Work in progress (WIP) as I gather my notes, thoughts, editing, etc.

A list built around the constellation of two archetypal symbols that sometimes appear together in art and real life.

I first come across this connection between death and fools in Mark Dery's essay "Cotton Candy Autopsy: Deconstructing Psycho-Killer Clowns." In the medieval and renaissance period there was a connection between these two entities as seen in the Durer woodcut banner image (see also The Decameron). Dery's essay gives various examples of this death-jester connection: the serial killer John Wayne Gacy (who worked as "Pogo the Clown"), the dead jester Yorick in Hamlet and memento mori, horror rapper's Insane Clown Posse and their "dark carnival," Batman's enemy The Joker. You can find earlier symbolism in ancient cultures: Hermes as both "divine trickster" and guider of souls to the underworld.

I tend to use this imagery as a "philosophical heuristic" (as a heuristic it sometimes works, and sometimes doesn't). If either of the fantastic imagery manifests itself, I start looking for connections to the other symbolism:

(1) If I see jesters, fools, tricksters, etc., then I am thinking what is their connection with death?

(2) If I see death-like entities, then I ask what is their connection to fools and tricksters. Notice that warfare is tied up with stratagems, ruses, cover-ups, madness, stupidity, etc. Sun Tzu: "all warfare is based on deception".

I am interested in reading more about either symbol in order to produce more connections while thinking.

Other random things to research:

• Connection between conmen/grifters and the collapse of businesses/economies.