Added female knights/pages- Anraths deck

Added female knight/pages - Anraths deck - like the idea?

  • Yes - it improves gender balance

    Votes: 5 62.5%
  • No - it's not necessary for balance and/or not what was intended

    Votes: 3 37.5%

  • Total voters
    8

Yelell

The Anraths deck is basically a regular German RWS, with added female pages and knights (maidens/ladies) for a total of 86 cards. They're done in the PCS style (mirror image from the pages and knights, ) and even strangely copy her signature.

http://www.tarotwelten.de/anraths.htm

Although the court cards aren't necessarily gender specific, as a female I really like the idea of the male and female counterparts. Unfortunately the cards also have a large border with German keywords, but I like odd RWS decks and I'm fond of this deck myself. I thought I'd ask opinions on these additional cards (even if you don't like them :) )
 

Zephyros

Assuming the RWS is a Kabbalistic deck, I don't think additional genders are ncessary. The balance is already there, especially if one "corrects" Waite's lies and places the Knights in their correct positions at Chochma.
 

rachelcat

I like the idea. Takes out some ambiguity.

And I like these illustrations. Did you notice all the Dames are riding sidesaddle? Yikes! But it works for the Dame der Kelche. Makes her looks like a mermaid . . .

I also like the Maid der Schwerter. A ponytail is perfect for a Maid!
 

Yelell

Assuming the RWS is a Kabbalistic deck, I don't think additional genders are ncessary. The balance is already there, especially if one "corrects" Waite's lies and places the Knights in their correct positions at Chochma.

I realized I forgot to vote myself. :rolleyes:

I suppose the extra cards wouldn't fit if the Knights moved and the pages changed from being slightly androgynous figures into princesses.
 

MissChiff

I like the illustrations also.....
 

Richard

As Zeph indicated, the Waite courts should be: Knight, Queen, Prince, Princess. Then there would be perfect gender balance without the obvious artifice of female knights. Artificially forced gender balance is like some of these absurd Native American decks, which force a structure onto a culture which doesn't really fit. They stink of fakeness. The Golden Dawn and Thoth decks used the correct terminology, and there is no problem. Waite certainly knew how the courts should have been designated, but he had his own reasons for doing otherwise, and this is indeed bothersome.
 

Yelell

As Zeph indicated, the Waite courts should be: Knight, Queen, Prince, Princess. Then there would be perfect gender balance without the obvious artifice of female knights. Artificially forced gender balance is like some of these absurd Native American decks, which force a structure onto a culture which doesn't really fit. They stink of fakeness. The Golden Dawn and Thoth decks used the correct terminology, and there is no problem. Waite certainly knew how the courts should have been designated, but he had his own reasons for doing otherwise, and this is indeed bothersome.


That makes me realize something I really admire about this deck. Someone saw what they considered to be a flaw in an otherwise great deck, so they just fixed it.

I'm surprised, with all the minor RWS recolors in existence, no one has ever addressed the flaws you mentioned and tweaked the RWS to make it match up. Not a whole new deck, just a few very small changes - a label here, a symbol there, a letter, a number, and voilà! A perfect (to some people) RWS!!

I don't see it as terribly fake though, it reminds me of the Cary Yale actually. Still, no worries, I didn't expect everyone to like it!
 

Zephyros

That makes me realize something I really admire about this deck. Someone saw what they considered to be a flaw in an otherwise great deck, so they just fixed it.

I'm surprised, with all the minor RWS recolors in existence, no one has ever addressed the flaws you mentioned and tweaked the RWS to make it match up. Not a whole new deck, just a few very small changes - a label here, a symbol there, a letter, a number, and voilà! A perfect (to some people) RWS!!

I don't see it as terribly fake though, it reminds me of the Cary Yale actually. Still, no worries, I didn't expect everyone to like it!

I actually do like the images themselves, and I think it's a really cool idea. It's also done very well.

But, I understood the question as "do I think it is necessary or will I use it," and then the answer's no.

As for your other question, there's actually no need to tweak the RWS at all. Waite orders his Courts wrongly in the PKT, but in the deck itself they are correct. There are even salamanders on the Wands Courts, and other appropriate symbols on the others. It's only in the book that Waite sought to hide information, the deck is surprisingly loudmouthed if you know what to look for.
 

Richard

Still it would have been nice if Waite had renamed the Kings Princes and the Pages Princesses, which would have made them obviously opposite in gender but coequal in rank (at least theoretically).
 

Yelell

But, I understood the question as "do I think it is necessary or will I use it," and then the answer's no.

Yes, that's what I meant. I should have said I didn't expect everyone to agree with the additions to the existing deck.