In honor of the Fifteenth Anniversary of the movie Coraline, I have drawn some comparisons between the message of the movie and the work of Rudolf Steiner, as I can't help but view this incredible film through the lens of Anthroposophy every time I watch it. This is because Spirituality is a science, and the imprints of this cosmic memory can be found everywhere - in nature, art, film, literature, etc. Storytelling (and listening...) is a beautiful way to integrate Higher knowledge. Spoilers ahead!
To preface: Coraline Jones is an eccentric and curious 11-year-old girl. Feeling isolated after a big move and neglected by her workaholic parents, she begins to explore the grounds of her new residence and meets a neighbor boy around her age who, later, gifts her with a doll that he says he found in a trunk in his Grandmother's attic. Strikingly, the doll looks exactly like Coraline - with two black buttons in place of eyes. Coraline, however, is unimpressed (and bored) and decides to take the doll with her to investigate the 100-year-old home she and her parents have just moved into.
Within this mysterious old house, she discovers a tiny door, which, at first, (and to her disappointment) seems to lead to nothing but a brick wall. However, when Coraline follows a group of mysterious mice to the door later that night, she finds that the wall has vanished, revealing a magical-looking tunnel in its place. Mystified, Coraline enters the tunnel, only to find herself in a version of her own home—a version where everything is slightly different...slightly better. Unlike her usual life, this world is bright, colorful, and filled with the aroma of baked goods! Curious and confused by her Mother who never cooks, Coraline heads towards the kitchen for deeper exploration where she encounters her "Other Mother." Not only does this Mother bake, but her eyes have been replaced by two, large sewn-in black buttons! This "Other Mother" introduces Coraline to a seemingly perfect version of her life, where she is lavished with attention, delicious food, and all the toys and comforts she could wish for. In place of every person in Coraline's life is now a button-eyed copy - a copy that seems, at face value, like a far better offer. Despite this. Coraline is discerning and senses that something is not right.
The Other Mother is not what she seems, and neither is the Other World. As Coraline makes more trips to this "upside down" dimension, she realizes that this "better" life comes with a dark consequence. The Other Mother and her world are a creation of fantasy and illusion - a trap designed to entice Coraline into giving up her true self. Coraline is told that The Other Mother offers Coraline the chance to stay in this world forever—but only if she agrees to have buttons sewn over her eyes, just like everyone else in this world. I compare Coraline's eyes to her "I" or individuality. The doll lookalike doll Coraline is gifted with - with button eyes - to me clearly represents her lower Double or lower doppelganger; the version of Coraline that is built out of her lower ego and lower desires...her trauma, and her pain. The Other Mother uses this doll to spy on Coraline and track her lower impulses so as to know exactly how to appeal to them. She frequently seduces her with delicious food - which we also see in The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe - drawing parallels to the idea that Coraline is "feeding" this lower version of herself every time she visits the Other World.
I also compare this Other World to the Eighth Sphere, a concept in Anthroposophy described by Rudolf Steiner as a realm of illusion that seeks to capture and diminish the true spiritual essence of individuals. Gigi Young brilliantly refers to this realm as a "false Cosmos." Like a Black Mirror, the Eighth Sphere reflects back to us our own distorted desires and impulses - acting as an illusory bait to the selfish or underdeveloped. My comparison was confirmed to me when I noticed that the Moon in this Other World is depicted as having been shadowed by a replacement "button" Moon, as pictured above. This can also represent the Black Sun, and a period of descent that takes Coraline where her individuality—her "I"—is at risk of being consumed by the illusion of materialism and false light, if she lacks preparation of the mind or chooses to compromise her values in an effort to end her suffering. It is only when we are unable to withstand the forces of the Black Sun that we fall prey to the devolution of the Eighth Sphere. Coraline is targeted when she is most vulnerable - isolated, lonely, neglected, and thus, in survival mode. When an individual is in survival mode, their instincts become limited to basic survival instincts surrounding food, water, security, etc. A severely traumatized (and starving) individual may trade their soul for a single loaf of bread, under the right circumstances. This is the trap of the subnatural forces that gently strum along the strings of our lower centers, seducing us into believing the lie that they care for us, can provide for us, and even offer us some form of evolution.
In Coraline, this "Other World" offers exactly that. The undiscerning eye takes these material temptations at face value, living in a world of delusion and escapism, unable to see the malicious, lower beings and impulses at work. Just like the Other Mother, these forces are vampiric. In one scene, a talking cat warns Coraline that the other Mother is looking to "feed" off of her. Coraline later encounters some ghost children in the Other World who tell her that the Other Mother consumed their souls. These ghost children whom Coraline meets in this alternate world represent previous victims who have fallen into the Other Mother's trap. They are lost souls who tell her that they have forgotten their true identities entirely, having given up their eyes and, by extension, their Souls and Individuality. The buttons sewn over their eyes symbolize their imprisonment, having fallen prey to the Other Mother's trap. They can no longer so much as recall their names! There is no individuality in this world...all who exist there exist solely as parasitic slaves.
To me, Coraline's descent into this Other world is clearly a journey of initiation, Individuation, discernment, and willpower. After passing several tests of discernment (seeing through the illusions of the Other world) Coraline is gifted a beautiful "seeing stone," representing her initiation into Higher sight. As she begins to see through the illusion of the Other World, she realizes the true nature of the Other Mother and the danger she represents. Coraline's intuition allows her to see things for what they truly are - with sobriety and clarity - leading her to not only escape the web of the Other Mother (who, in the full manifestation of her devolution is depicted as as a spider) but also to recover the eyes of the ghost children, restoring their individuality and, thus, freeing them from this subnatural world. A true initiate understands the importance of sacrifice, even if it means giving up their own life for the betterment of humanity!
Likewise, the more Coraline uses her discernment and holds on to her Individuality, the more the web of the Other Mother begins to unravel as a whole. While at one point this eighth-sphere-esque realm was seen taking over the natural world, Coraline's act of returning sight to the collective shows the rightful return of Higher Power and Divine Order as well as the destruction of the previous lower-astral reign. This reflects the spiritual truth that we save the world by first saving ourselves - choosing to heal, choosing to reject materialism (as a theology) and working to develop the "I" to build up the Resurrection body. In Anthroposophy, we know that true Spiritual evolution involves seeing beyond the deceptions of the material world and the lower Self, and choosing a path of integrity and true Selfhood! Coraline's refusal to give in to the Other Mother's temptations and her successful escape from the Other World symbolize the triumph of her Higher self over the lower Double or Doppelgänger, and the rejection of the Eighth Sphere's false reality.