This on-going series for writers is based on building characters based on the archetypes in Astrology and the Tarot card(s) associated with each sign.
Capable Capricorn is one of the most stable and serious signs
of the zodiacal. It is ruled by the planet Saturn. (Saturn: Roman god of harvest or time of reaping).
When needing a character that is like a rock, I thought it easiest to give you quick snapshots of the famous people who share this sign. Otherwise you'd be reading for quite a while. This should help you understand this character.
As a whole:
·
They are independent, confident and strong willed
(think Lady Bird Johnson)
·
They tend to be unemotional and cautious in the
extreme (Mao Tse Tung).
·
There is a melancholy quality about them.
(Howard Hughes, Anthony Hopkins, Edgar Allen Poe)
·
Mostly, they will be shrewd, practical, responsible
and persevering (James Earl Jones, Conrad Hilton, Marlene Dietrich, Michel de
Nostradamus)
·
They appear reserved and conservative (Richard
Nixon, Joan Baez, Victor Borge).
·
Some Capricorns can have mood swings any where
from depressed, wretched and miserable to an extreme ecstatic happiness (Ava
Gardner, Kirstie Alley, Al Capone).
·
These swings are not the only reason Capricorns
deserve the adjective based on their name, capricious.
They are either surprisingly witty and subtle, often turning to a career in
entertainment (Diane Keaton, Cary Grant, Andy Rooney)
·
or utterly irresponsible and flippant (Rush
Limbaugh, Jim Bakker)
·
With mental processes often deep and profound,
they tend to explore all possibilities before making a decision on a course of
action and then they can be stubborn and unyielding. Capricorns are capable of
persisting for as long as is necessary to accomplish a goal they have set for
themselves. (Joan of Arc, Louis Pasteur, J.R. Tolkien, Clara Barton)
·
Another unexpected quality in some Capricorns is
their interest in the occult which persists in spite of their naturally
skeptical turn of mind (Jeanne Dixon, Michel de Nostradamus, Carlos Castenada).
·
They can be wary and cautious around people they
don’t know very well and tend to attract people who do not understand them
(J. Edgar Hoover, Elvis Presley).
If they are functioning from their dark side, they can be clingy, pessimistic and
fatalistic--even miserly and grudging.
Capricorn is represented by the symbol of the mountain or
sea goat.
It is an earth sign (think rock) with the influence of planet Saturn
(called the Great Teacher and Taskmaster).
The Tarot card associated with
Saturn is the Devil card, not to be confused
with Satan (from the Book of
Job in the Old Testament—whose role it was to wander the Earth in pursuit of
those who did not keep the faith and who broke God’s law. He was authorized to
tempt humans to demonstrate their lack of moral goodness.).
Briefly, in ancient Rome ,
the god of agriculture was Saturn (Saturnus) (equivalent to the Greek Kronos—god
of sowing and the harvest). Quickly demonstrating the evolution/origin of this,
here are the connections out of which the Devil card developed:
The Devil alludes to Pan (ancient - Pan, the horned woodland goat was depicted with horns and hooves of a goat. Capricornus is latin for horned goat.
- Pan was the half man, half goat nature god of physical pleasures and indulgences in food and drink (Dionysius/ Bacchus).
- The Saturnalia was the joyful festival (end of harvest) of the ancient Roman year when moral restrictions were eased and, “the devil had his day.”
Also, the World Card
of the Tarot is co-representative of Capricorn.
Without getting into all the symbolism of the card (that
could take a whole post on its own), it basically about completion—we have
reached the end of our journey and have learned the lessons put to us by Saturn
the taskmaster/teacher/adversary. Along the way we have proved our worth as
human beings.
Capricorn’s inner journey is about being honest with himself so that he
may reach his highest goals through ambition, commitment and resourcefulness.
Resources:
Are you a Capricorn? Does it sound like you?
Could you build a character based on Capricorn?
Love to hear your comments.
17 comments:
Cora,
Good post. I especially liked "Capricorns are capable of persisting for as long as is necessary to accomplish a goal they have set for themselves." It took me ten years to see my first novel published. I'm a Capricorn. Need I say more?
I love that I happened upon your blog today, when my sign is featured. ;) Actually, I'm told I'm a cusp—sagittarius/capricorn. I'm definitely a mental explorer, independent and strong-willed. My other traits must stem from the previous month. Any idea how "cusps" work?? Intriguing post!
Enjoyed reading this, Cora. As another of the goat sign clan, I share the virtue of persistence toward a goal with Patricia. I hope we haven't inherited too many of the sign's vices.
I really find it difficult to connect tarot card reading with astrology. The explanations I've read online are somewhat complex and hard to understand, but your blog post really helped me know more about this topic. I'll mkeep on researching. Cheers. ;)
That explains my antagonists in two of my stories. One is very flippant almost to the point of mean. The other is reserved, both are deep thinkers and stubborn. But they need to be to keep up with my main characters.
Another great blog.
And congratulations on that. I've had close family and friends who were Capricorns. They are definitely "tough," in the sense that in my experience they do stick to their guns and persist.
I've recently did Sagittarius in April: http://bit.ly/HOllkN but I haven't touched on cusps. That can take so many directions, but if you get a chance, read the one I did on Sag. and see if that helps. I appreciate you stopping by and commenting. Although I started this series to help writers find the characteristics (good and bad) to fill out there character development/arc, many people enjoy reading about their own sign. It's very helpful when someone tells me that I nailed it-or not. Thanks for stopping by.
Every sign has its dark side. When I am in my negative mode I have to guard against my Libra(the scales)weakness of vacillating from one side to the other, not being able to make a decision. I've learned to "sleep on it" and let my intuition work or else I can make bad decisions.
Thanks for stopping by and commenting.
Tarot cards are not usually paired with astrology but they are both about archetypes (apart from being used as 'fortune telling' tools). Joseph Campbell's work on archetypes can be very helpful if you haven't already looked into his work.
Thanks for stopping by. Just as stories have to develop during their lifespan, so do characters. That's why I started this series, so that people could choose the logical progression from the darker side of a character's personality in its arc of growth. Hopefully a help for a writer. I appreciate your comments.
Great post. My Dad was a Capricorn and fits very closely with several of the characteristics. Do you use this knowledge when creating characters? I find this stuff really interesting yet I find I develop characters more based off real experiences of people. I'm probably absorbing this stuff and using it too but I'd be curious how you would develop a character from these.
Cora this is a fascinating series - I'm looking forward to you putting it all in one place sometime . . . ?
I think you have to have an idea what your character growth is going to need to be in your story, then figure out which sign would offer the best weakness to strength development necessary to achieve what you want to achieve for your character(s).
In choosing my protagonist for my novel, I knew she had to have a dark, deeply troubled side, a subconscious driven character where dreams and visions could happen. I chose a water sign for the emotional depth and Scorpio was right for her sign, I follow a natural progression that would be true for Scorpio to make her more real and vital.
If you want to refer back to Scorpio, I did that sign in April at
http://coraramos-cora.blogspot.com/2012/04/three-tarot-cards-define-scorpio.html or look at my posts (on the right) for April.
Thanks for commenting, Sara.
Thanks Margaret, been thinking about doing that after I finish the series.
I've really been enjoying this series.
Thanks for letting me know.
I like what you said in a reply about Joseph Campbell's work on archetypes. He is one of my favourite writers.
It inspires me to be a better psychic.
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