Gemini

John Locke must have hated a Gemini or two.

In Chapter XI of An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, Locke examines the distinction between wit and judgement. Wit concerns the “assemblage of ideas” and values the ability to assemble those ideas with “quickness and variety.” Locke sees wit as a mode of making light of the realities of two ideas and celebrating an easily digestible similarity between them. He views wit as “entertainment and pleasantry” that requires “no labor of thought to examine what truth or reason there is in” a given matter (Locke).

As far back as the 17th century, and certainly much farther, society has enjoyed the sense of ease only wit can offer. It sees wit, a skill that relies on connection, as folly. It celebrates the intellectual capacity of judgement, the opposite of wit. It applauds those who are skilled in finding the little details that make people, places, things, and ideas different no matter how similar they may appear. It deifies dichotomy.

Heads or tails?

Feathers or scales?

This or that?

Republican?

Democrat?

Society loves reducing life to a "Coke or Pepsi" game. It loves anything that is easily polarized. Often, though, it criticizes those who embrace the similarities existing between any two sides. It criticizes those who would rather compare than contrast.

They criticize you, Gemini. Locke’s reduction of the possibilities of wit, your strongest attribute, leaves much to be desired. In today's world, it is judgement that has become the folly of the masses, not wit.

Today's society thrives on judgement, especially the quick and easy variety. Our chaotic world forces you to take fluid thoughts and make them concrete. It expects you to make immediate, cogent decisions, and it expects you to steadfastly support all you stand behind without question. It mocks change and often sees those capable of it as duplicitous, insincere, or spineless, unless the responsible party appears to be the right kind of divine.

You are none of the above, Gemini. Your talent in wit and capacity for change is often addressed in the most negative of connotations. Your wit challenges others to step up, look at two ideas they have long seen as entirely different, and to consider that perhaps they are not so different after all, or, at minimum, that they have a common goal. Of course, your charm may present these observations as comical and lighthearted. Do not let laughter lessen the blow of what you have to say.

Remember: the only person a medieval king listened to was his jester.

Your insight into human nature, an insight that feeds your wit, forces you to recognize differences. Your wit does not blind you from distinguishing details - those details just do not serve you. Dichotomy has no place in your life. Black and white have never suited you - grey is much more flattering. You live spherically and in all directions. You thrive in this sphere of ever-contorting thought. You know any matter can be both right and wrong, and that any statement can be both true and false. Unfortunately, Western society in particular will demand you pick a side.

In times such as these, especially, there is no greater challenge than to identify and celebrate similarity between opposing sides.

With so much intellectual stimulation abounding, you may feel overwhelmed. You already consist of a million thoughts in a million, witty patterns. You have a million little fires of thought and opportunity constantly burning around you that normally keep you warm and light up your brilliant life.

This season, Gemini, you may feel as if these fires are close enough to singe you. They may burn too bright, and you may struggle to extinguish as many as you can. Your element being air, you unconsciously and constantly feed these fires as you give more and more of your energy to them. You find yourself in a world of panic as embers become flames in a matter of moments, fanned by the arm-chair judges around you. As each flame goes down, they spark two more.

Choose this or that. Support him or her. Yes or no. Now or later.

You may feel as if there are too many big questions, Gemini, and too much immediacy demanded in this season. You may feel as if the exaltation of differences is too much for you at the moment. Certainly, there is a time and a place for judgement. You will make your judgments in good time and in good conscience. You know more than anyone else that judgement and wit can thrive together in symbiosis. Perhaps they are “the Twins” of the famous constellation after all.

My advice to you is to not yield to the pressure to judge. Many may agree with John Locke and see your wit as a mere party trick, but right now your wit is your greatest asset. This season, do not concern yourself with delineation. Do not allow people demanding judgement to push you into a corner.

A warning, though: internal, not external, pressure will be your enemy. You are always one who is excited for new thoughts and new challenges, but they will overwhelm you if you are not careful. The demands you place on yourself will be your downfall.

Know that help is ever present. Investigate your other placements and where they might lend a hand. Always listen, Gemini, as your air sign is mutable. You are adaptable and eager to navigate these difficult landscapes. Perhaps a water Ascendant or an earth Moon would serve as a gentle guide during this time. As Gemini knows well, it takes (at least) two to tango.

Until more of your fires start to die down, rest. Meditate. Learn all you can from your other placements and perhaps close friends. Admire the work of those using their judgement in pursuit of the common good, but recognize the power your wit holds in the same pursuit. Settle into your sphere. Sit among your million little fires. Enjoy their warmth and light. Trust that you will not be burned. The more you feed them, the closer the fires will appear. The more you panic, the higher the flames will rise. The more you calmly examine these fires, the more you yourself will grow.

More than anything, the more you practice your wit in intellectual pursuit this season, the more you will prove John Locke wrong.

And there is only one thing Geminis love more than wit: proving people wrong.

Sources

“Chapter XI: Of Discerning, and Other Operations of the Mind.” An Essay Concerning Human Understanding, 1690, by John Locke, Scolar Press, 1970.