Loki Thoughts of a God

1562734 Loki: Thoughts on the Nature of the God, a Queer Reading By Ethan Banks ᛚᛆᛧ By Kākahu Estrid Banks Lar Romsdal Submitted as part of the Masters in Heritage Conservation program, 2018, of the University of Auckland 1562734 Acknowledgements: This piece of research is also dedicated to all of my family who have believed in me, brought me strength to be myself, and to understand my heritage and identity. To the Faculty of Creative Arts and Industries, & the Faculty of Arts I thank you for the opportunity to complete this research as part of my Masters programme. 1562734 CONTENTS Introduction Questions The world(s) of Norse Pagan mythology of the Viking Age A note on the myths The role of Loki in Norse mythology p. 1 p. 3 p. 5 p. 5 p. 7 Dumezil p. 7 Frakes p. 11 An alternative interpretation p. 13 Loki and Norse society p. 24 Findings p. 25 Conclusion p. 29 Bibliography p. 30 1562734 1562734 1562734 Introduction Today, we have a 21st Century awareness of diversity in expression pertaining to a person’s gender, sexuality and place in the world. Yet we sometimes forget that these markers of human identity have always existed throughout our shared cultural past, and are articulated in various ways within ancient stories and mythologies. In this thesis, I will consider the way that gender identity and sexuality are evoked in Norse mythology, focusing on the figure of Loki. Loki, or sometimes Lodur1, commonly known as the trickster2 god, stirs the imagination as a chaotic force disrupting order all the while having a mischievous and free-spirited nature. This god is pivotal in the pantheon of Norse mythology and religion, and is attested across several sources, most notably the Elder (Poetic) Edda, under Gylfaginning, in which their3 place in the pantheon is mentioned, and through their actions at Ragnarǫk in the Twilight of the Gods. The sexuality and gender identity of Loki has not previously been surveyed. The starting point of this research comprises a close reading of Georges Dumézil’s system of understanding myth, followed by an analysis of Jerold C. Frakes’s attempt to explain the position of Loki in Norse mythology and religion. These scholars’ works are seminal to understanding the god Loki, and will guide my comparative study of the nature of Loki amongst the other gods and in other cultures. I will then draw on their theories to offer my own interpretation of Loki’s position in the pantheon. Following this, I will discuss the sexuality and gender-identity of Loki and how this reflects the social milieu of Viking-Age Norse society. I will argue that Loki is more than a trickster god4 , and can best be understood in the context of the mythical world in which they lived alongside great warriors, kings and monsters. My central thesis statement is therefore twofold: first, to fully grasp the role of Loki in Norse mythology we have to look at them through the lens of the Norse worldview; second, an awareness of Loki’s place in the pantheon gives us insights into Norse understandings of gender identity and sexuality. 1 Davidson, Hilda E., Lost Beliefs of Northern Europe. Routledge, 2001 p. 174 2 Lindow, John, “A Mythic Model in Bandamanna saga and Its Significance” MGS 3:1-12, 1977 3 In this thesis, I will be arguing that Loki to be gender-fluid, or non-binary, refusing to conform to traditional understandings of gender binaries. For that reason, I will refer to Loki throughout this thesis using the ‘genderless’ pronouns they/their/them. 4 Davidson, Hilda E., Myths and Symbols of Pagan Europe: Early Scandinavian and Celtic Religions. Bell and Bain Ltd., 1987 p. 1 1562734 I will conduct my research through a stance of “Methodological Agnosticism”, which recognises that a researcher can never escape inherent bias5 , regardless of the disciplinary framework they may employ. In this acknowledgement of bias, the researcher becomes the fieldwork instrument, and in doing so, as Jeanne Favre-Saada6 demonstrates, suspends their disbelief to take part in and engage with discourse and function. They therefore come to understand something “other” as something known. Appropriately, before I continue, I would like to acknowledge and show my respect to the beliefs and heritage of the ancient Egyptians and ancient Greeks, whom I mention in this dissertation. Without the contributions of this culture, my research would not have been as complete. I also acknowledge that this study is focusing on a Western society, using Western techniques and conceptions within a Western understanding of gender-fluidity and queerness in relation to both gender identity and sexuality. I define gender identity as a self-determined description of what gender (or non-gender) a person may understand themselves to be. I define sexuality in this context as the sexual characteristics and sexual identity of an individual. I will also be using the term non-binary; for some, this term evokes a sense of being genderless or neutral in terms of gender. In terms of my own personal experience, I draw upon the masculine and feminine sides of my being to express myself day-to-day, without the need for a fixed and unchanging gender identity of either male or female. This relates to the term gender-fluidity, which refers to the understanding of gender as a spectrum which can change depending on the individual’s needs. In this thesis, I will be using the mythology of Loki to argue that prior to the arrival of Christianity, some Norse people may have understood gender identity and sexuality in a queer or fluid way, similar to some of our present-day Western understandings. In the pre-Christian era, Norse ideas of gender and sexuality may have been a bit queer. And it’s only during the Christian era that strict binaries were imposed. Loki shows us a glimpse of gender queerness in the pre-Christian Norse worldview. I