Tarot And Literature

As an important part of esotericism,Tarot because of its entertainment,creativity and other characteristics has been popular in the world,of course including literary world.The earliest tarot card found was appeared in Italy in the 15^th century.Then the popularity of the French Marseille tarot in the 17^th century began to bring it into the public’s eyes.The most widely spread Tarot cards was Rider-Waiter Tarot,which was published in the early 20^th century.After Yeats,John Fowles,Calvino and other writers,Pavi?is another famous writer who uses Tarot cards into literature.He is known for his stylistic exploration,and wrote a dictionary novel Dictionary of the Khazars,crossword puzzle novel Landscape Painted with Tea,the hourglass novel The Inner Side of The Wind,the online interactive novel Damascus,etc.Last Love in Constantinople is a Tarot Card divination novel.Therefore,Last Love in Constantinople can be interpreted from two perspectives.One is to discuss how Tarot constitutes creation from the perspective of Tarot literature,the other is from the perspective of Pavi?’s creative exploration,and exploing Pavi?’s innovations and flaws.The thesis is divided into four chapters.The chapter one is an overview of Tarot,including the meaning of the word"Tarot",the origin,development and type of Tarot,and the introduction of the basic concepts of Tarot.This chapter is the basis of the thesis,because to understand Tarot literature and Last Love in Constantinople,you must understand the relevant concepts of Tarot,especially the concept of the Great Arcana.The meaning of the Great Arcana is important,especially to Last Love in Constantinople.The"Fool’s Journey"means that the Fool journey on1 to 21 of the Great Arcana cards which are divided into three parts.The journey symbolizes spiritual growth and fulfillment.There is also the concept of“diagrams”and the“reversed positions.The same card which placed in different diagrams during the process of divination is in different meanings,placed in different positions in one diagram is in different meanings,and placed in the reversed or not in one position is in different meanings.Each card has a wealth of meanings,but the meaning of specific use needs to be manifested in such a system of cards.The chapter two is the relationship between tarot and literature.This chapter explains at a macro level that why and how Tarot cards could constitute literature and briefly introduces other Tarot literature in history.First of all,any image can be used for narrative.As a special image,the picture of the tarot cards are already a cross-section of the story.In the actual process of divination,the fortune tellers often connect the divination results into a story.The creator of Waite Tarot,Edward Waite,also hinted in his own work that the meaning of the Tarot can be interpreted to a certain extent in a personal way,which provided support for the formation of Tarot cards in literary creation.This chapter uses Yeats’works,Calvino’s The Castle of Crossed Destinies,and John Fowles’The Magus as examples to illustrate that they have used different methods to construct literary creations with the help of Tarot cards.These include the use of symbols and metaphors,the use of card designs to build stories,the use of tarot cards’structural characteristics,and more.The chapter three is the interpretation of Last Love in Constantinople from the perspective of Tarot literature.It introduces Last Love in Constantinople at a micro level,and how the Tarot constitutes the interpretation of this novel.Last Love in Constantinople uses two layers of the"Fool’s Journey"in structure:Haralampije Opujic as a normal“The Fool”and Sofronije Opujic as a reversed“The Fool”.These journeys correspond to the structure of the chapters:1+7+7+7.In terms of specific content,Tarot cards construct novels based on mythological archetypes,sign meanings and symbols,and the intertextual relationship between images and texts.Otherwise,there is a characteristic that the Tarot could mean something small to link something large.And that linked to Pavel’s exploration and reflection on the destiny of the nation in novel form.The chapter four is Pavi?’s creation exploration in Last Love in Constantinople.First of all,Pavi?’s works is deeply related to"hypertext",a concept proposed by Ted Nelson in 1963 and published in 1965,and his wife Jasmina thought that Pavi?’s novel belongs to"hyperfiction",which is created with hypertext.Pavi?also used the tarot cards as a item to extend the limitation of traditional paper text as a carrier of fiction.Finally,it expresses there is a little gap between what Last Love in Constantinople expressed with what Pavi?wanted to express.The purpose of Pavi?to build a novel that can be read repeatedly with"multiple exits"by tarot cards is defivient but valuable.In general,the Tarot and the creative exploration of Pavi?are two keys to interpreting Last Love in Constantinople.It’s inevitable that the Tarot could be a long-time partner with literature because of its attributes:the interconnectionship,leaping,and the relationship with the human spirit and mythical archetypes.Last Love in Constantinople is only one step in Pavi?’s creative exploration,and his more thoughts on the novel have yet to be discovered.