Tarology

Book excerpt: In TAROLOGY Enrique Enriquez sees the Tarot de Marseille through the prism and science of pataphysics, the science of imaginary solutions. By following into the footsteps of Oulipian writers, he applies the idea of constraint and the rule of restriction to the surprisingly visual and gestural nature of Tarot. The result is not only illuminating but also enriching for all those interested in the history of Tarot and its divinatory practices. Enriquez develops a whole new method of reading cards, which combines careful considerations of chance with choice. By using a phenomenological and constructivist approach to the cards, Enriquez shows how the Tarot de Marseille speaks poetry and thus reveals some of our deepest concerns with language, with what we can say when we are at a loss for words. --- "In TAROLOGY, going from pataphysics to poetry, Enrique Enriquez PERFORMS tarot in a way that is marvelously free of cultural preconditioning to the workings of myth and symbol, while at the same time proposing following the rules of 'watch and learn', 'keep it simple', 'stay on track', 'be surprised', 'be fearless', and 'let the image talk the walk'. This is no small achievement." (Camelia Elias, Professor of American Studies and Tarot de Marseille Reader)