acknowledge that the ancient Norse concepts of gender and sexuality will not be identical to contemporary concepts, nor will they have been articulated using the language and ideas we use today. To ignore this runs the risk of anachronism, applying modern-day concepts onto ancient texts. Rather, I will argue that Loki is queer in that they do not conform to stable gender categories of ‘male’ and ‘female’, and thus Loki subverts traditional gender binaries reinforced during the Chris5Bullivant, Stephen & Lee, Lois., A Dictionary of Atheism. Oxford University Press, 2016 6 Favre-Saada, Jeanne, “Deadly Words: Witchcraft in the Bocage”. Editions de la Maison des Sciences de l´Homme. Maison des Sciences de l´Homme, 1981 1562734 tian era. Their queerness in the Norse pantheon may offer us a glimpse of pre-Christian Norse understandings of gender as something inherently non-binary and fluid. I am not claiming that Loki is queer in the modern-day sense (of having same-sex desires, say, or identifying as transgender); rather, I am using the term ‘queer’ in relation to Loki in order to capture the way that this Norse god evokes the complex understandings of sexuality and gender dominant in their own cultural and historical location. This research therefore explores a historical narrative of gender identities and sexualities among a society through its mythology. Essentially, I will argue that the acceptance of Loki by the main group of gods (the Æsir) and by the amalgamated secondary group of gods (the Vanir) demonstrates that queerness had a religious and social meaning in Norse society. I will use a multi-disciplinary approach to the study of religion, with a foundation in heritage, alongside archaeology, literature, history, mythology and folklore studies. Linking these disciplinary approaches together, I offer a holistic study of the Norse culture. I begin my research with an examination of the pre-Christian era, following into the period of Christian conversion. Poignantly we time-travel from the Viking Age of c.750-1050CE to the later Medieval Periods of Snorri Sturluson in the 13th Century. This unity of focus and time (ca.750-1290CE) will allow me to understand how this past society both lived and defined its belief systems, including how gender and sexuality were articulated in these systems. My thesis focuses on the identity and function of the god Loki within the Norse pantheon, looking at the ways their gender identity and sexuality are articulated in Norse myth. This is not a straightforward comparative study of different cultural understandings of gender or sexuality, nor is it denying that these phenomena (gender, gender fluidity, queerness and sexuality) may have existed within other non-Western cultures during this time period. This research is shedding light on a predefined Western and pre-Christian society, commenting on the experiences and understandings of a past people, which in turn may still have resonances with cultural understandings of gender identity and sexuality today. I seek to recover the lost understandings and acceptance of gender identities and sexualities amongst the Norse, considering their ongoing relevance. This dissertation will therefore address these two questions: 1) What is the pivotal role of Loki in Norse mythology and religion? This will be based on a reinterpretation of the Dumézil and Frakes models of mythology. 1562734 2) How does Loki’s role in Norse religion shed light on understandings of gender and sexuality in the Viking era? In order to answer these questions, I will look into the conceptual modelling of the Norse pantheon as a system, and will perform a close reading of Dumézil and Frakes. Dumézil’s texts, Mitra-Varuna and Jupiter, Mars & Quirinus, and Gods of the Ancient Northmen are classics in comparative mythology, which consider the Germanic North and Indo-European antecedents of Norse mythology. Frakes´s work, “Loki´s Mythological Function in the Tripartite System” (Lokasenna) will provide a secondary conceptual analysis of the tripartite system that Dumézil creates. After this overview, I will demonstrate that Loki is a central figure in this conceptual system of Norse religion from the Viking Age. I will discuss how Loki affects society in the Norse world, focusing on the gender and sexuality of the god. Traditionally in scholarship, Loki has been identified as both bisexual and transformative in appearance – a hlúðr, or “shape-shifter”. This analysis does not tend to consider conceptions of queerness as we understand them today, and uses a more conservative lens to comprehend the identity of Loki. I will argue, however, that this betrays a heteronormative bias and a reluctance to recognise queerness in ancient texts. My thesis attempts to shed light on the possibilities of queerness in early Norse societies. This topic is important, because while we acknowledge that gender and sexuality in ancient myth will have been understood differently, we can still consider it through a contemporary queer lens in order to reach new understandings of this topic. For the purposes of this research, I am defining mythology as a reflection of the culture in which it was created, whose sets of beliefs, stories, and figures are passed down between the generations through oral and later written transmission. These traditions may have been modified as they travelled through time, in order to fit the thinking of the contemporary age. Mythology is part of, but does not exclusively represent, particular religious systems and, by extension, a shared cultural heritage. While later Western concepts of mythology have tended to equate ‘myth’ with falsity (as compared with Christian ‘truth’), we must remember its religious significance in the pre-Christian era and beyond. In this broad definition of Norse myth, we find that the Norse conceptual model for both gender