I think Rumple won’t be able to get rid of the doll until he truly accepts who he is. Much like Snow and Emma, it’s a recurring message throughout the episode. As long as he thinks he’s a coward, that doll is going to keep coming back to him. Once he realizes and accepts who he truly is, who Belle sees him as and deep down Nealfire, he’ll not be able to rid himself of it.
I agree I think that is exactly the meaning of the doll. It would go exactly with what Eddy and Adam said the characters would have to face. And yeah that doll was freaking scary.