Astrology for Writers by Corrine Kenner

Author:Corrine Kenner
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: astrology, zodiac, writers, writing, creativity, creative, professional advice, signs, astrological signs
Publisher: Llewellyn Worldwide, LTD.
Published: 2013-03-13T04:00:00+00:00

Behind the Scenes:

The Seven Ages of Man

As you work to integrate the planets into the lives of your characters, consider how writers and philosophers have been linking the planets with the human lifespan for centuries. Shakespeare, for example, used the analogy in As You Like It:

All the world’s a stage,

And all the men and women merely players:

They have their exits and their entrances;

And one man in his time plays many parts,

His acts being seven ages. At first, the infant,

Mewling and puking in the nurse’s arms.

And then the whining school-boy, with his satchel

And shining morning face, creeping like snail

Unwillingly to school. And then the lover,

Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad

Made to his mistress’ eyebrow. Then a soldier,

Full of strange oaths and bearded like the pard,

Jealous in honour, sudden and quick in quarrel,

Seeking the bubble reputation

Even in the cannon’s mouth. And then the justice,

In fair round belly with good capon lined,

With eyes severe and beard of formal cut,

Full of wise saws and modern instances;

And so he plays his part. The sixth age shifts

Into the lean and slipper’d pantaloon,

With spectacles on nose and pouch on side,

His youthful hose, well saved, a world too wide

For his shrunk shank; and his big manly voice,

Turning again toward childish treble, pipes

And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all,

That ends this strange eventful history,

Is second childishness and mere oblivion,

Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans everything.

Shakespeare probably based his observations on the work of Claudius Ptolemy, whom we met in the last section. Ptolemy’s texts were widely studied in Shakespeare’s day.

Ptolemy described the seven ages of man, from birth to death, and linked them to the seven classical planets. Traditionally, those planets were listed by their speed: the Moon circles the zodiac in a month. Mercury takes 88 days. Venus completes the cycle in less than a year. From our perspective, the Sun moves through all twelve signs during the course of one year. Mars makes the trip in 2 years. Jupiter takes 12 years, and Saturn’s journey takes about 29 years.

• The infant. The Moon, like an infant, grows quickly.

• The schoolboy. Mercury is linked to the formative years and primary education, when children learn to think and communicate. Mercury’s influence isn’t limited to childhood, however. Wherever it lands in a chart, it adds a measure of childlike innocence, curiosity, and enthusiasm.

• The lover. As youngsters hit the hormonal rush of adolescence, they come in contact with Venus, the planet of love and attraction. While passions might subside with time, Venus is always a blushing beauty, wherever she lands in a chart. By the time most people are young adults, they come into their full power, like the Sun.

• The soldier. With Mars and middle age, we’re forced to reconcile our drives and desires with our responsibilities.

• The justice. As people approach retirement, they relax. Jupiter is the king of the gods, the founder of law and order, and the bringer of gifts. When the Greater Benefic delivers the benefits he has promised, people enjoy the fruits of their labor.

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