The supernatural utterly suffuses the Persona franchise, so it is fitting that the Magician arcana, first of the original twenty-one numbered major arcana, would feature entities with some particularly fascinating folklore. Attempting to read tarot cards at face value is a perilous enterprise however, particularly where the Magician is concerned. One might be tempted to conclude that the Magician arcana in Persona is all about inexplicable phenomena, abstract realms, or perhaps even wisdom—the word “magi” historically signifies a wise man or learned scholar, after all.
As a tarot card, the Magician can actually signify immaturity, and most of the arcana’s virtues pertain to empowerment. If the Fool Arcana is all about limitless possibility, the Magician is about taking the first steps toward realizing that potential. Magicians seize the initiative, effects change, and doggedly pursue their goals using every tool available to them. They are less about possessing power or knowledge, and more about the pursuit thereof.
Morgana is the confidant representing the Magician in Persona 5, and he is an apt fit (if not quite as perfect as Yusuke from Persona 4). He provides Joker with the basic skills and knowledge needed to kick off their adventure, training him how to make tools, use personas effectively, and most importantly, how to make treasures physically manifest in palaces. Magicians are often analogous to alchemists, people versed in making the intangible attainable, and this is true of their representation in the tarot as well. Morgana’s goal to recover his human form is based on conjecture, however, and he lacks knowledge of his own origins, which leads to insecurity at times.
When one first looks at Morgana’s initial persona, Zorro, however, the metaphor seems to fall apart. Zorro, which is the Spanish word for “fox,” was created by Johnston McCulley in 1919, debuting in the novel, The Curse of Capistrano. He is a dashing, vigilante swashbuckler who defends the downtrodden indigenous people of California from wealthy colonial invaders.
While the character is a perfect addition to the game’s thief theme, it is less clear what a Robin Hood-figure from modern literature has to do with alchemy, empowerment, and actualization. The answer strains the metaphor slightly, but relies upon the aspirational and dynamic aspects of the character. Rather than fighting for personal gain, Zorro aspires to better himself by defeating those who have an adverse impact on the world around them. Material gain was always transient for the character, and adventure is his true calling.
One more notable feature about Zorro, is his trademark Z-shaped slash, which he used as a mark of shame on defeated foes, and as a calling card on the walls of places he had ransacked. By itself, this has no bearing on the Magician tarot, but in the context of Persona 5, calling cards play a crucial role in making people’s abstract desires tangible, which is well in-line with the Magician’s theme of actualization.
Morgana’s second Persona, Mercurius, is a more apt representation of the tarot as a whole. An alternate name of the Roman god Mercury, Mercurius is the god of finance, diplomacy, and the official messenger of the gods. He is also often associated with cognition, the unconscious world, and boundary-crossing. As such, he is often referenced in alchemy, and seen as a vehicle for effecting change. As a divine messenger, Mercurius is the god who would be most likely to deliver a calling card to a target of the Phantom Thieves.
As folklore goes, Jack Frost is a relatively young entity that came into literary prominence around the 19th century, though the personification of frost and cold as a spirit is truly ancient. Unlike many other personas and pieces of folklore which are malevolent entities, Jack Frost is usually portrayed as benevolent or mildly mischievous. This may explain why Atlus adopted their cute take on the character as an unofficial mascot. While he is always encountered early, and quickly eclipsed by other, stronger personas, he remains one of the series’ most iconic mainstays.
As a persona, Jack Frost, and his cousins King Frost and Black Frost—both fresh characters created by Atlus—are powerful mages, and, as one would expect, particularly adept with Persona‘s ice element. This squares with his portrayals in fiction, where Jack Frost is responsible for everything from frosting grass in the early morning to changing the colors of leaves in fall. Sometimes the character is associated with fairy myths, or given dominion over other lesser spirits. Naughtier incarnations of Jack Frost supposedly delight in nipping people’s ears, noses, and other exposed skin with cold.
Futsunushi is another entity that one would not typically associate with Magicians, especially given Atlus’ portrayal of him, his preference for physical attacks over magic, and his incredibly high strength stat. A Japanese warrior, the “futsu” in his name is suspected to be derived from the Japanese onomatopoeia for the sound a sword makes when swooshing through the air. According to some accounts, Futsunushi is born from the blood of Izanagi’s felled child, the fire god Kagutsuchi.
In others, Futsunushi is a violent herald of the heavenly deities sent to subjugate the land of Izumo. Unlike two earlier messenger gods (Ame-no-Hohi and Ame-no-Wakahiro), Futsunushi did not come bearing a calling card, but rather a violent ultimatum: submit or be destroyed. Okuninushi, one of the Japanese gods of earth, eventually submitted to Futsunushi’s authority for fear of being destroyed—similar to how most palace leaders surrender to the Phantom Thieves when their hearts are changed.
Like Zorro, his membership in the Magician arcana is harder to parse than most others, but the meaning can ultimately be traced back to effecting change, and his role as an envoy, albeit an extremely powerful one. It is also possible that Atlus aligned him with that arcana due to his affinity for tools. Futsunushi was known for his sword skills, and certain texts also speak of him repairing hiss stout shield of heaven after battle. Seeing how his character model does not have a shield, however, this is something of a stretch.
As one would expect of the most powerful persona in the magician Arcana, he is not a trivial persona to procure. Players looking to add him to their ranks in Persona 5 may want to brush up on the finer points of fusion to figure out how to obtain him.
It will be interesting to see how Persona 6 changes up the Magician arcana when the calling card and messenger motif of Persona 5 is no longer in play. But these examples demonstrate that there is much more to the arcana archetypes than meets the eye.
Persona 5 is available now for the PlayStation 4 and can be played on PS5.
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