When Will learns that Jim wants to ride the carousel himself, he suddenly realizes that Jim is not interested in solving the mystery of the carnival and preventing the harm that Mr. Cooger may cause—he is interested in using the merry-go-round to make himself older, to experience another great adventure. Will attacks Jim and subdues him because he knows he cannot let his friend do what he wants to do. But after the nephew sets them up as thieves and runs off towards the carnival, Will knows that he is chasing both Mr. Cooger and Jim. Jim's desire to grow up blinds him to the clearly evil intentions of Mr. Cooger, and he is willing to risk everything for a ride on the carousel. Will still sees things clearly and knows that Jim is in grave danger, but he also knows that he will have trouble stopping his friend from harming himself. Jim seeks adventure and wonder, but in this case he runs the risk of doing himself terrible harm. There may be times in life when it is better to be like Will, to think things through before acting. Will can see that the merry-go-round, however it works, is not a good thing, even though it appears to be magical. Jim can only see that it will make him older, and he does not stop to think about what that means.
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