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Revision as of 20:18, 13 August 2004 by 216.244.7.97 (talk) (→Tricksters)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)In the study of mythology and religion, a trickster is a god, goddess, spirit or human who breaks the rules of the gods or nature, sometimes maliciously (for example, Loki) but usually with ultimately positive effects. Often, the rule-breaking takes the form of tricks (eg. Eris) or thievery. Tricksters can be cunning or foolish or both; they are often very funny even when they are considered sacred and are performing important cultural tasks. Animals associated with tricksters include coyotes and ravens.
In many cultures, particularly American Indian, the trickster and the culture hero are combined. To illustrate, Prometheus, in Greek mythology, stole fire from the gods to give it to humans. He is more of a culture hero than a trickster. In many North American Indian mythologies, the coyote spirit stole fire from the gods (or stars or sun) and is more of a trickster than a culture hero. This is primarily because of other stories involving the coyote spirit; Prometheus was an intellectual Titan, whereas a coyote is usually seen as a jokester and prankster.
Tricksters
- Abenaki mythology
- Akan mythology
- American mythology
- Ashanti mythology
- Australian Aboriginal mythology
- Basque mythology
- Celtic mythology
- Chinese mythology
- Sun Wukong (the Monkey King)
- Chippewa mythology
- Crow mythology
- Fijian mythology
- Greek mythology
- Haida mythology
- Nankil'slas (Raven)
- (Coyote)
- Hawaiian mythology
- Hopi and Zuni mythology
- Inuit mythology
- Japanese mythology
- !Kung mythology
- Lakota mythology
- Navajo mythology
- Nootka mythology
- Norse mythology
- Northwest Caucasian mythology
- Polynesian mythology
- Ute mythology
- Vodun
- Yoruba mythology
Tricksters created in modern fiction include Michael Moorcock's Jerry Cornelius (a Harlequin-like character); Hoki the Jokester and Agi Hammerthief in Terry Pratchett's Discworld novels; Superman's implike tormentor Mr. Mxyzptlk; Bugs Bunny; Captain Jack Sparrow and Captain Barbossa from Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and Q in Star Trek. Contemporary tricksters can also be found at www.ScumbagSewerRats.com.