Eye Imagery in The Sandman

One recurring topic in ETA Hoffmann's "The Sandman" was the eye imagery. The story behind the Sandman, as told by Nathaniel's sister's keeper, is that he puts sand into children's eyes and then takes them out to feed to his own children. When children are really scared, they close their eyes very tight, as if protecting them was a basic instinct. No wonder, then, that Nathaniel was so terrorized by the figure of the Sandman. And the eye complex follows him everywhere.When his father dies, his eyes are gone. The thing that first captivates him about Olympia are her eyes, that look lifeless and empty at first, but then alive and fiery later. When Olympia is taken away by Coppelius, her eyes are gone and the professor throws them at Nathaniel yelling "This are your eyes".
There might be several reasons for this fixation on eyes. First of all, eyes are one of the most vulnerable parts of the body and sight is, arguably, the most important of all the senses. The thought of something happening to our eyes is scary. Second, a theme in the story is how things can be perceived differently. Olympia is seen differently by Nathaniel in comparison to the rest of the students, and the spyglass also changes the way in which Nathaniel perceives first Olympia and then Clara. Eye imagery emphasizes that sentiment.And finally, eyes transmit emotion. They are something so very human. We connect to people, and to animals through our eyes. And to have them artificially created or ripped out from us is a disturbing thought.