identities and gender roles is more complicated in its narrative. Other ancient cultures shared similar ideas to the Norse in how gender and sexuality are understood, although each culture has their unique way of accessing and understanding this knowledge. Using a comparative lens, we can develop 1562734 an understanding of how religion and myth play a role in shaping societal beliefs about gender identity and sexuality. The world(s) of Norse Pagan mythology of the Viking Age To understand the Norse Pagan religion, we must first understand the world it inhabits. The gods, elves, giants, dwarves, trolls and humans live within a nine-world or heim system. Humans live in the middle home named Miðgarð, or anglicised “Midgard”, Middle Earth. Surrounding this is a giant sea populated by one of the children of Loki, the Miðgarðsormr or Jǫrmungandr known as the Midgard Serpent. Fenrir, the wolf-child of Loki is chained on the boulder Gjöll, pushed into the centre of earth7. Giants live in Jotunheim, separated from the Frost giants who burst forth from Gunningagap living at the edges of Midgard. The elves live in Alfheim having separated areas for different types of elves; black elves, for instance, live underground. Trolls and goblins are similar to dwarves who can live in the ground as well, trapping weary humans in their holes or halls under the mountains. The world of the deceased is made of innumerable halls, each one operated by a deity with the main halls being the hall of Freyja who takes women specifically slain from the battlefield, and of course, Valhalla where warrior men go under the protection of Óðinn as the Einharjar. These worlds or homes are surrounding the life-tree, or world-tree, Yggdrásil. As in many cultures, this tree is made either of ash or yew and is immense. It is uncertain whether the tree represents a sort-of “highway” between the homes, or that its roots move into each home. Movement exists horizontally and vertically between the nine homes. Hel, the daughter of Loki, lives in Niflheim8 . Thor Odin and 7 The Prose Edda of Snorri Sturluson: Tales from Norse Mythology. Jean I Young (Trans.) Bowes and Bowes, 1954 p. 58 8 Ibid., p. 56 1562734 Frigg, alongside the other Æsir and Vanir, live in Ásgarð. In this place, Óðinn is king of the gods, or more rightly highest chief with many of the main gods exercising special gifts and having distinct personalities. Some gods live in other places, such as Skaði, a giantess who lives up in the mountains, and Njǫrðr, her sometime husband, who lives by the seas. We see these images on various archaeological stones, or crosses such as the Tjängvide picturestone (page 9) depicting the eight-legged horse Sleipnir. A note on the myths All of these myths stem originally from oral histories. This means that by the time they were written down, largely collated by Snorri Sturluson in the 13th Century from previous sources, they have been modified verbally. The extent to which the myths have been modified comes from our surviving source material in the Eddas, written by Snorri. Here Snorri collated myths from earlier writings of the 10th to the 12th century. Being a Christian, some argument could be made for their Christinisation, especially in the myth Gylfaginning which enshrines earlier stanzas of poetry (the transmission of the original myths) around a post-Christian narrative of king Gylfi. It is important to note that the stanzas of surviving poetry from other sources may or may not be Christianised, they largely outline a Pagan premise. Our most complete understanding of Norse religion and its mythology stem from these surviving copies, particularly our fullest picture in the form of Gylfaginning. The poem Gylfaginning was written in Iceland in the 13th Century by Snorri Sturluson, using portions of oral history (as are most of the sagas). In this poem, we are given a description of Loki and their familial relationships: Also reckoned amongst the gods is one that some call the mischiefmonger of the Æsir and the father-of-lies and the disgrace-of-gods-and-men. He is the son of the giant Fárbauti and his name is Loki or Lopt. His mother´s name is Laufey or Nál, and B´yleist and Helbindi are his brothers. Loki is handsome and fair of face, but has an evil disposition and is very changeable of mood. He excelled all men in the art of cunning, and he always cheats. He was continually involving the Æsir in great difficulties and he often helped them out again by guile. His wife´s name is Sigyn; their son Nari or Narvi.9 9 Snorri Sturluson (1954) (Trans.) Young, Jean The Prose Edda of Snorri Sturluson: Tales From Norse Mythology. Bowes and Bowes, 1954 p. 55 1562734 This poem offers us the most complete description of Loki in written form, and was written during the Medieval period. Its negative depiction of the god may therefore reflect the demonisation10 of Loki that took place in the Christian era. We learn of these myths through the written transmission of oral mythology. There are also various pieces of archaeology, such as the Gotland picturestones and the Gosforth Cross, which also shed light on the myths of Loki. To begin my interpretation of the role of Loki in the Norse religious system, and to answer my first thesis question, I will outline the systems of mythology suggested by Dumézil and the later argument put forward by Frakes on tripartism. Dumézil has written highly influential work on the Germanic mythology world, while Frakes is a prominent scholar of Norse literature. Both of these writers contribute significantly to understandings of how the Norse religious system is constructed and understood as a whole. The role of Loki in Norse mythology Dumézil The work of scholar Georges Dumézil broke away from Max Müller’s established theory of “solar theology”11 which asserted that the sun amongst other agricultural phenomena was the main