Ellie Catton & astrology of the Luminaries

"I'm over the Moon"

As soon as I heard of Ellie Catton and her shortlisting for the Man Booker literary prize It was very intriguing to find out how likely her chances were of winning - since astrological analysis is the focus of this blog -and her winning novel has a very structured astrological theme

Google searching only delivered a 1985 year of birth so I scoured images of her face for clues. I picked up the energy of Venus-Libra - but in an astrological chart we have all 12 signs activated to a greater or lesser degree -so any prominent factor can jump out.
Because the Cardinal signs [Aries, Libra, Cancer, Capricorn] are highly emphasised during the period 2012-2016 many people born under those signs are having major life-changing events arising.
I was left to ponder whether Ellie is in fact a Libran.
On Tues 15 [Weds 16 a.m. NZ time] the Canadian born New Zealander was confirmed as the Booker winner for English language literature.
She gave an extended speech which was played perhaps in part on Radio New Zealand:

Accepting the award, Catton said the prize is all the more incredible because her book has been a publisher's nightmare from the very beginning.

"The shape and form of the book made certain kinds of editorial suggestions not only mathematically impossible, but even more egregious, astrologically impossible," she said.

Oct 15 the BBC website gave Eleanor Catton a birthdate of 24 September 1985  born in London, Ontario in Canada.
The Sun is conjunct Mercury in Libra as this chart for 5 mins past midnight at the start of that day, is showing:

not the exact Ellie Catton chart but a 24 September 1985 chart
This gives relevant positions for Catton - except exact position of the fast-moving Moon and the positioning around the wheel. The AC-DC and MC-IC axes shown here are also not relevant to her-  click to enlarge

[update: clarification: a misheard excerpt form her acceptance speech referred not to herself being a Virgo - but an editor - this error has been removed from this section]

To know the full personal layout precisely needs the critical factor of her time of birth which may never be disclosed

Standout features of those born 24 Sept 1985

• Mercury in tight proximity to the Sun gives the reader-writer energy.
•  Pluto linked by semisextile gives great intensity of mind, even obsession and the urge to delve into taboo and metaphysical subjects.
•  Neptune also closely linked by square gives immense imaginative & creative abilities to the functions of mind.
• Jupiter closely linked by trine to Sun-Mercury adds many advantages derived from the territory of ideas, concepts, thought and communications
• Venus and Mars in Virgo are great tools for producing the writer's craft
• the strong activation of her potentials leading to the Booker win are almost entirely invisible without a precisely timed chart - but one factor does stand out -the destiny indicator -the lunar north node is effectively 10 Taurus - giving a 10 Scorpio South Node - during the run-up to the award the lunar North Node reached 10 Scorpio - Ellie Catton's destiny based on prior life talents was about to blossom. 

I am yet to read the novel but will do so with interest as I have no idea of the level of astrological knowledge that has been used. It is pleasing, for the promotion of astrology that the winner of such a prestigious prize utilised this ancient knowledge despite public sentiment having long ago been scared away by Christian extremism.

UPDATE January 2014
Have just completed reading The Luminaries & am preparing an Alternative Astrology of the Luminaries article, coming soon
Update February 2014
The Astrology of the Luminaries
"There was this large world of rolling time and shifting spaces, and that small, stilled world of horror and unease – they fit inside each other, a sphere within a sphere."

The astrological methodology used by Ellie Catton is by no means traditional - which seems reflected in her introductory reference to star-gazing with her father - which created an overlay of astronomical perspectives -specifically the issue of precession -which says the planets no longer occupy the positions that were originally determined. 
She says she used charts from Sky & Telescope magazine and a software program called Stellarium to plot the stars and planets corresponding to the timeframe of the narrative. 

Though referring to “triple conjunction in Sagittarius, three planets in the same sign” -there is no astrological occurrence of this in the planetary data for the key date 27 January 1866 -The chart she used for this was from astronomical data.

the astrology of January 1866 has no triple conjunction in Sagittarius

Make no mistake: astrology and astronomy inhabit two different conceptual territories. 
Astrology is the wholistic language of quantum reality
Astronomy is the language if the mechanistic model
The two will never agree on the larger nature of space-time reality
So it becomes somewhat confusing to analyse Catton's hybrid version
This extra reference to the mathematics of the Golden Ratio adds another layer of complexity to unpick:
...she based its structure on a device derived from the geometrical idea of the golden spiral.
“I had become fascinated with this idea … can I write a book that has 12 parts, where every part stands in golden ratio in terms of length to the part that comes after it? the Listener

Considering the use of time and the movements of the planets, as portrayed in her precession-corrected astrology charts, Catton proceeds as follows:

27 January 1866

18 February 1866

20 March 1866

then a time shift...27 April 1865

proceeding forward again

27 April 1866

then a time shift...12 May 1865

proceeding thru 1865

18 June 1865

28 July 1865

22 August 1865

20 September 1865

11 October 1865

...a gap. No November

proceeding...

