The Androgyne Arcana: Illuminated Tarot of Gender Non-Conformity / Dissolving Binaries in the Tarot and Gender

Abstract

The gender binary historically has functioned as a patriarchal and oppressive system of control. The tarot is one of many traditions affected by this ideology. The Androgyne Arcana: Illuminated Tarot of Gender Non-Conformity bridges the intersectionality of gender-variant experiences and spirituality as a way of representing those of us who do not fit into the cis-heteronormative, gender-binary mold. Illustrations in this tarot deck center transgender and non-binary aligned bodies in a celebratory light that subverts expectations of sex and gender and the traditional notions of femininity and masculinity. In order to break the gender binary, we must change the way we represent and perceive dualities. Light and dark, life and death, feminine and masculine; these are all things which coexist and need not always be separated. When we look closely at nature we see this to be true.

This tarot deck contains twenty-two cards that are a part of the Major Arcana. Each card represents archetypal energy from which we gain insight to our lives. Through the Major Arcana metaphorical story of "the Fool's journey," the tarot seeks to teach us the lesson of embracing plurality. The Androgyne Arcana tarot deck utilizes this journey to dissolve binaries and provide positive representation for the trans and queer community.