Inversion as Structure: Reinterpreting Tarot Reversals through Genomic and Narrative Lenses

This interdisciplinary study proposes a novel theoretical framework for interpreting reversed Tarot cards by drawing on recent developments in evolutionary genetics and structural narrative theory. Using chromosomal inversions—genomic structures that suppress recombination and accumulate latent variation—as a metaphor, the paper reconceptualizes Tarot reversals not as mere negations but as structurally conserved zones of symbolic potential. Through comparative analysis with the white-throated sparrow’s supergene system and structuralist models from Propp and Greimas, the study explores how symbolic systems, like genomes, evolve through constraint, divergence, and reconfiguration. An extended appendix reinterprets all twenty-two Major Arcana cards in their reversed positions, integrating biological, mythological, and narrative insights. This work contributes to symbolic studies, narrative theory, and the emerging field of structural mythography.