A common theme that seems to be prevalent in The Night Circus is Abstraction. Many a times there are sections of the book in which characters are drawn towards forces that they can't identify. One of which is magic. As Celia preforms her "illusionist tricks" for others they are drawn to her above all others. A sense of curiosity is developed. As I have read this novel, I have seen how the abstract ideas are all wrapped into the idea of a circus. The idea of a circus and all that it involves is already an unusual thing. But the author has taken that theme of abstraction and implemented into all different stories throughout the book. For example, in the chapter titled, The Hanged Man, it talks about the abstractions found as you walk through the circus.
The book says, "In this tent, suspended high above you there are people. Acrobats, trapeze artists, aerialists. Illuminated by dozens of round glowing lamps hanging from the top of the tent like planets or stars.
There are no nets.
You watch the performance from this precarious vantage point, directly below the performers with nothing in between.
There are girls in feathered costumes who spin at various heights, suspended by ribbons that they can manipulate. Marionettes that control their own strings." (pg. 134-135)
This excerpt from the novel gives a glimpse to strange and mysterious environment of the circus. With the theme of the circus throughout the book, the author really uses this idea of abstraction to connect all the things happening in the book.
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