deity in any given system. Dumézil created a new way to perceive the interconnections of Indo-European origins for Germanic mythology. Drawing from the French Sociological School of 1938, Dumézil focused on comparative mythology under the direction of Durkheimian anthropology. Yet unlike Durkheim, the structural process (i.e. the categorising of gods and their functions) of his model is not linked to a collective underlying psycho-social understanding across all human beings, but rather is linked geographically as a genetic (familial) collective to Indo-European boundaries12 . Dumezil is arguing that Germanic mythology has its origins in Indo-European mythology, and that mythology has specific familial or geographical roots. Dumézil also contends that various gods are 10 Lindow, John, Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs. Oxford University Press, 2002 p. 303 11 Littleton, C. Scott, Introduction in Dumézil “Gods of the Ancient Northmen”. University of California Press, 1973 p.x 12 Dumézil, Georges, Mitra-Varuna. Presses Universitaires de France, 1940 p.16 1562734 counterparts to an earlier Indic tradition confirming the influential migration of Scythians into Scandinavia during the Migration Period 300-700CE. In this school of thought (French comparative mythology) of the forties and fifties, the way of thinking “asserts through the school that important social and cultural realities are “collectively represented” by supernatural beings and concepts, and that there is an intimate and functional connection between social facts and religious facts”13. With this methodological backdrop, Dumézil postulated in 1938 that the tripartite class system resembling the Aryan “twice born” caste system of Medieval and modern-day India14 could be applied to various Indo-European mythological systems, including that of the Norse system more widely, and specifically to Germanic mythological systems. Dumézil published his newly revised system in two works, Mitra-Varuna (1940)15 and Jupiter, Mars & Quirinus (1941)16. In these works, he postulated three points, or functions of the gods: 1) Maintenance of cosmic power by the gods 2) The exercise of physical prowess of the gods 3) The promotion of physical-wellbeing by the gods Georges Dumézil pioneered a new way of thinking about the Norse religious system, originally insisting that his tripartite system of gods was reflected in the social classes of Norse society. Twenty years later, however, he rescinded this claim. His basic premise was to group various deities in trios, to complement his tripartite function-related system. This meant the application of tripartism across the two groups of the Æsir and the Vanir, assimilated early on in the mythological timeframe. These two groups used to be at war with one another, until they exchanged hostages and assimilated into one group of gods. 13 Littleton, C. Scott, Introduction in Dumézil “Gods of the Ancient Northmen”, California: University of California Press, 1973 p.xi 14 Ibid. p. x 15 Dumézil, Georges, Mitra-Varuna. Presses Universitaires de France, 1940 16 Dumézil, Georges, Jupiter, Mars & Quirinus. Gallimard, 1941 1562734 Dumézil offers a unique way to understand Norse religion, positioning several key figures as a triad in his tripartite model17. For example, Óðinn, the chief of the gods, fulfills the role of maintaining cosmic power as a skilled magician. Þórr is positioned in the warrior class through the exercise of physical prowess. Njǫrð, with his son Frey, serve as the linkage to the third function, which is the promotion of physical well-being among the lowest classes. Within this tripartite construction, gods of the Æsir are held to be more significant than the Vanir. The three gods most often utilised by Dumézil in this model are Óðinn, Þórr and Frey, although occasionally Njǫrð is swapped out for Freyr or his sister Freyja is placed in this position18. Dumézil was inspired by the three figurines reported by Medieval chronicler Adam of Bremen in his description of the temple at Uppsala, Sweden. Trios are often found in various Norse myths, however, as I will demonstrate, duos also make an appearance, such as Þórr and Loki who travel together on adventures. In Þórsdrápr,19 for example, Loki clings to Þórr´s belt as they cross a river together, demonstrating Thor’s strength and showcasing that the gods often rely on one another to carry out their adventures. My aim in this thesis is therefore to understand if and how Loki fits within the Dumézilian model. I draw on the work of Frakes, who attempts to reconcile the position of Loki in the Dumézil system. Dumèzil argues that triads are central to understanding Norse mythology because they link the myths to an Indo-European origin20 . He also states that this system is recreated across society within three stages, or castes, likening these to the Indic three-level caste system of Medieval India: The varn.a, brāhmana (priests) The ks.atriya (warriors) The vai´sya (breeder-farmers) In this sense, Dumezil is wanting to show that Germanic myth and religion has a tripartite system that can be traced back to Indo-European myth and religion. He bases his argument on the etymological links between languages and the comparative nature of the myths themselves despite their di- 17 Dumézil, Georges, Gods of the Ancient Northmen. Ed. Einar Haugen. Eng Ed. University of California Press, 1973 p.4 18 Ibid. P.4 19 Davidson, Hilda E., The Lost Beliefs of Northern Europe. Routledge, 2001 p. 80 20 Ibid. P.15 1562734 versity. For instance, Dumèzil creates a further schematic, drawing comparisons between Norse and Indic gods:21 1) Mitra and Varun.a, the two sovereign gods 2) Ind(a)ra, that who represents war and strength 3) The Nāsatya, or Ásvin, twin gods representing youth, fertility, happiness and health This three-tiered pantheon aligns the Indo-European