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In Nathaniel’s eyes, Coppelius takes on the figure of a monster, like an ogre or an evil wizard from a fairy tale with exaggerated physical features and outlandish clothing. Coppelius also appears at critical moments in the story to spread tidings of doom and to spark fear in Nathaniel’s heart as if he possesses supernatural powers. Nathaniel takes him to be the Sandman, given that his arrivals always seem to coincide with the heavy steps on the stairs, but Nathaniel makes him out to be more terrifying than the Sandman of the fairy tales because he is real, and he takes great delight in frightening young Nathaniel and his siblings.

Given that he also appears as Coppola, he presents as something of a shapeshifter, one who is there during key moments that affect Nathaniel’s life: the confrontation in the father’s study, the wrenching apart of Olympia, and Nathaniel’s final manic plunge from the town hall tower. Coppelius and Coppola represent the dark forces that are within Nathaniel and follow him around for his entire life, ruining all that is good for him.

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