Research Paper On Norse Mythology

Words: 1176
Pages: 5

Norse mythology is most widely known as being the religion of Scandinavian Vikings. Most people are aware of this set of myth’s larger players such as Odin, Thor, and Loki. These characters have been popularized in modern times in the form of comic book characters, and in movies such as Marvel’s Thor. These characters however are more than comic book characters, they are gods! There is much more to their story, and much more to their world.
The Creation and Discovery of the First God
The creation of the world of Norse Mythology begins like most other creation stories. It begins as a vast emptiness as described below:
…there was once no heaven above nor earth beneath only a bottomless deep, Ginungagap, and a world of mist, Niflheim, in which
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“Thor is ever busy and ever in dead earnest, but Loki makes fun of everything until at last his love of mischief leads him entirely astray, and he loses all love for good and becomes utterly selfish and malevolent.” (Guerber 199)
At times Thor and Loki are at odds with each other like in this example where Loki shows up at a feast of the gods:
…Loki came creeping in once more, and with venomous tongue resumed his slanders, taunting all the gods with their weaknesses or shortcomings, dwelling maliciously upon their physical imperfections, and deriding them for their mistakes. In vain the gods tried to stem his abuse; his voice rose louder and louder, and he was just uttering some base slander about Sif [Thor’s wife], when Thor suddenly appeared, angrily brandishing his hammer, at the mere sight of which Loki fled… (Guerber 206) However in other stories Loki is known to help Thor (and other gods) like in the story of the theft of Thor’s Hammer:
... [Loki] flew far and wide in search of it, and at last he came back with the news that it was in the possession of the giant Thrym and buried deep below the earth. … [Thor] seized the hammer, demolished the bridegroom and wedding guests, and returned with Loki in triumph to Asgard. (Willis