Coraline: Chapter 4 Summary & Analysis

Outside, Coraline begins walking. She hears a noise behind her and turns around to see the black cat from home sitting on the garden wall. The cat speaks to Coraline, wishing her a good afternoon. The cat’s voice sounds, to Coraline, a bit like the voice at the back of her head, though she notes the cat has a man’s voice. Coraline asks the cat if it is the “other” cat—the cat, however, insists it is the same cat from Coraline’s real home. People are “spread all over the place,” the cat says—but cats are able to keep themselves together in one piece.

The cat begins to walk away. Coraline asks the cat if it wants to be friends—the cat says it doesn’t. Coraline pleads with the cat, asking it its name, but it insists that cats don’t need names—they know who they are without them. Coraline finds the cat irritating, but she decides to be as polite as she can to it in hopes that it will help her. Coraline asks where she is and how she got here—but the cat offers only maddening half-answers that don’t satisfy Coraline’s curiosity. The cat tells Coraline she was wise to bring “protection” with her to this world—but just as Coraline asks what’s protecting her, the cat seems to sense something and darts off into the woods nearby.

Coraline decides to visit Miss Spink and Miss Forcible. The door to their flat is different than the one at home—it is covered in flashing blue and red marquee lights advertising a sensational theatrical production. Coraline goes inside to find that the flat has been transformed into a cavernous theater. One of the ladies’ terriers approaches Coraline with a flashlight in its mouth—it begins to speak, asking to see her ticket. Coraline says she doesn’t have one, and the dog begrudgingly seats her anyway. As Coraline shuffles into her seat, she realizes the seats all around her are filled—with other terriers.

The other Miss Spink and the other Miss Forcible appear onstage. They perform a circus routine, and then, as the dogs applaud their antics, they unzip their elderly bodies to reveal beautiful young women inside. The other Miss Spink and the other Miss Forcible begin performing Shakespearean scenes to the dogs’ applause before announcing that they have a new part of their act they’d like to perform. They request a volunteer from the audience, and one of the dogs urges Coraline to go up on stage. The other Miss Forcible produces a knife from a box while Miss Spink directs Coraline to a board at the corner of the stage. She places a balloon over Coraline’s head and steps away. Miss Forcible throws the knife at Coraline—it pops the balloon on her head and the dogs applaud.

The other Miss Spink gives Coraline a box of chocolates as a prize. When Coraline returns to her seat, one of the dogs begs her for a chocolate. Coraline says she thought that dogs couldn’t eat chocolates, but the dog insists that in this world, it’s all they eat. The other Miss Spink and the other Miss Forcible continue performing scenes from Shakespeare. Coraline asks how much longer the performance is, and the dog next to her tells her it never ends. Coraline stands up and leaves the theater.

Out on the lawn in front of the house, Coraline finds her other parents waiting for her with large smiles on their faces. They bring her back up to the house, and as they walk, Coraline’s other mother strokes Coraline’s hair. Coraline tells her to stop, and she does. Coraline’s other father asks if Coraline likes it  in their world—Coraline says she does. Coraline’s other mother tells her that she can stay here forever if she’d like. Coraline considers the question, shifting her hands around in her pockets—as she does, she feels the stone with the hole in it.

Coraline’s other father tells her that if she wants to stay, she has to do one small, simple thing. He brings her into the kitchen—on a nice plate, he and Coraline’s other mother have laid out a set of black buttons. They insist her that changing her eyes won’t hurt a bit—but Coraline knows they’re lying. Coraline says she wants to leave. Her other mother seems upset, but tells Coraline she can go if she wants. Her other father tells her he looks forward to seeing her when she comes back. Coraline hurriedly returns to the hall and begins walking down the long, dark corridor back to her own home. She senses the “very old and very slow” thing in the dark behind her but doesn’t dare turn back.