The Night Circus
Introduction + Context
Plot Summary
Detailed Summary & Analysis
Part 1: Primordium Part 2: Illumination Part 3: Intersections Part 4: Incendiary Part 5: Divination
Themes
All Themes Rivalry and Competition Love Family, Community, and Belonging Time and Mortality Magic and Illusion Freedom and Agency
Quotes
Characters
All Characters Celia Bowen Marco Alisdair Alexander / Mr. A.H. Hector Bowen / Prospero the Enchanter Chandresh Lefevre Isobel Martin Tsukiko Friedrick Thiessen Ethan Barris Tara Burgess Lainie Burgess Widget Murray Poppet Murray Bailey Clarke Victor Elizabeth
Symbols
All Symbols Rings The Bonfire
Upgrade to LitCharts A+
Instant downloads of all 1916 LitChart PDFs (including The Night Circus).
LitCharts Teacher Editions. Teach your students to analyze literature like LitCharts does.
Detailed explanations, analysis, and citation info for every important quote on LitCharts.
The original text plus a side-by-side modern translation of every Shakespeare play.
Literature
Guides Poetry
Guides Literary
Terms Shakespeare
Translations
Ask
LitCharts AI
Ask
AI
Literature
Lit
Poetry
Lit Terms
Terms
Shakescleare Ask AI

The Night Circus

by

Erin Morgenstern
Download this LitChart! (PDF)
Teachers and parents! Our Teacher Edition on The Night Circus makes teaching easy.

Friedrick Thiessen Character Analysis

Clockmaker Herr Thiessen was commissioned by Ethan Burris to design a dreamlike clock to stand in the center of Le Cirque des Rêves. Thiessen designs the clock without knowing where it will be used, and only sees his creation four years later in France, when he attends the circus. Thiessen is so inspired by his visit that he writes a newspaper column about Le Cirque des Rêves, which is subsequently translated and published throughout Europe. He and other fans begin to follow the circus around the world, donning black and white clothes with a distinctive red scarf and calling themselves revêurs. At the same time, he begins a correspondence with a young woman, who he only finds out later is Celia Bowen, and the two become close friends. Thiessen dies tragically at Le Cirque des Rêves, when Chandresh Lefevre throws a knife through a crowd of circus-goers in an attempt to kill Mr. A.H. and misses, tragically killing the clockmaker instead.

Friedrick Thiessen Quotes in The Night Circus

The The Night Circus quotes below are all either spoken by Friedrick Thiessen or refer to Friedrick Thiessen. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Rivalry and Competition Theme Icon
).
Part 3: Intersections Quotes

“I tried. I thought I might be able to fix it. I’ve known him so long. That maybe it would be like setting a clock to make it tick again. I knew exactly what was wrong but I couldn’t make it right. He was so familiar but it… it didn’t work.”

Related Characters: Celia Bowen (speaker), Marco Alisdair, Friedrick Thiessen
Family, Community, and Belonging Theme Icon
Time and Mortality Theme Icon
Magic and Illusion Theme Icon
Page Number: 385
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 4: Incendiary Quotes

“You said there was a rule about interference.”

“Interfering with you or your opponent. I can interfere with anyone else as much as I please.”

“Your interfering got Friedrick killed!”

“There are other clockmakers in the world.”

Related Characters: Celia Bowen (speaker), Hector Bowen / Prospero the Enchanter (speaker), Friedrick Thiessen
Rivalry and Competition Theme Icon
Time and Mortality Theme Icon
Page Number: 426
Explanation and Analysis:
Unlock with LitCharts A+
Get the entire The Night Circus LitChart as a printable PDF.
Download
The Night Circus PDF

Friedrick Thiessen Quotes in The Night Circus

The The Night Circus quotes below are all either spoken by Friedrick Thiessen or refer to Friedrick Thiessen. For each quote, you can also see the other characters and themes related to it (each theme is indicated by its own dot and icon, like this one:
Rivalry and Competition Theme Icon
).
Part 3: Intersections Quotes

“I tried. I thought I might be able to fix it. I’ve known him so long. That maybe it would be like setting a clock to make it tick again. I knew exactly what was wrong but I couldn’t make it right. He was so familiar but it… it didn’t work.”

Related Characters: Celia Bowen (speaker), Marco Alisdair, Friedrick Thiessen
Family, Community, and Belonging Theme Icon
Time and Mortality Theme Icon
Magic and Illusion Theme Icon
Page Number: 385
Explanation and Analysis:
Part 4: Incendiary Quotes

“You said there was a rule about interference.”

“Interfering with you or your opponent. I can interfere with anyone else as much as I please.”

“Your interfering got Friedrick killed!”

“There are other clockmakers in the world.”

Related Characters: Celia Bowen (speaker), Hector Bowen / Prospero the Enchanter (speaker), Friedrick Thiessen
Rivalry and Competition Theme Icon
Time and Mortality Theme Icon
Page Number: 426
Explanation and Analysis:
Unlock with LitCharts A+
Home About Contact Help
Copyright © 2024 All Rights Reserved
Terms Privacy Privacy Request
The LitCharts.com logo.
Requesting a new guide requires a free LitCharts account
You'll also get updates on new titles we publish and the ability to save highlights and notes.

or

Already have an account? Sign in
Complete your free account to request a guide
Already have an account? Sign in
The LitCharts.com logo.
Creating notes and highlights requires a free LitCharts account.
You'll be able to access your notes and highlights, make requests, and get updates on new titles.

or

Already have an account? Sign in
Complete your free account to access notes and highlights
Already have an account? Sign in
The LitCharts.com logo.
Saving guides requires a free LitCharts account
Easily access your saved guides anytime.

or

Already have an account? Sign in
Complete your free account to save guides
Already have an account? Sign in