I awoke from a feverish dream at four a.m. on Sunday and apparently had to write this before I went to bed. It's terribly written, but I think it shows the effect these books are having on me (or at least my sleep cycle)
The allure of the circus:
Though I cannot speak for everyone, I can tell you that I have at least some internal desire to be special. My more than moderate interest in superheroes and last novel at least proves my curiosity towards the extraordinary public figure, and personally, I can tell you that I feel the twitching need to do remarkable things and draw attention to myself. However, in reality, I repress this urge and do what I think most of us do: attempt to blend in. Though I admire the idea of marvel and attention, I constantly undermine it socially. I think that this paradox explains the strength of the circus in Carter's book.
The seductive power of the circus is its ability to trick its participants into believing it is safe to pursue the previously mentioned desire. The performers fulfill the urge by experiencing both a fruition and loss of self by becoming a public commodity. The audience become participants in the experience, and sate their desire by feasting on the performer/commodity in an act of visual consumption. This ritual of performance and consumption serves to pursue their inner desire to perform without actually doing so, but what happens when the need becomes to great?
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