The Night Circus

    To begin, the circus in the story, "The Night Circus" is strange,  and it's not what a typical circus would look like. The circus is called Le Cirque de Reves. It has an unusual color palette consisting of black, silver and white and only opens at night. Our two characters, Prospero and Alexander compete with each other throughout the story in order to find out who is the strongest. In the story, there are several themes involving magic, love, rivalry, and commitment
   
    Magic is one of the biggest themes in the story. While our protagonists have a serious rivalry with one another, we see how the characters in the story react to the idea of magic. They seem to be scared of it, but also are fascinated with it. This reaction seems to be legitimate, and a reaction that a majority of people in real life would have towards magic, similarly to aliens or other supernatural experiences. When people visit the circus, they use cards to read into the future. It seems that magic has a lot of pros and cons in this world, depending on how it it used.
    
    The theme of love is prevalent with our two characters Marc and Celio. They would sacrifice their freedom to a large degree in order to be with each other. The two characters also have a combined love for the circus, so they work hard to make sure it still exists.

    Another major theme of rivalry is prevalent with Prospero and Alexander. Prospero seems to be in denial of himself and likes to think that he is superior to Alexander. Sometimes, their rivalry goes a bit too far. Prospero sacrifices his own daughter in the process. I think what the author is trying to tell the audience is that despite having magical powers, rivalry is a destructive for one party, or both parties involved. Nothing good comes from it in other words.

    The theme of commitment ties in with the themes of love and rivalry, and also responsibility. We learn that responsibilities can have a toll on people, including Celia. She makes a commitment to take part in the rivalry, but suffers on the inside because she was forced to take part in the game. Bailey on the other hand is responsible for being a keeper of the circus. His choice was voluntarily made, and he enjoys what he does.

    


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