origins with Norse theology. In this argument, Dumézil organises deities into three groups, usually Óðinn Þórr and Freyr. Óðinn is linked to Mitra, Þórr to Ind(a)ra, and Freyr to Nāsatya, or Ásvin. Dumézil assigns the second twin position to the father of Freyr, Njǫrð. This father-son combination changes the way this schematic plays out in the importance of the Vanir gods amongst the Æsir, utilising an older idea from Max Müller’s “solar theology”22 whereby these gods are demarcated as fertility agriculture deities. Dumezil argues that Norse myth is connected to Indic myth, so we can see connections between the gods and how they are organized in the pantheon (the functions they serve, etc). More rarely, the second twin or Mitra is likened by Dumézil to Freyr’s sister Freyja. Dumézil argues that the identities of these Norse deities have been influenced by Zoroastrian Indo-Iranian, Indo-European traditions23, then becoming through time the caste class system of Indic Medieval period. Dumézil is using this structuralist system to understand how the Germanic, Norse, religious systems operated in form and function. Dumézil postulates that the three-tiered system of gods reflects that of the society, calling upon Vedic examples to demonstrate this comparatively; he notes the differences in status between the Brahmins (priests) and the ks.atriya (farmers-masses), and how this caste system is reflected in the Indic deity pantheon. Dumézil applies this notion of a caste system to the Norse gods, whom he splits into different social classes. Here then, if we can match Loki into this system, we will see how they were understood to inform the social fabric of Norse society. I will argue that Loki’s major role was to embody social queerness in the Viking-Age. 21 Ibid. P.16 22 Müller, Max., (1929) “Solar Theology”. Gifford Lectures of 1888-1892 (Collected Works, vols. 1-4) 23 Dumézil, Georges, Gods of the Ancient Northmen. Ed. Einar Haugen. Eng Ed. University of California Press, 1973 pp.16-17 1562734 However, in Dumézil´s system, Loki is not considered a major god and is relegated under minor divinities in the pantheon, alongside Baldur and Heimdall. Loki and Heimdall fight to the death at the onset of Ragnarǫk, and according to Icelandic historian Snorri, they take the form of seals24 . This fight illuminates some important themes and will be discussed later. The prime example for the nature of Loki rests in the myth of the death of Baldur, and in Lokasenna. Loki sits within Dumézil’s third-level structure alongside Freyja, whose role is similarly downplayed, despite the fact that her actions in various myths serve as a springboard for many of Loki’s actions, which drive towards their fulfilling the destiny of Ragnarǫk. These ideas about Loki from Dumézil’s texts may have had their origin in the Migration Period (350-700CE). In the Migration Period we possibly see a merger of ideas and concepts in the form of oral history, whereby some ideas about the gods and their stories arose from the assimilation of the indigenous population and the incoming Indo-Europeans. This may be why in the Baldur death saga, Baldurs draumar, we see parallels with the myths of the Mahābhārata. The demon Duryodhana bears some similarities to Loki in this myth, and there are also comparisons to be drawn between Hœdor and Dhr.tarās.t.a, both of whom are blind, and who defeat the seemingly invincible figures of Baldur and Yudhis.t.h.ira respectively. Dumézil’s comparative readings of Indic and Norse mythology help us to understand the nature of Loki and how Loki fits within the pantheon of Norse gods. Loki is, in essence, an agent of chaos. This force of chaos can be found within other mythologies, which will be explored later. Nevertheless, Dumézil has not reconciled what I consider to be the most important part that Loki plays in Norse mythology: that is, his duality with Óðinn. Following Dumézil, I will use a comparative approach to explore the function of Norse gods, particularly Loki, in Norse society. However, I will propose a model of duality for the Norse pantheon. While I agree with Dumézil that Norse mythology reflects cultural and religious life in ancient Norse society,25 I will attempt to modify his tripartite model to reflect the innate duality of the god Loki. Dumézil explains that an independent Germanic system of mythology originated out of an Indo-European structure. The separation of deities into classes puts forth an independent class, the “Konr 24 Martin, John S., Ragnarǫk: An Investigation into Old Norse concepts of the fate of the gods. Royal VanGorcum Ltd., 1972 p. 81 25 Ibid. p. 125 1562734 ungr” which takes on the aspects of magic and war. Dumézi posits that under the Indo-European system, magic and war were understood to be utilised differently across social classes of the gods26 . This is also seen in the mythological system of the Egyptian gods Seth and Horus. Seth is not considered eligible for office of kingship as Horus is, but is still needed alongside the king in order to control the personified forces of chaos27. The king takes on the office of kingship, under the wings of Horus, to preserve the unity of the state and rein in the forces of chaos. Seth fulfils this second obligation for the king. Dumézil, as noted by Littleton, is trying to reconstruct past Indo-European society based on the three functions28 operating towards a comparative mythological model. Yet this model leads to a lot of the gods in the pantheon of Germanic and Norse religion being relegated to minor or insignificant positions. To summarize then, Dumézil’s model of Norse mythology assigns a social class to each god – priests, warriors and the masses (farmers, mostly). I agree with this typology, although it does not always attribute major roles to other deities who may have had a cult following. Dumézil does identify Loki as a