The Crazy Old Man Upstairs/Mr. Bobo Character Analysis

This is an eccentric old man who lives upstairs from Coraline and her family. The crazy old man refers to Coraline as “Caroline,” even when she corrects him—he is too busy preparing his mouse circus for a big performance to pay Coraline much attention. Though Coraline dismisses the old man as “crazy,” the story implies that his mice are actually capable of talking and performing music: they warn the old man that Coraline is in danger, and, at the end of the novel, can be heard performing delightful, tinkling music. The crazy old man upstairs teaches Coraline about the necessities of building a home—she learns that she must form relationships with her neighbors, even the “crazy” ones, and that sometimes, people are more delightful than one initially thinks.