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Consulting IC for novel character arc 38.6 > 54

travis2180

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So, I'm writing a novel about two people who have an affair. The male lead is a single college student. The female lead is a married college professor. It IS a bit of a downer story but I think the ending is justified.

Curious about my female lead's concerns about having the affair, I consulted. IC returned 38.6 (Opposition) changing to 54 (Marrying Maiden).

I'm new at interpreting but I've been getting the gist of things.

I think what IC is saying is that the character's concerns are
A. Whether or not the affair would be properly managed (38 - Good fortune with small things). As getting found out would have dire repercussions. The affair must be kept low-key so as not to arouse opposition. She has a family and professional career. There's a lot on the line.

B. The changing line intimates that the enemy becomes a suitor. He is, in a way, an enemy to her established order, the way she has envisioned and lived her life. I think she's concerned about the risk of falling in love and how that would make the "small affair" a much larger ordeal. As per the line, I think there's also a suggestion for a plot element there. She's guarded but eventually DOES let down her defenses. Good fortune, but good fortune doesn't necessarily preclude some calamity.

C. Finally, 54, Marrying Maiden, suggests to me that her other concern is what it means to have an affair, to be accepting of that status. Will she be able to live with the psychological and emotional implications if she goes through with it?

To me, these seem like real, legitimate concerns someone might have when considering an affair. In a way, this casting might be seen as the beginning-middle-end of a story arc. They are able to manage the affair, she keeps her guard up but lets it down, and finally, has to deal with the inner turmoil of being what she has become.

Obviously, writers have to be open to their stories changing to better fit whatever it is they are trying to say, as what is intended to be said might not be what the writer writes. I'm open to suggestions!

Also, how did so many of you get so good at interpreting the decisions and lines? I see so much confidence in so many responses on threads.
 

rosada

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54. The Marrying Maiden describes a situation where someone has no status and can only respond, not initiate. Perhaps your heroine has to grapple with the fact that while she is accustomed to being the one in charge, the teacher in the classroom, maybe she is even the aggressor in the relationship, she cannot control her young friend. She really doesn't know that much about him. Will he call? Will he continue to be interested? Does he have another girlfriend, is she a "second wife" ? How does he feel about being second to her husband? And can he keep his mouth shut? Can she/he keep from falling in love?
38.6 suggests many difficulties are overcome but still with changing to 54. the big concern is where is all this ultimately headed? Maybe it's like a Greek tragedy where the inevitable outcome is already a foregone conclusion. She has no power, no say and can only play her part.

As to how one gets good at interpretation I think we see the answer in the Image of 2. The Receptive, "The superior man with breadth of character carries the outer world," meaning that people tend to respond to the postings that they recognize as situations they have gone through themselves, either because they are familiar with the hexagram or they have gone through a similar life experience. So while it may appear everyone is responding and giving brilliant insights to every post, actually it's that some people are responding to some questions and other people are responding to others, depending on their experience, their "breadth of character". I myself find that when I have been paying particular attention, studying a hexagram, then situations come up that call on what I've learned. Like a couple of days ago when I was heavy into hex. 53 (see the "I Ching Book of Proverbs" thread over in the Exploring Divination area), someone posted a question here in Shared Readings asking about 53 and I was able to give a confident answer (and got a very nice private email thanking me :)) Today I've been studying 54 and here you are posting a question about that hexagram so once again I feel I can respond. But that doesn't mean I'm confident about every hexagram - and it certainly doesn't mean I'm right! Anyway, study a hexagram thoroughly and then see if it pops up here in a question - and then do your best to answer it!
 
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Tim K

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Hi Travis,

I think you are pretty darn good at understanding IC yourself :)
I agree with points B and C you've presented, and rosada elaborated on the meaning of h54.
But as it is only a secondary hex there shouldn't be too much emphasis put on that aspect.

I think her main concern is that she cannot maintain her status-quo indefinitely and has to eventually giveup her lifestyle. The resistance will be overcome.
54 is an opposite and also an upside down version of 53. In 53 the tree grows and resists outside influence/bad weather and stuff. In 38 too, Wilhelm:
Thus amid all fellowship the superior man retains his individuality.


As you have cast the last line of 38 - the individuality has to end, she allows herself to be swept along, playing passive role of 54. And that is precisely what line text is saying.
I think point B is the most important one, followed by C. I don't really see 'A' in the answer, it's just some logical conclusion imho, about how it usually works.

Hmm, interesting that i've recently watched 'Hello my name is Doris (2016)' about a woman in her 60s who tries to act on her attraction to a younger co-worker, a similar plot.
And another one is 'The Cutting Edge (1992)', about letting the guard down, both in romance (for her) and in career sense (for him), yeah i think this movie shows the spirit of 38.6 in all its glory.
 
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