Loki: The Father Of Lies And Deceit Or Anti-Hero

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The Norse god Loki is well known for his trickery and deceit in modern culture. He had a quick wit, a twisted sense of humor, and an appetite from devilry. In actuality he wasn’t born a god at all. Loki was the son of the giant Farbauti and giantess Laufey (“Loki: the Father of Lies and Deceit”). He snuck his way into becoming a god and was considered one of the Aesir. Even so he was a sort of “anti-hero” to the gods because of his mischievous ways (Allen, Saunders, “LOKI”).
Loki had multiple partners. His first was the giantess Angrboda who bore him three monstrous children. (“Loki”) Jormungand was a serpent so large that he circled the earth. Fenrir was a giant wolf, and Hel with her fitting name became the goddess of the underworld. (Allen, Saunders, “LOKI”) Next he wed Sigyn, who was the most loyal to him. With her Loki had two sons named Narvi and Vali who would meet horrible fates. Loki also spawned Sleipnir, an eight legged horse. (Lindeman)
It is believed that the character of Loki was not unique to Norse mythology. In fact the general idea of the trickster god is believed to have been a common Indo-European concept, so the exact roots of his mythology isn’t known. He is easily compared to other figures in European and even Native American mythology. Such comparisons could be to the trickster god from Native American lore (Sheppard) or the demonic character Syrdon from Caucasian legend. (“Loki”)
The physical appearance of Loki was never described in the myths about him however his ability to shift from one shape to another was present in many stories. He used his skill both to remedy sticky situations and cause havoc. During the building of Asgard, when the Aesir ran out of money for a wall to complete their project, Loki...

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... were later turned to iron for more security (Allen, Saunders, “VALI(2)”). A venomous snake was dangled above him. It dripped poison which Sigyn faithfully caught in a bowl so that her husband would not be harm. She remained with him, tending to him during his imprisonment. She would do her best to catch each drop of poison but when she had to dump out the bowl the burning liquid that she could not catch would drop and sting Loki’s face. Each time this would happen he would squirm in pain and pull on this rocks. The Norse used this myth to explain earthquakes.
Norse legend says that when Loki breaks free on the day of Ragnarok he will exact his revenge. He will show just how dark he is and what his twisted mind is capable of. On that day he will lead the giants and monsters into battle against the gods because of the torture that he was made to endure (“Loki”).

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