2007-02-19 11:27:25 · 4 answers · asked by Giggly Giraffe 7 in Society & Culture ➔ Mythology & Folklore
The Wheel of Fortune is a concept in medieval and ancient philosophy referring to the capricious nature of Fate.The wheel belongs to the goddess Fortuna, who spins it at random, changing the positions of those on the wheel - some suffer great misfortune, others gain windfalls.
Origins
The concept arose in antiquity. The Wheel originally belonged to the Roman goddess Fortuna, whose name seems to derive from Vortumna, "she who revolves the year". Fortuna eventually became Christianized: the Roman philosopher Boethius (d. 524) was a major source for the medieval view of the Wheel, writing about it in his Consolatio Philosophiae.
"I know how Fortune is ever most friendly and alluring to those whom she strives to deceive, until she overwhelms them with grief beyond bearing, by deserting them when least expected … Are you trying to stay the force of her turning wheel? Ah! dull-witted mortal, if Fortune begin to stay still, she is no longer Fortune."
The Wheel of Fortune card in a Tarot pack connects it with the wheel mentioned in the Book of Ezekiel (10:9-13). However, exactly how much relation the Biblical passage has to the actual evolution of the concept is unclear: medieval writers made little reference to it in that context.-
2007-02-20 01:59:13 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 5⤊ 10⤋
The Wheel of Fortune is a dual meaning card that can indicate good fortune or misery but the key to it's meaning is that it is earned from chance not from purposeful direction.
So a person that relied on the Wheel of Fortune might just leave things up to chance. He may get a reward, or perhaps be punished. But the lesson of the Wheel is that it is purely random and unpredictable.
Best to avoid that, and plan your future rather than rely on luck ;)
2007-02-19 11:33:58 · answer #2 · answered by Albert Hall 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Besides the name of an American TV show, "Wheel of Fortune" is the name of a gambling devise at carnivals. A large wheel which is spun and if you have money down on the number that comes up on the wheel you win.
The term, however goes back before Medieval times. Boethius wrote about it. Lady Luck was the one who spun the wheel and our lives depended on how the luck came up for us on the wheel regardless of what we did.
For more details see:
http://www.loc.gov/exhibits/world/earth.html
http://shakespeare.about.com/od/studentresources/a/fate.htm
The first one shows some pictures of early wheels of fortune in books at the Library of Congress. The second one gives a good discussion of the Medieval writings about Wheel of Fortune.
Good LUCK in your studies!
2007-02-19 11:55:29 · answer #3 · answered by Spitzname 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Only the best damn game show ever made! lol
2007-02-19 11:48:26 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