primary god but offers little detail about the substance which makes Loki “counted amongst the Æsir”. This is the pitfall of the Dumézil model with regard to his understanding of major Norse deities. I therefore turn to the work of Frakes, who offers a more detailed exploration of Loki. Frakes First, let me explain how Frakes develops the Dumézil model to understand Norse religion. Frakes presents Loki as being ambiguous in nature29 . He sets out to place Loki inside Dumézil’s threetiered model30 , but argues that in order to include Loki in the system, Dumézil’s model has to be radically modified. Frakes suggests that Dumézil has utilised a Frazerian model of analysis, which means the traditional concept of comparing mythology across different cultures, but this model is 26 Ibid. p. 125 27 Te Vilde H., Seth, God of confusion: a study of his role in Egyptian mythology and religion. Brill Publishing, 1967 28 Littleton, C.Scott, “The New Comparative Mythology: An Anthropological Assessment of the Theories of Georges Dumézil”. 3rd Ed. University of California Press, 1982 p.89 29 Frakes, Jerald C., “Loki´s Mythological Function in the Tripartite System” (Lokasenna). The Poetic Edda: Essays on Old Norse Mythology. Ed. Paul Acker & Carolyne Larrington. Routledge Publishing, 2002 p.162 30 Ibid. p.163 1562734 now considered outdated31. Frakes argues that Loki plays a marginal role in the mythology32, and therefore exists marginally in the mythological system. Loki plays an adjunct role amongst the main gods, “he is external to the system but is essential to its function, and thus it is as mediator between the outside and inside”33. Frakes suggests that Loki takes on the negative aspects of Óðinn´s functional tasks; Loki thus resembles the opposite of Óðinn in this system. Frakes furthermore states that Loki subverts the three functions represented by the Dumézil model (priestly countenance, justice and fertility) by attacking the character of other gods in the myth of the Lokasenna34. In this myth, Loki stands in the hall of one of the other Ásgarð deities, and points out all the flaws of the gods as caricature. In doing so, Loki fulfils their role as opposition to the functions of the gods in the Dumézil model. Also, according to Frakes, Loki subverts through actions and words the divine function of fertility, for example when they transform into a mare to woo Svaðilfœri the stallion. This opposes the divine functionality of the fertility gods, and in doing so they take this function over in a queer, and oftentimes sexual way. Here, Loki embodies the queerness of their actions, which plays out in their numerous “trickster” actions, a quality noted for this god, to which I will return. In the selections of myth in the Skáldskarpamál, there is one myth about the weapons of the gods. Loki is responsible for equipping the gods with their instruments35 such as Mjöllnir, the hammer of Þórr, and Freyja’s necklace known as the Brisingàmen. Loki is therefore responsible for equipping the other gods so that they can perform the functions ascribed to them in the mythic system. Yet this gives Loki opportunities to subvert the norms of the system. According to Frakes, Loki does not belong within the three categories outlined by Dumézil. Indeed, Frakes suggests that Loki is at their most subversive when Baldur dies, as Baldur embodies all three functions of the Dumézil model : 1) The wisest of the gods 2) The most courageous in martial skill 31 Ibid, p.163 32 Ibid, p.165 33 Ibid, p.165 34 Ibid, p.168 35 Ibid, p.170 1562734 3) The fairest of the gods By being complicit in Baldur’s death, Loki ensures that each of the other main gods are challenged in their functional role by Baldur’s death, as Baldur had embodied all their various functions, providing an image of a three-in-one role. In this way, Loki creates a compelling marginality of the centre, whereby, as Frakes suggests, they represent the anti-functionary, who “mediates between them [the worlds] in both a positive and negative sense, but he belongs to neither”36. In agreement with Frakes, I would argue that Loki does indeed belong in the system, because they are counted amongst all the gods, and are the blood-brother to Óðinn. Loki therefore, to quote Frakes, “represents the classic bind characteristic of sociological tension between the center and margin”37 . At this point, my interpretation must come to light. An alternative interpretation In his discussion of Norse mythology, Frakes is attempting to marry sociological conceptions of space and groupings, similar to anthropological “nodes and communities”. In sociological terms space is likened to a network of connections, forming groups of information or of people. I agree with his suggestion that Loki can inhabit both centre and margin. I further suggest that Loki does inhabit both spaces as Frakes suggests but as part of their duality with Óðinn. I agree with Ström who puts forward the idea that Loki is a hypostasis of Óðinn38, and also Haugen39, who indicates that Loki represents a binary opposition against Óðinn. This is in part due to Loki being “blood brothers” with Óðinn. Loki, in my analysis, represents a key position in the Norse pantheon. In the Dumézil example of Vedic Mitra and Varun.a, a contrast is created in the juxtaposition of dual sovereigns. This is the first tier accorded to the Tripartite system, where “the inner natures of the gods are clearly contrasted with one another”40. Could this also be applied to the relationship, or duality, of Óðinn and 36 Ibid, p. 171 37 Ibid, p. 171 38 Ström, Folke, “Loki: Ein mythologisches Problem”, Göteborg Universitets Årsskrift 52.8. Elanders, 1956 p.85 39 Haugen, Einar, “The Mythical Structure of the Ancient Scandinavians: Some Thoughts of Reading Dumézil”, in To Honor Roman Jakobson, Jauna Linguarium, series maior, 32. Mouton, 1967 p.863 40 Ibid. p. 