The Prestige

by Christopher Priest

As every stage magician well knows there will be some who are baffled by this, some who will profess to a dislike of being duped, some who will claim to know the secret, and some, the happy majority, who will simply take the illusion for granted and enjoy the magic for the sake of entertainment. But there are always one or two who will take the secret away with them and worry at it without ever coming near to solving it.

I saw sleight of hand as the foundation of all magic, just as the tonic scale lies at the foundation of the most complex symphony.

The wonder of magic lies not in the technical secret, but in the skill with which it is performed.

The central rule of magic always holds good – what is seen is not what is actually being done.

Magic is illusion, a temporary suspension of reality for the benefit and amusement of an audience. What right had I (or he, when he took his turn) to destroy that illusion?

In the expression of grief lies recovery from grief itself.