Iona: The Loyal Maid and Unlikely Ally in Anatomy
Overview
Iona is Hazel Sinnett's personal maid at Hawthornden Castle. Unlike many servants in Gothic fiction who exist only as background figures, Iona becomes an active accomplice in Hazel's secret medical pursuits. She helps Hazel sneak into anatomy lectures, maintain her hidden laboratory, and navigate the social obligations that threaten her ambitions. By the novel's end, Iona marries the footman Charles and leaves Hawthornden to begin her own life, symbolizing the possibility of happiness outside the castle's confines.
Plot Role
Iona functions as Hazel's gatekeeper and confidante. When Hazel decides to attend Dr. Beecham's anatomy course disguised as a man, Iona helps her fake an illness to avoid accompanying her mother and brother to Bath (Chapter 10). She then assists in transforming Hazel into "George Hazelton" using her deceased brother George's clothes. Throughout the story, Iona knocks on the dungeon door to pull Hazel back to reality—most notably before the Almont ball, when Hazel has lost all sense of time dissecting a stomach (Chapter 19). Iona also provides emotional grounding. After Dr. Straine dismisses Hazel from class, Iona finds her bleeding from shattered glass and helps clean the wounds while tactfully suggesting Hazel could be kinder to her betrothed, Bernard (Chapter 14). Iona's steady presence contrasts with Hazel's obsessive focus, making her an indispensable support system.
Motivations and Traits
Iona's primary motivation is genuine care for Hazel's well-being, not mere duty. Though she is a servant, she speaks her mind—gently chiding Hazel for harshness toward Bernard and worrying about Hazel's future when the house will pass to Percy. Her loyalty extends to risking her own position: helping Hazel maintain a secret dissecting room and covering for her absences. Iona is practical and level-headed. She knows that Hazel's social survival depends on securing Bernard's proposal, yet she never betrays Hazel's secret projects to Lady Sinnett. Her quiet competence is shown when she has a bath prepared without being asked, anticipating Hazel's needs after long hours of dissection.
Chronological Arc
Iona's arc mirrors Hazel's growth but remains anchored in service. Initially, she is a background figure executing orders—lacing corsets, running baths. The turning point comes when she actively participates in Hazel's deception, disguising her as a boy. As Hazel becomes more consumed by anatomy, Iona's role expands to include emotional support, warning her about social obligations. Her own personal life develops in parallel with Hazel's relationship with Jack. Hazel notices Iona's interest in Charles and deliberately sends them to the gardens together (Chapter 14), encouraging their romance. The culmination is Iona and Charles's wedding in the spring, after Jack's execution. Iona leaves Hawthornden to live in a village cottage, symbolizing her transition from servant to independent married woman.
Relationships
With Hazel: Their relationship transcends employer-servant boundaries. Hazel trusts Iona with her deepest secrets, and Iona returns that trust with unwavering loyalty. The farewell scene is poignant: Iona tells Hazel she deserves happiness, and Hazel assures Iona she deserves everything she wants. They share genuine affection, seen when Hazel straightens Iona's hair at the wedding and when Iona frets over Hazel's isolation after the marriage.
With Charles: Iona's romance with the footman Charles is understated but significant. Hazel facilitates their courtship, and Charles remains loyal to Hazel even after Iona leaves. Their marriage represents a traditional happy ending—a stable partnership that Hazel herself cannot achieve.
With Lady Sinnett and the household: Iona navigates the tension between Lady Sinnett's expectations and Hazel's rebellion. She never betrays Hazel, suggesting her loyalty to Hazel surpasses her duty to the mistress of the house.
Key Decisions and Consequences
- Helping Hazel fake illness: Iona's decision to play along with Hazel's illness deception enables Hazel to attend anatomy lectures. This choice directly advances Hazel's medical education but risks severe punishment if discovered.
- Knocking persistently to remind Hazel of the ball: Iona's insistence prevents Hazel from missing the Almont ball entirely, though Hazel still arrives exhausted and ultimately becomes engaged to Bernard against her will. This decision shows Iona prioritizing Hazel's social survival over her personal wishes.
- Accepting Hazel's suggestion to walk with Charles: Iona's willingness to accept time off with Charles deepens her personal life and eventually leads to marriage. This subplot provides a counterpoint to Hazel's doomed romance with Jack.
- Leaving Hawthornden after marriage: Iona's departure marks the end of an era. Hazel must now live alone for the first time, but she also gains emotional closure, knowing Iona has found happiness.
Theme and Symbol Connections
Iona embodies the theme of class inequality. Her limited options contrast starkly with Hazel's wealth and education, yet her practical wisdom often surpasses Hazel's book learning. She represents the silent labor that enables scientific progress—the maids who prepare baths, clean up glass, and keep secrets.
She also connects to gender barriers in medicine. As a woman of lower class, Iona has no access to medical knowledge, yet she assists in Hazel's work and witnesses its value. Her marriage to Charles shows a traditional path for women, while Hazel chooses a more radical one. Together they illustrate the spectrum of women's choices in 1817 Edinburgh.
The wedding garden scene ties to mortality and the pursuit of knowledge. After Jack's death, Hazel has retreated into work, but Iona's wedding forces her to confront life continuing. Hazel's grief is expressed through the image of Jack in her dreams—the boy who remains young forever—while Iona moves forward into a conventional future.
Book-Specific Questions and Answers
1. Why does Iona help Hazel with her disguise despite the risk?
Iona's loyalty to Hazel outweighs her fear of consequences. She sees Hazel's passion for medicine and believes in her ability, even if societal rules forbid it. Her actions are motivated by genuine affection and a desire to see Hazel succeed, not by any personal gain.
2. What does Iona's relationship with Charles reveal about her character?
Iona's romance shows she is capable of forming deep, reciprocal bonds beyond her role as a maid. Her willingness to accept Hazel's matchmaking suggests she trusts Hazel's judgment and values happiness over rigid propriety. The relationship also grounds her as a fully realized person with her own desires.
3. How does Iona's perspective differ from Hazel's regarding Bernard?
Iona sees Bernard as a practical necessity for Hazel's social and financial security. She advises Hazel to be sweeter to him, understanding that without marriage, Hazel will be destitute when the estate passes to Percy. Hazel, by contrast, sees Bernard as an obstacle to her ambition. This difference highlights the class and gender constraints that shape Iona's worldview.
4. Why does Hazel send Iona and Charles to the gardens together?
After Hazel's harsh rejection of Bernard, she feels a moment of benevolence. She recognizes that Iona and Charles have a mutual attraction and gives them permission to enjoy a rare afternoon of freedom. It reflects Hazel's growing maturity and her desire to facilitate happiness for others even as her own future feels bleak.
5. What does Iona's wedding symbolize in the context of the novel?
Iona's wedding to Charles represents the possibility of a conventional happy ending—love, marriage, and a cottage in the village. It contrasts with Hazel's tragic romance with Jack and her solitary pursuit of medicine. For Hazel, watching Iona leave is bittersweet: she feels genuine joy for her friend but also deeper awareness of her own loss. The wedding underscores the theme that happiness can take different forms, and that loyalty and love persist even through grief.