RMP's Vampire tarot - Courts as people rather than types?

Hiya folks..

I thought id ask this here, hoping that it will provide some interesting discussion for a potential study group for the deck

The Courts in this deck are slightly different in that they represent characters or people from the dracula story, the development of the vampire myth or people from Stokers life. Do you think this is a good thing? or a bad thing?
As a study it makes it interesting because we get to ponder about the characters and influences on Stoker and the myths.. However, as a deck i sometimes have to work that bit harder and try to ignore that to actually read the card infront of me, rather than the story of the person and the background info.

What do you folks think?

Thank you for starting this thread inanna_tarot I am really wanting this deck and book but have been very unsure because of the courts. While I do love who Robert Place has chosen for the courts, it seems for me that they would be very hard to actually read about or even how to read them?

I look forward to any thoughts or ideas others have! If I get this deck I really want to read with it and not just admire it.

That's very interesting. I like it!

So far this deck reads beautifully, I have not decided yet on the court card if it is a good thing or a bad thing. But the whole deck is like a different language I am loving that part of it also. Some of the cards the meanings are changed which I don't have a problem with cause I read intuitively.
I will come back to this thread when I have worked with those persona a bit more
So far I love everything about it, it is a very smart deck if you know what I mean

I think this can be a difficult one. Up to now, I've stayed away from themed decks for this reason - surely the characters must change from the RWS ones that the majority of us are so familiar with?

I've spent time reading the book and to be honest, I can apply most of the court meanings to the RWS ones. Yes, some don't seem to fit but rightly or wrongly, when in doubt my thoughts wander off to the dear ol' RWS anyway.

I wouldn't like to do a reading where all I could think about was the character portrayed, as inanna pointed out.

It's not posed much of a problem to me. I do fully intend to read up on the lives of the court people but I can use the deck well enough without this knowledge as well.

When ive had the courts come up in readings, so far I've just read it intuitively. Sometimes with the story of that person/character in mind, and sometimes just with the 'traditional' meanings of the courts. But there is a lot going on here with the courts (as there is with the whole deck!) and so im sure time will tell as the deck reveals some of its mysteries to me

The courts have always given me trouble, no matter what deck.

I love these courts, visually, but they aren't any easier for me than anybody else's. One thing I've been mulling over is that all the courts are people or characters from Stoker's own inner or outer world. He is the king of Pentacles (Garlic Flowers), the practical, hard-working, theater manager and prolific, if uneven author, who wrote for money as well as for self-expression.

The other kings are men or artists he admired or was influenced by. The Queens are women from his intimate circle: his mother, his wife, and his good friends Ellen Terry and Pamela Coleman Smith.

The Knights are writers who influenced Stoker's writing, and the Knaves are characters written by those Knights. Ligeia (Knave of Stakes) is a character written by Poe, the Knight of Stakes, and so on with the others. I like this connection, but I'm not sure what to make of it.

These are all just preliminary thoughts, as I'm sure I could spend weeks or months on these courts, figuring out what Place meant by them, and what they mean to me. One thing about the visual representation: I really respond to the colors used in the backgrounds. I'm trying to decide what those colors mean symbolically. The soft rose of the garlic flower suit, the topaz green of the stakes, the delicate aqua of the knives, the amber shading into rose of the holy water suit.

Overall, I find that the more I know about the person or character in the card, the more I get out of that card when it comes up in a spread. Franz Liszt, the King of Stakes, is drawing mostly a blank, probably because I know almost nothing about him.

I'm about halfway through Place's book; I haven't gotten to the actual card meanings yet. But from what I have read so far, I don't think that I am going to have any problems reading or appreciating the courts.

Place has done a nice job creating a contextual framework for the Vampire Tarot. The deck focuses on the tale of "Dracula" but it also investigates the mythology of the vampire. Naturally, this mythology is interwoven with the Romantic ideas and individuals that shaped Stoker's lore and vision.

Edited: I took a look at the courts tonight and I can see how they could be challenging to interpret. You can use Place's associations as a springboard but I don't think they're enough to work with on their own.

For myself, I plan to think about the connections that Place draws. But I will also look at the card images and read the courts according to traditional associations: rank, suit, and element.

I agree that the courts are going to be the most challenging part of the deck.
It's nice though to have a deck that is stretching my intellect and my imagination.