de Chagny becomes completely disoriented and confused in the torture-chamber, and Erik himself becomes increasingly unhinged as his obsession with Christine leads him to kidnap and torture the Persian and M.
Using his trap-doors to move silently and mysteriously through the Opera-house, Erik plays pranks on the staff and singers, causing them to question their memory. The credulous Christine at first believes she is hearing her father's "Angel of Music," or perhaps her father himself, although in reality it is Erik. Many people have occasion to question their sanity throughout the book. It is Christine's willingness to take his hand and kiss him on the forehead that breaks through to Erik and inspires him to act with kindness and compassion. His own mother would not kiss him, but rather forced him to wear a mask. He is therefore alienated from human society despite his ongoing attempt to join it. Yet the mask also sets him apart from other human beings, with whom he does not interact directly.
Erik's masks - and he has several - allow him to pass briefly in human society without being noticed.
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