Great Circle

“I knew the horizon could never be caught but still chased it.”

Marian’s endless longing for something she does not understand applies to life and her flight. She points her plane toward the horizon because it seems like the obvious destination, but she cannot ever reach the horizon, just like she may never achieve a sense of reconciliation or happiness. Nevertheless, she chases it. The constant pursuit of an unachievable goal defines Marian’s ambitions as a pilot and a person.

“On the ship I know what to do.”

Addison Graves seeks control in his life. Unable to make sense of other people, including his wife, he seeks out the smaller, contained world. When at sea, a ship is a self-contained world with its own rules and its own order, where Addison Graves is king with total control. Like with Marian and her planes or Hadley and her films, Addison Graves struggles to control his own life, so he seeks out artificially limited spheres of influence.

“In prison, the persistence of his consciousness had seemed a particularly severe aspect of his punishment, meted out not by the court but by his soul.”

The real punishment for Addison Graves is being trapped with himself for so long. His guilt burns inside him, providing a constant companion during his incarceration. He blames himself for the loss of life on his ship and for his public disgrace, even though neither was necessarily his fault.