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Trained all of her life, Celia Bowen is an illusionist. At the age of 6, Celia was bound to a “challenge”, in which there is only one left standing. Of course for there to be a winner, Celia must have an opponent, Marco, who has also been trained since the age of at least 12.

Both being very successful with their "magic", and the circus, it is difficult to tell who the winner will eventually be. Or if there even will be a winner. Eventually, a very important man, Chandresh Lefevre, creates this magical circus, which takes a big part in Marco and Celia's challenge.

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Celia has three options, one of which she must eventually choose.
1) Celia can allow the game to go on until there is a victor.
2) Celia can take her own life, ending the challenge herself.
3) Celia can let Tsukiko end the game, killing her and Marco both.

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Conflict Factor #1: Celia's Love For Marco

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Conflict Factor #1: Celia's Love For Marco

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Person vs. Self Conflict
One of the reasons Celia thought to kill herself and just overall end the game, was because her love was so deep for Marco, she would choose his life over her own.  She would rather have Marco live on, than herself, even if that meant leaving her friends from the circus and her own father.

“‘You’re going to do what your father did,’ Marco says. ‘You’re going to take yourself off the board.’ ‘Not precisely,’ she says. ‘I suppose I was always more my mother’s daughter.’ ‘No,’ Marco says. ‘You cannot mean that.’ ‘It’s the only way to stop the game. (Celia)’” (Morgenstern, 420)

And for even further explanations, “‘Then we’ll continue playing.’ (Marco) ‘I can’t,’ she says. ‘I can’t keep holding on. Every night it becomes more difficult. And I . . . I have to let you win.’” (Morgenstern, 420)

Later on, Celia and Marco confess their love for one another, even though they both know how they feel. It's not necessarily that Celia wanted to kill herself, she just didn't want to risk the chance of Marco losing the challenge. In her own mind, his life is more important than her own.

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Person vs. Society Conflict
The circus plays a big role in the challenge. Chandresh Lefevre came up with the idea of the circus, when Celia was just around 16 years old. The circus helped escalate the challenge and make it harder and more challenging for both Marco and Celia. Between doing better things for the circus to making even cooler tents, before they fell in love they were both fierce competitors, some more than the other at times.

Celia also grew up with the circus, so it was like her home. After seeing her mother kill herself, young Celia didn't know what to do. She had auditioned for the circus as an illusionist right when it had opened, and it was right then when Marco noticed her burned ring on her finger, the same one he had. The circus is also where Celia and Marco met.

Because Celia and Marco both knew that the circus would be a lot to handle, they both knew someone who they could trust with it, Bailey. Being friends with the twins, Poppet and Widge, Bailey is very familiar with the circus. His love for it is quite strong. So, they both asked him if he would like to take care of it.

"Right now the circus is in need of a new caretaker," Marco says. "It is drifting, like a ship without an anchor. it needs someone to anchor it." "And that someone is me?" "We would like it to be, yes." (Morgenstern, 478)

Because Marco and Celia both know how high the talk of Bailey is, they knew that he was the right person to take care of the circus. He did eventually end up accepting the offer of being the circus' new caretaker.

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Conflict Factor #3: The Possibility of Losing Marco and The Problems That Come Along with It

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Conflict Factor #3: The Possibility of Losing Marco and The Problems That Come Along with It

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Person vs. Peoples
Already mentioned earlier, Celia had the thoughts of ending the game by killing herself to save Marco. Not only would this appsolutely ruin Celia, but it would cause damage upon Prospero and "The Man In The Grey Suit", AND the circus. "Prospero The Enchanter", a.k.a, Celia's father, whom has trained Celia since the age of six, after losing her mother. Prospero, a breathtakingly famous Illusionist, made a deal with Alexander, the man in the grey suit, along with Marco, to a duel, with one victor. The book never exactly said what they each would get in return, other than their player the victor.

Though Celia us undoubtedly stronger than Marco, her father is not fond of him. When he begins to notice her feelings for him, he immediately has something to say about it.

"Stop behaving as though you love that boy," Hector (her father) says. "You are above such mundane things."
"You are willing to sacrifice me for this," she says quietly. "To let me destroy myself just so you can attempt to prove a point. You tied me into this game knowing the stakes, and you let me think it was nothing but a simple challenge of skill." (Morgenstern,397-398)

If Celia had killed herself and potentially lost the game, it would have deeply saddened and angered her father. He would be angry to losing against Alexander, and would be sad for the loss of his only child. Marco also would have been deeply saddened, because of his love for Celia.

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Under the bridge, in the closed circus, was were Celia made her decision.

The circus had been closed due to inclement weather warnings, so no one was there, everyone was inside. Everyone but Tsukiko, Marco, and Celia. All talking under the bridge, Tsukiko tells Celia that their time is up, Celia and Marco try to tell her that they need just a bit more time, but unfortunately that is not enough.

"Tsukiko smiles at him. She places her palms together, curls of smoke from her cigarette rising over her fingers. She gives him a low, respectful bow. Neither of them are watching as Celia runs toward them through the rain.Tsukiko flicks her still-glowing cigarette toward the fire. It is still in the air when Marco cries out for Celia to stop. It has barely touch the flickering white flames of the bonfire when she leaps into his arms." (Morgenstern, 462)

This really big moment, shows what kind of person they all three really are. Tsukiko was willing to kill them both, Marco was willing to give up his own life, and Celia was willing to die right beside him.

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So, what if Celia hadn't decided to run and jump into Marco's arms? What if she decided to rather stand and watch Tsukiko take his life? She would be devastated, she would hate herself for allowing that to happen. As shown multiple times, Celia loves Marco, and she understands him. She would never even want to imagine letting herself allow Marco to lose the challenge.

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The moment that had the biggest impact on Celia was when she realized she loved him, and she couldn't let him die. When Celia realized how much she loved Marco, she would have to take herself off of the board. Celia wanted for Marco to have a bright future, even if she wasn't apart of it.

"You're going to do what your father did," Marco says. "You're going to take yourself off the board." (Morgenstern, 420)

In this moment, Celia just allowed herself to believe that there was only one way out of this challenge, and it was for herself to die. It makes a big impact on Celia, because she doesn't' necessarily want to die or kill herself, she just doesn't want Marco to lose his life over hers.

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The lesson that Erin Morgenstern's novel, The Night Circus taught was, to do what I think is best for myself and others around me.

Celia showed the readers how strong and kind and caring of others she is. No matter what, she wants what's best for other's, especially Marco, and the circus, no matter what the cost.