory which was across the yard from the house.  In contrast to the house it was untidy, but then this is a laboratory and the doctor probably does not expect his servants to clean and tidy here.  There was a door covered with red baize which led to the doctor’s cabinet.  This was a large room, a typical laboratory with big glass cupboards and a large table.  The windows had iron bars across them and the reader is left wondering whether these are to stop people entering or the Doctor escaping! This shows that he wants ...

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