Tarot, Theory, and Trajectory: Weaving Creativity, Quantum Criminology, and Personal Experience in Scholarly Becoming

• In Event: Roundtable: A Criminology of Tarot: Reimagining Justice Beyond Law

Abstract

This working paper explores the integration of tarot, creativity, and quantum reasoning into my scholarly trajectory, drawing on the work of Dragan Milovanovic, Bruce Arrigo, and traditions of humanism and standpoint epistemology. I trace how these influences have helped me make sense of criminology—not just as a field of study but as a framework through which to understand personal, social, and spiritual change. From poetic methods to quantum thought, my journey embraces multiple ways of knowing and being. I argue that ontology, connection to the earth, and a belief in expansive knowledge systems can coexist with, and even enrich, critical criminological scholarship. This presentation invites participants to consider how we might redefine empiricism and knowledge-making by fusing scholarly inquiry with the evolving experiences of our own lives.

Author

• Denise Ruth Woodall, University of North Georgia / American University