Intro to the "Trickster"

Loki

As we transition into learning about aspects contributed to the notorious "trickster" figure in all mythology, I looked into a few common ones as a sneak preview..

• Loki- a shape shifter found in Norse mythology; as discussed in the e-reserve reading, his position is half-way between the gods and the mortals, sometimes aiding them, sometimes causing trouble. He can appear in the shape of a salmon, a mare, a fly, or even an old woman. He played a role in the death of one of the Norse gods, was then bound by his own entrails and when he eventually escaped he died in a fight with another god when he decided to join in the battle against the gods.

• Anansi- a cunning spider that can appear in the shape of a man found in West African and Caribbean folklore; most of the time he uses his cunning-ness to trick people into giving him valuable things but it often backfires on him- in one account he stored all the wisdom in the world in a pot for himself but couldn't climb the tree he wanted to hide it in while holding it so he dropped it.

• Pan- satyr-looking god of shepherds/flocks, mountain wilds, hunting, and music in Greek and Roman mythology; his general form (as a satyr) was to play tricks on people and children for pure amusement.

Pan

 

• John the Conqueror- a folk hero found in African-American folklore; he was an African prince that was sold into slavery in the Americas but was smart enough he was often able to trick his masters to evade them. In one story he is even able to shape shift in order to outrun the devil himself after stealing his horses in an attempt to win over the devil's daughter.