E. T. A. Hoffmann was a German Romantic writer who also worked as a judge and composer. A master of fantastic and uncanny tales, he is also known as the author of The Nutcracker and the Mouse King, the basis of the ballet The Nutcracker.
In his 1816 short story “The Sandman,” he portrayed the folkloric Sandman, who sprinkles sand in children’s eyes to make them sleep, as a terrifying figure who steals children’s eyes. The story is also famous for being discussed later by Freud in his essay “The Uncanny.”
