History of Ideas - the Hanged Man

Rosanne

Ross G Caldwell said:
I don't know the layout of the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua where Giotto's frescoes showing "Hope" and "Desperation" are (the latter showing a suicide by hanging), but it might show such a direct connection. Especially in light of Robert's remarks on another thread about Cicognara's claim that "Judas Traditor" was on the noosed figure below Hope in the Cary-Yale deck.

The Fresco is developed on three walls, forming a sort of triptych. The middle fresco(North wall) displays under a dogmatic form the ideal of democracy. The Virtues which direct the State are seated on a platform; this is the tribunal or the legislative assembly.
On the other two walls are similarly developed the effects of good or evil social hygiene. After the theory follows the application. The left wall East- Evil Government is almost ruined. The west wall the length of the painting is divided into two halves, one of which shows the city and the other the countryside. This shows a happy society under good Government. The Hanged Man is held up as a depiction outside the City wall in the Countryside by an angel (I cannot read the inscription) as if to show that you need to get rid of Crime/Treason/? for a happy society. The Inscription would explain it. It is interesting that the cold damp sinister side of the fresco is where Bad or Evil government was placed.
http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/535/1381/1600/lor3.jpg

I had theory about "forks in the road" here too - that the plan of the trumps was a two dimensional scheme hammered into a one dimensional hierarchy. The Devil and the Tower are one fork, and the rest are the other. In one dimension, you have to have a simple ladder from low to high.
It would certainly explain the lack of the Devil and the Tower in the Visconti- that are called 'missing or lost' That fork was never contemplated.

~Rosanne
 

Ross G Caldwell

Moderator note

This is just a notice that a few of the latest posts have been joined to another thread about the general order of the trumps at -

http://tarotforum.net/showthread.php?t=94417

"The Order and Meaning of the Trumps"

in order to keep this thread focused on the history of thought about the Hanged Man in particular.

Ross
Co-moderator, Tarot History & Iconography
 

Teheuti

Willow Huntermoon said:
Hi Mary,

I don't know if you have looked at this already, there are some interesting writings on The Hanged Man at this website.
http://www.sacred-texts.com/tarot/index.htm
Yes, this is a good source for some of the classics. I have copies of them all, but haven't yet included them all in the history of ideas list. Waite is complex & hard to cover completely - I have several pages of notes on his material on the Hanged Man - though I did include a little from the Thierens book and from Papus.

If anyone wants to offer any short summaries of material, please do.
 

The crowned one

I am enjoying reading this post, and the idea's behind it. Going right back to your original question my thoughts on the card historically speaking are as follows:

I think it is a Roman/ Christian based punishment that through time and "enlightenment" became a positive card.( as far as the cards go, yes Assyrians, Scythians, Thracians etc used it too...but tarotly speaking...), There are a few examples of Islamic punishments based on this, but I think they got it from the Christians as they used to hang cowardly knights upside down and beat them, Islamic people were sure to have seen this punishment… not quite the same thing as the hang man, but I am looking at a larger picture at this point.

I wonder if it is based on the reversed cross crucification, perhaps those few that survived had visions ( as unconsciousness on the reversed cross was very rapid, and generally so was death, it was considered being compassionate to crucify one upside down.) And there is St. Peter, asking to be hung upside down on a cross, since he felt unworthy to die like his Lord. These would lead to the more upbeat interpretations of the card: enlightenment, sacrifice, rather then the earlier idea of the card as traitor/ thief or punishment.

Then there is that Taoist thing of hanging upside down causing the essence of his sperm to flow into his brain…” there it is that the embryo of immortality is alchemically prepared.”( Eliade)

I believe northern Pagans used to hang and kill men in tree's as representations of the god Odin, Sir James G.Frazer talks about it in "The Golden Bough".

I think I am rambling ideas rather then helpful references and just generalizing, skipping all the symbolicness in the various versions of the card.

I am going to spend sometime going through all the links you all have suggested.
 

Rosanne

Duh! I am a stupido- I did not read Ross's post properly and then linked the wrong fresco. Brain in underdrive- intention in overdrive.
I can not scan in my book- but here goes
From the Altar to the entrance left and right sides
Left of Altar Vices..............Right is Virtues. The are directly opposite each other.
Foolishness....................Prudence
Inconstancy..................Fortitude
Wrath..........................Temperance
Injustice.......................Justice
Infidelity.......................Faith
Envy............................Charity
Desperation..................Hope
~Rosanne
 

Ross G Caldwell

Thanks Rosanne! It's not clear from any of my books.

Rosanne said:
From the Altar to the entrance left and right sides
Left of Altar Vices..............Right is Virtues. The are directly opposite each other.
Foolishness....................Prudence
Inconstancy..................Fortitude
Wrath..........................Temperance
Injustice.......................Justice
Infidelity.......................Faith
Envy............................Charity
Desperation..................Hope
~Rosanne

Here's a close up of DESPERATIO -

giottodesperatiolow.jpg


(from Anne Mueller von der Haegen, Giotto (Maitres de l'art italien series), Könemann, 1998, p. 52, fig. 56)

Note how the face and the demon have been defaced. I can't read the inscription very well, but it mentions Desperation and Satan.

Ross
 

Debra

Suicide comes to mind here.
 

Rosanne

Interesting that Hope and Desperation(or loss of Hope/Despair the Mortal Sin) are at the entrance as you come in.