Loki is a character not easily defined or described. Most often presented as a Giant, the son of Laufey and Farbauti, Loki is con

Loki is a character not easily defined or described. Most often presented as a Giant, the son of Laufey and Farbauti, Loki is considered Odin’s blood brother. In the Marvel Comic Universe he is Odin’s adopted son. Joanne M. Harris in The Gospel of Loki states that Loki is a resident of Chaos, wildfire made flesh, who has decided to leave Chaos to explore the world. Loki defies Surt and the laws of Chaos to approach Odin whom he has been watching as Odin looked into the world of Chaos. So, Loki has many origin stories, and whether he is a giant, a demon, or something else is never solidly determined. Harris’s book is an excellent take on Loki and his stories, told with great personality and adherence to the myths. I recommend it highly. 

Loki is ultimately a trickster. He is inventive, social (much more so than any other god), cruel, humorous, and sharply intelligent. In his role of the trickster he is greedy, selfish, and treacherous. Loki is the consummate shapeshifter; he changes from male to female, from man to animal, and even to insect. At times he acts to benefit others, and yet he will do terrible and troublesome acts, sometimes to comic effect.  The trickster has two sides, one good and impressive, and one dangerous and frightening. Even while  Loki entertains with his pranks and mischievous acts, a dark undercurrent is found in nearly everything he does. He gets drunk and cuts Sif’s golden hair, explaining the act as a result of the alcohol. However, a woman whose head was sheared of hair implied that she was a whore. Loki also has deep connections to the underworld through his daughter, Hel, and is very fond of his other monstrous children, Jormungand and Fenrir. At Ragnarok he will stand with the giants, sailing the ship Naglfar from Niflheim’s cold shores.  

Your task is to post to this discussion, answering these questions:

1) What is the appeal of a character such as Loki? Or is his dual nature too untrustworthy to appeal to anyone? 

2) Do you think his punishment for engineering Baldur’s death is deserved or is it too harsh? Explain. Do you have any sympathy for Loki or did he get what he deserved? This question is in reference to the punishment of binding he receives from Odin. 

3) Do you see any differences between the character of Loki in Norse myth and Loki in the Marvel Cinematic Universe? Why do you think these differences exist, if you think they are, in fact, present? 

text readings: https://mrmooreismyteacher.com/ENG2P1/Docs/ShortFiction/Norse%20Mythology%20-%20Neil%20Gaiman.pdf