Expanding on the themes of place and identity, the setting in "Speculations About Jakob" serves as a vivid backdrop that illuminates the socio-political changes in postwar Germany. Through the depiction of towns, homes, and workplaces, the narrative captures both the transformation and resilience of these spaces, echoing the larger historical shifts. Each location, from the coastal town of Jerichow to the bustling railway yards, plays a crucial role in understanding the characters' lives and the era they inhabit.

Jerichow

Jerichow, an imagined seaside town in East Germany’s Mecklenburg state, symbolizes a place suspended between its historical legacy and the new social order. Once predominantly owned by a noble family, the town's landscape is marked by "a thousand and one houses" along the Baltic coast, where the ever-present wind adds to its austere charm. The town's ancient church, with its Saxon roots and Romanesque and Gothic elements, stands as a testament to its layered past. Surrounding the marketplace are gabled houses, echoes of a bygone era now divided due to a postwar housing crisis. The ruling class has vanished, replaced by a state that prioritizes workers and peasants. This dramatic shift is embodied by the local castle, once a bastion of nobility, now repurposed as a home for the elderly. Life in Jerichow is marked by shared spaces and community living, as seen in Jöche’s young family's constrained living conditions, indicative of the larger social upheavals.

Despite these challenges, Johnson's portrayal of Jerichow transcends its immediate struggles, capturing the town’s enduring essence. The local dialect, preserved in the original German text, and the unchanged landscape, used by the efficient but anachronistic East German secret police, illustrate a continuity that defies political changes. This setting, once a refuge for Jakob fleeing Pomerania, bears the scars and stories of countless past inhabitants, as evidenced by the ancient burial sites dotting the region.

Cresspahl’s House

Cresspahl’s house, home to the widower Heinrich Cresspahl, stands as a microcosm of stability amidst change. Located at Ziegeleiweg 3-4, near the remnants of old tile kilns, the house mirrors one that Johnson himself knew during his school days in Güstrow, Mecklenburg. Postwar, Cresspahl shared his home with Jakob and his mother, transforming it into a sanctuary for those uprooted by conflict. This long, one-story house, with its aged living-room ceiling and a map from the seventeenth century, symbolizes continuity and resilience. Cresspahl's self-reliance—tending to his garden, collecting firewood, and enjoying pipe smoke in his leather armchair—reflects a quiet defiance against the tides of change. The house, with its workshop marked "CRESSPAHL HARDWOOD INLAYS" by Jakob’s hand, is a bastion of personal and historical rootedness.

Railway Yards

The railway yards, situated in a fictitious port city on the Elbe River, offer a stark contrast to the pastoral settings of Jerichow and Cresspahl's house. Here, Jakob meets his tragic end, underscoring the harsh realities of industrial and postwar Germany. The yards are enveloped in "heavy sooty air," with engines groaning under the strain of inadequate infrastructure. Jakob’s work, carried out from a locked observation tower amidst the fog, epitomizes the struggle to maintain order in a chaotic environment. The war has left its mark, with torn-up tracks unreplaced and trains operating with limited resources. This setting not only reflects the physical disrepair but also the broader societal challenges faced by the characters.

Federal Republic of Germany

Outside the confines of East Germany, the Federal Republic of Germany, or West Germany, presents a contrasting narrative. Its capitalist dynamism is encapsulated in the frenetic pace of life, illustrated by the metaphor of the autobahn—"You pass me, I pass you"—that Gesine Cresspahl uses to describe this world. Yet, beneath the veneer of progressiveness lie unsettling reminders of the past. Jakob is disturbed by the jukebox in a bar that still plays the "Badenweiler March," a remnant of Nazi ideology, and the Bundesbahn's decision to run express trains with minimal staffing. These details paint a complex picture of a country grappling with its identity amid rapid modernization.