Mr. Crosetti

Character Analysis

We assume that Mr. Crosetti, the town barber, was one of the carnival's first victims. His attraction to the licorice and cotton candy smells of his youth was very strong in Chapter 4, and then his shop is later mysteriously closed due to illness (the idea being, probably, that he gorged himself on cotton candy and is now paying the price). Through his character, we are reminded that, while Jim and Will's struggle is central to the story, the carnival holds sway over many of the adults in town. We may not even have the full picture of the destruction it has caused.