Context: London and Urban Terror

London as a Symbol of Victorian Society

London is often synonymous with a strict societal structure, representing the public image of respectability the Victorians valued.
The dark, maze-like streets are seen as hiding the darker side of human nature, tying in with Jekyll’s hidden evil.

Key Quote: “A great chocolate-coloured pall lowered over heaven, but the wind was continually charging and routing these embattled vapours” (Chapter 4).

Soho - Mr. Hyde’s Territory

Soho is the location of Mr. Hyde’s residence, symbolising the less refined, darker aspects of society and human nature.
The area is described in negative, grim terms, aligning with the character of Mr. Hyde.

Key Quote: “The dismal quarter of Soho seen under these changing glimpses, with its muddy ways, and slatternly passengers, and its lamps, which had never been extinguished or had been kindled afresh” (Chapter 4).

Dr. Jekyll’s Home- A Symbol of Dual Personality

The contrasting facades of Dr. Jekyll’s home represents Jekyll’s public persona and his hidden ‘Hyde’ side.
There is a disconnection between the distinguished front and the neglected, sinister back yard, mirroring Jekyll’s own life.

Key Quote: “It was two storeys high; showed no window, nothing but a door on the lower storey and a blind forehead of discoloured wall…and bore in every feature, the marks of prolonged and sordid negligence” (Chapter 5).

Laboratory- Transformations and Secret Endeavours

The laboratory where Jekyll conducts his experiments is hidden, representing secrets and hidden aspects of self.
The laboratory is described with a sense of decay and degeneration, symbolising Jekyll’s physical and moral decline as he indulges in his experiment.

Key Quote: “It was a large but unadorned and disappointing laboratory; a stout table, littered with glass retorts, Bunsen burners, and tools, an anatomist’s office; altogether a dusty, worn-out room, where, on the hottest day, and with four windows open, nought would light on the glass cases, save a yet more sordid gray” (Chapter 9).