Question

The court was very cool and a little damp, and full of premature twilight, although the sky, high up overhead, was still bright with sunset. The middle one of the three windows was half-way open; and sitting close beside it, taking the air with an infinite sadness of mien, like some disconsolate prisoner, Utterson saw Dr. Jekyll.

"What! Jekyll!” he cried. "I trust you are better.”

"I am very low, Utterson,” replied the doctor drearily, "very low. It will not last long, thank God.”

Which theme does this passage best support?

People feel unhappy at sunset.
Dr. Jekyll is sad and lonely.
Love can overcome tragedy.
Hiding a secret can be painful.

Answer 1

Dr. Jekyll is sad and lonely.

The passage directly describes Jekyll's "infinite sadness," likening him to a "disconsolate prisoner," and his own words ("I am very low") confirm his loneliness and sorrow.