Something Wicked This Way Comes

The carnival arrives accompanied by the sounds of the train and calliope, and the smell of carnival foods. The townspeople’s reactions indicate the motif of temptation. All aspects of Mr. Dark and Cooger’s Pandemonium Shadow Show are designed to seduce people into the carnival, where they can be further tempted into bargaining away their soul. The three main carnival attractions described in the novel are “The Most Beautiful Woman in the World,” the Mirror Maze, and the carousel. Charles encounters “The Most Beautiful Woman in the World” when the carnival first comes to town; previously she tempted the lightning rod salesman, leading to his transformation into the “Dwarf.” The woman is frozen in a block of ice; it is not clear if an actual woman is embedded, or if, more likely, it is a “woman-shaped” hole within the ice. This allows the viewer to fill the space with their own vision of the woman’s appearance, presenting a similar temptation as the theater that Jim spies on.

The temptation of the maze and the carousel work in tandem, with the maze showing its victim an idealized or fearful aspect of themselves. For Charles, it shows older versions of himself, while for Miss Foley, it shows her younger self.