39 1562734 Loki? Both are diametrically opposed in natures. Both can indeed shape-shift, but differently from one another. Óðinn would send his consciousness out as other creatures, leaving his body lying somewhere as he “travelled”. Loki on the other hand physically changes gender and form. Both are deemed necessary by the other gods, the Æsir and Vanir, Óðinn being king or highest chief and Loki solving all of their problems (if these problems were not started by Loki in the first instance, of course) time and time again. They are “blood-brothers”, sealing the duality between the two. One is a god of poetry and war, the other skilled in oratory and craftiness. Both are cunning, in physicality and sexually, both of them wittingly gaining what they need through trickery and enigmatic imagery. Surely, then, Loki deserves a greater role in the Norse pantheon than what they are granted by most scholars. Loki becomes their own independent character in matters of preserving the gods when mischief is afoot. Specifically, Loki performs a dual function of both subverting and enabling the other gods’ functions. Their enabling role is illustrated by their recollection of gifts they have given other gods: Iðunn´s golden apples of youth; Óðinn´s spear Grungnir; Mjöllnir given to Þórr in Þrymskviða; the forging of the gods’ weapons in Skáldskarpamál such as Freyja’s Brisingámen necklace; the Skiðblatnír ship for Frey which can be folded up and stowed in your pocket. Each of these gifts allows the gods to function in their given roles and empowers their identity. Therefore, their identities are created by Loki, owing to the specialised function of their equipment – especially Óðinn´s spear Grungnir – each becoming integral to the nature of the god in recognising who they are. Loki proves again that they are central to the mythology and Norse religious system, by being a trickster who subverts the functions of the gods, but also enables the gods to perform their roles, as Frakes41 insists. Some sagas and poems also capture the essence of the trickster god, such as the Saga of the Volsungs42 . In this saga, Loki kills Ottr with a rock, as Ottr takes on the form of an otter during the day. Unknown to Óðinn, Hœnir and Loki, Ottr was the brother of Andvari and Fafnir (a dragon)43 . Hreidmar, on the death of Ottr, issues a challenge to fill the skin up with gold.44 Ottr is then skinned, to be filled with the gold required as ransom for his death. Loki, who had killed Ottr, manages 41 Frakes, Jerald C., “Loki´s Mythological Function in the Tripartite System” (Lokasenna). The Poetic Edda: Essays on Old Norse Mythology. Ed. Paul Acker & Carolyne Larrington. Routeledge Publishing, 2002 p. 192 42 Byock, Jesse, (Trans.) The Saga of the Volsungs: The Norse Epic of Sigurd the Dragon-Slayer. University of California Press, 2012 pp. 57-59 43 Ibid., p. 57 44 Ibid., p. 59 1562734 to collect all the gold by catching Andvari, who transforms into a pike. Loki needed to capture Andvari because he dispenses gold via riddles. Loki then, manages to repay Hreidmar for the death of his son, and because the gold was collected in the skin, it was named Ottr´s Ransom. This simple story demonstrates how Loki can create problems, but then is often the one charged with solving them - in their trickster capacity, they service the gods’ desires even when Loki receives no direct benefit from doing so. At other times these challenges benefit both the other gods and Loki45 such as when Loki gets back the golden apples of Iðunn giving the gods immortality again, after Loki bargained the apples away to a giant who had captured them. It is this bargaining and slyness which Loki is often known for, but we can also see how Loki´s nature is different from that of the other gods. Other scholars have also attempted to position Loki as a lesser character, such as De Vries who states that Loki is an “ganz eine Satanische Gestalt” (a wholly Satanic character)46. Likewise, Anne Holtsmark47 diminishes Loki by suggesting they are a simple court jester character. I contend that Loki is in fact a pivotal character in the pantheon, who sets up the destiny which follows the gods in their exploits. These scholars limit the extent to which Loki inhabits the worlds of the gods, and their central role in claiming destiny in the events leading up to, and during, Ragnarǫk. Loki, in all intent and purpose can and does fulfil the requirements of being a major god. For instance, Loki is always accompanying the main gods, particularly Þórr; Loki engineers the decisive weaponry and accoutrements of the gods; and, as Frakes states, Loki inverts the collective system. I would also add that Loki in their duality achieves the destined end of their role and function - that of Ragnarǫk. This is an impressive god who stands out above several figures in the mythology and it is to this end that we must contemplate the most sacred of roles they perform in this fulfilment. We come to the most important þættr (episode) regarding the god Loki, that is the death of Baldur. Baldur is the son of Óðinn, and is the handsomest of the gods, with blond flowing hair. He is also very fair and just, often portrayed as being the most righteous of the gods. Baldur is also impervious to weapons of any kind, including rocks and stones. This is because the goddess Frigg got every inanimate object to swear that they would not hurt Baldur. This was done to all objects except one 45 Dronke, Ursula, Myth and Fiction in Early Norse Lands. Variorum, 1996 p. 13 46 De Vries, Jan, “Altgermanische Religionsgeschichte, II”. Walter de Gruyter & Co., 1957 p.262 47 Holstmark, Anne, “Norrøn mytologi: Tro og myter i Vikingtiden”. Det Norske Samlaget, 1976 p.155 1562734 small plant, the mistletoe. Loki uses this to their advantage in order to bring about Baldur’s death, but I argue that they recognise their role