3 December 1865

14 January 1866

There are 13 dates

But only 12 are assigned as Parts of the tale

12 is the traditional number of astrological Houses, or divisions of the 360 degree astrological circle, or wheel of the heavens

The unassigned date is 27 April 1866 -as if that date and it's anniversary 27 April 1865 become merged in quantum, non-linear time

Of the 13 dates, only two are assigned a location

27 April 1865 Dunedin

27 April 1866 Hokitika

Thus the pairing knits together the two key settings for the succession of interconnected lives

The cycle starting 27 January 1866 [Part 1] ends on 14 January 1866 [Part 12] -another example of non-linear, quantum time - mistakenly conceived of by most as the stuff of nonsense -" you ended up finishing before you started!" - something Lewis Carroll would have been very proud to have constructed. His thinking so clearly revealed in the Alice stories is a clear example of the peculiarities of the quantum domain of reality underlying everyday existence -[ for a watchable version of quantum theory What the Bleep]

Mathematical factors include not only the mathematics of astrology and the assigned Golden Ratio structure but also fundamental mirroring:

There are 3 months using the date the 27th: 

April 1865, April 1866, and January 1866

The use of the 28th as well as in 28 July 1865 is relevant from an astrological perspective since the position of the Sun has a connection to all other similar dates:

27 April 1865 & 27 April 1866 = 6 degrees of Taurus, with Moon in Air -Libra in 1866

27 January 1866 = 7 degrees Aquarius

28 July 1865 = 5 degrees Leo with Moon in Air -Libra

This becomes interesting when graphically portrayed:

These four signs are connected, being part of the set of zodiac energies described as fixed [consistent, stubborn] in their expression.

The 3 dates above feature 3 of the four and indicate determined, willful,forces connected and opposed. 

Other dates repeated are

18 June 1865 = 27 Gemini

18 February 1866 = 29 Aquarius

On both dates the Moon was in the Fire sign Aries

These dates connect as 2 parts of a triangle

20 September 1865 = Sun 27 Virgo New Moon

20 March 1866 = 29 Pisces

These two signs are in near exact opposition - linked as bring similar as well as different in energy.

These are 2 [earth & water] of the mutable set of signs.

The other signs are Sagittarius and Gemini -and as we see 27 Gemini occurred on 18 June 1865.

The 3 combined produce a pattern of opposing and connected changing forces

A slighter looser grouping has:

May 12 1865  = Sun 21 Taurus with Moon in Fire - Sagittarius

October 11 1865 = Sun 18 Libra

January 14 1866 = Sun 23 Capricorn with Moon in Fire - Sagittarius

Taurus and Capricorn link by being both Earth signs

Libra compared to Capricorn & Taurus shows an elemental conflict -Air vs Earth

Then

August 22 1865 = Sun 29 Leo

is an exact [seasonal, energetic] opposite of 

Sun 29 Aquarius which occurred on 18 February 1866

[the variable orbit of the sun means zodiac positions are not an exact match for calendar dates

The seemingly stand alone date is Dec 3 1865

Sun = 11 Sagittarius with a waning Full Moon in Gemini

The Beginning:

27 January 1866 has Moon in Gemini

The End

14 January 1866 has Moon in Sagittarius

These 2 signs are paired opposites -Air & Fire in the Mutable set

When analysing the Sun positions in terms of zodiac sets [Cardinal, Fixed or Mutable] 

the 13 dates have the Moon in

Cardinal [Aries,Libra, Cancer or Capricorn] 2 times

Fixed [Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius] 7 times

Mutable [Pisces, Gemin. Virgo, Sagittarius]  4 times

When analysing the Moon positions in terms of zodiac sets [Cardinal, Fixed or Mutable] the 13 dates have the Moon in

Cardinal [Aries,Libra, Cancer or Capricorn] 5 times

Fixed [Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius] 2 times

Mutable [Pisces, Gemin. Virgo, Sagittarius]  6 times

The dominant Sun energy is Fixed

The dominant Moon energy is Mutable

Sun energy is traditionally associated with hi-profile, directive & male energy

Moon energy is traditionally associated with low-profile, responsive & female energy

In terms of characters in the story

Carver typifies a fixed male Solar energy

Anna typifies a mutable female Lunar energy

though it is said that Emery is paired with Anna as the Solar-Lunar Luminaries, they in fact are two peas in a pod rather than complementary forces.

Reading the book in entirety the overwhelming energy is Neptunian - the planetary energy linked to the zodiac sign Pisces, which is Mutable Water.

The manifestations of Piscean/Neptunian references, themes & characters are numerous: the opium dealer, the chaplain, the shipping agent, the chemist, drugs and medicines, the hermit, being comatose from drug overdose, the mysterious disappearance of Emery, the hidden gold, the stolen gold, the drug-addicted Anna, deceit, impersonation, theft and forgery, multiple identities.

the astrology of the characters
is less interesting to me having some superficial pairings -The newspaperman is a Gemini & the others have escaped me , not having a copy to hand at this time.

In summary:
The book used a hybrid language scantily based on astrology symbolism, more on astronomy data, with some astrological character elements.
I have read several gushing commentaries by astrologers about how wonderful it is to have astrology so prominently profiled but am left wondering if they have actually read and analysed the book.
There is far more to the structure on a mathematical level with quantum aspects of time-shifting and there are interesting links astrologically between key dates -which now seem to have been oblivious to Catton if she was soley using astronomical data

Read this explanation also re the difference between constellations and the zodiac & the nonsense re the so called 13th sign

WIKI entry
Guardian article
BBC birthdate statement
Book extract
Book Review
The astrological structure -some commentary from Catton to a sceptical UK journalist
star sign confirmed - Catton tells me her birthday was last month and her star sign is Libra.