Anna Sibilia
David Steiling
October 4, 2015
Magic and Morality
Betwixt Balance and Chaos
Magic has always been a gray area of fantasy, both alluring and terrifying. Mysticism and spell craft often blur the edges of reality and imagination for the characters within the stories, so it is only appropriate that they contort the fabric of morality as well. Depending on the author’s intention, magic itself can either be a corrupting force in it’s own right, slowly consuming and sinking into the human flaws of a character’s nature or a slightly sentient force tied to its host that responds and reacts with a minds of its own -be it for better or worse.
A recurring tool in fantasy has often been whether or not magic should be used by its characters to tempt the fates, be it by undoing the laws of nature or acting out a plan that gambles with the lives of others caught between the words of their spells. Yet even the most genuine and true magical masters can have their spells go awry and distort beyond what their original intentions were. It’s no wonder that the arcane crafts are considered heinous when the potential for disaster is so high, especially when those whom make the deals with the powers that be are not always the pinnacle of charity or honor.
Night Circus exploits this in an unusual way, pitting a pair of young magicians and illusionists up against each other for the pride of their teachers. Celia Bowen, a girl burdened unto her father Hector Bowen -known primarily under the guise of Prospero the Enchanter, competes against Marco Alisdair, a student brought up under the tutelage of Mr. Alexander H. The intent of this duel was to prove the superiority of the two masters’ teaching methods, proving either the Enchanter or Alexander the winner through the success of their students. The practices of the old learning, being able to create beauty in the eyes of those who want to see it, and the new teachings of tangible illusions clash when the student start their shows within the black and white curtains of the circus tents.
Yet as the plot moves on and the grand spectacles of the magician’s showcases within the enigmatic circus start having more effects and impacts than just creating new attractions for the show. The workers of the circus begin to become bound to the show ring, unable to age much or leave their station among the performers. The dueling students slowly fall in love, complicating the plans of their teachers and only adding more chaos to the precarious situation. It isn’t long until personalities snap, people are killed, and the laws of nature are shattered in a final act of desperation to save one’s love.
The issue of the novel is exposed in the harsh treatment of the Celia from her father, as he constantly uses abusive methods in order to push her into furthering her skills, which are to be used in a contest for his own pride and not her benefit. This kind of malicious intent in the beginning is something that goes against the cardinal rules of modern magic in our world. Many current Pagan and Wiccan practitioners emphasize that ‘intent and belief is everything; if you start out with a negative thought in mind, then that is the crop you shall reap.’ As much as her father’s patronizing and (literal) bone-breaking teaching methods cause her to stiffen and become resilient in character, they stem from a place of loathing towards her not-so-lovable paternal figure. Ultimately this lends itself to the climax of the story, when Celia unbinds herself and Marco from the physical realm. She is a tragic hero, losing most everything save her true love, and all because of the cyclical nature of magic.
Magic is a strange and fussy thing, and often it reels that what one asks for is never really what they are deserving of or necessary. It has an important role of acting as a placebo for enabling characters to think they are the masters of themselves and of others, only to end up with everything taken or ruined in the end. It is a shame that the consequence of all the hideous deeds committed and schemed had bear down on Marco and Celia, but even if their end was tragic, they were allowed to escape beyond the confines of the circus -even if only to stand in it’s eternal shadow, finally freed of the ploys that trapped them there.
