Comparing 'Coyote Steals Fire And' How Stories Came To Earth

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Pages: 7

Tales are written about tricksters to showcase their mischievous and magical abilities when outwitting their opponents. Tricksters exhibit a great deal of intelligence and knowledge, which aids them in carrying out the various schemes. Mischievous tricksters shine in their own tales, “How Stories Came to Earth,” “Coyote Steals Fire,” and “Master Cat,” where they deceive various gods to obtain their valuable possession. “How Stories Came to Earth” contains an unpredictable hero, Anansi the spider, who exceeds the sky god’s expectations by returning four burdensome beings. He captures the four creatures by creating unique traps. In the next story, “Coyote Steals Fire,” a dauntless coyote provides heat for the world by acquiring fire from Thunder’s possession. Coyote manages to fool Thunder in a game of dice where he quickly rearranges the pieces. Finally, “Master Cat” showcases a devious cat who proves his worthiness by deceiving the princess and her father. This cat intimidates peasants into lying and tricks an ogre in order to impress the king. Cunning tricksters from “How Stories Came to Earth,” “Coyote Steals Fire,” and “Master Cat” commonly desire a valuable from a higher power yet they differ in the tricksters’ motives …show more content…
Thunder, the caretaker of fire, keeps the fire “inside a huge white rock” high on a mountain top (Erodes and Ortiz 44). This fire holds a lot of value to coyote and the animals because “In winter they could not warm themselves. They had to eat their food raw” (Erodes and Ortiz 44). Therefore, Coyote gathers the strength to challenge the frightening Thunder to a game of dice. Coyote values the fire so much that he jeopardizes his life when negotiating with thunder, “If you win, you can kill me. If I win, you have to give me fire” (Erodes and Ortiz 45). This reason proves Coyote shares the desire to obtain a valuable from a higher power like the other