in this event is for a greater purpose, rather than one performed out of malice. They therefore conspire to set in motion the Twilight of the Gods, Ragnarǫk. Ragnarǫk is a necessary destiny for the gods, which Loki enables. To do this, Loki needed to learn the weakness of Baldur and so disguises themselves as a woman to ask Frigg about Baldur’s invulnerability. Frigg lets slip that she did not ask the mistletoe because it was only a very young plant at the time. Thus, Loki gains knowledge of what will kill Baldur. The gods would usually play a game when gathered for the Thing (meeting) whereby they would throw various weapons and items at Baldur and watch them bounce off his body, not harming him. As this game was being played, Loki approached the blind god Hœdor who normally would not play this game as he could not see Baldur. Loki whispered to him that he should throw something at Baldur (unknown to Hœdor, this was mistletoe), and pointed the god in the right direction so he could participate in the game. Hœdor then unwittingly throws the mistletoe at Baldur and it pierces his body, killing him48. Baldur is given a proper funeral, atop a pyre, where Óðinn whispers a secret into the ear of his dead son. Baldur is now in Niflheim, the realm of the goddess Hel, a daughter of Loki. To try and revive his son, Óðinn visits Hel in Niflheim who rules over the dead who die outside of battle49. Hel will only relinquish Baldur if everything of the world weeps for him, all the stones trees and creatures. All do so except one, an old giantess - who is none other than Loki transformed - and in doing so, denies the return of Baldur to the living (until Ragnarok passes). As this commenced, the gods soon learn of the trick that Loki has played, therefore Óðinn and the other gods bind Loki up in chains or snakes in a cave50 , (note Fig. above, bound Loki) leaving them to be dripped upon by poison oozing from the rock above their head51 . This is reminiscent of Loki visiting the giant Utgardr-Loki, who is also bound under- 48 Snorri Sturlason. Poems of the Elder Edda. Terry, Patricia, (trans), Revised edition. University of Pennsylvania Press, 1990 pp. 241-244 49 Óðinn and Freyja take half each of those slain during war, or in skirmishes. They each claim for their halls back in Ásgarð. 50 Snorri Sturluson. (Trans.) Young, Jean, The Prose Edda of Snorri Sturluson: Tales From Norse Mythology. Bowes and Bowes, 1954 p. 85 51 Snorri Sturlarson, Gylfaginning (Edda & Prologue), presented by A. Faulkes. The Death of Baldur. Clarenton Press, 1985 1562734 ground in chains52 . Perhaps this is Loki visiting their mythic-future self. As this myth unfolds, Loki has already committed the acts of the Lokasenna where he jokes at the other gods´ expense. This myth then follows in a chronology of myths, the beginning of Ragnarǫk. In doing so, I would argue that Loki realises their mythic destiny in ushering in Ragnarǫk, and thereby fulfils their sacred position as controller of chaos. An alternative consequence of the Lokasenna is that Loki is bound by the intestines of their son Narfi53 . Loki is bound as a consequence of the Lokasenna. The additional comments of Loki being bound in a cave is attested in Vǫluspá amongst other poems such as Gylfaginning and Hauksbók54 . Olrik compares Loki to a chain-bound monster, blaming Loki for the beginnings of Ragnarǫk, and likens them to Prometheus of the Greek tradition55 . This is shown in mythic relief work on the Gosforth Cross monument (see above, credits to Jónsson). This occurs after the death of Baldur in the mythic chronology. The events surrounding the death of Baldur is mentioned by Dumézil to reflect another Indo-European myth, the Mahābhārata56 . What makes the Baldur myth relevant to us is not only that it demonstrates the significance of Loki’s trickery, but also shows how Loki again changes gender, on no less than two occasions. This is unlike the god Óðinn who changes form into various creatures whilst retaining his gender identity as male. Loki has no qualms about changing gender and could be perceived as being gender-fluid in nature. They change form into an old lady, and a giantess, freely abandoning a fixed gender role in these instances, and champions the idea of gender-fluidity in form. This ties in with the Þrymskviða or “Lay of Thrym”. In this myth, the hammer of Þórr, Mjöllnir, has been taken by the giant Þrym. Loki is sent to gather it for Þórr as is usually the role of Loki to solve the problems of the gods. Loki reports after a brief visit to Þrym that to get the hammer back the giant would have to be married to the goddess Freyja, although in reality the giant was putting on a ruse to gain Freyja and the hammer. This of course will not do, as Freyja is the most beautiful of all the Æsir. A plan is formed to dress Þórr up as Freyja in bridal costume, and Loki immediately suggests that they go along too as a bridesmaid. Loki and Þórr are so convincing that 52 Lindow, John, Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs. Oxford University Press, 2002 p. 302 53 Terry, Patricia, “Lokasenna” in Poems of the Elder Edda. Philadelphia University Press, 1990 p.83 54 Lindow, John, “Myth and Mythography” In Old Norse-Icelandic Literature: A Critical Guide Ed. John Lindow and Clover, Carol J., University of Toronto Press, 2005 p. 31 55 Olrik, A., Der gefangene Riese im Kaukasus. Germany, 1922 pp. 133-276 56 Dumézil, Georges, Gods of the Ancient Northmen. Ed. Einar Haugen. Eng Ed. University of California Press, 1973 p.64 1562734 as they went to the ceremony the hammer was brought out and Þórr could once again claim it, at which point he kills Þrym and his followers57. Here, Loki presumes a female identity immediately, whereas for Þórr he had to be convinced. This willing gender fluidity of Loki stands in stark contrast to the hyper-masculinity of Þórr. Also mentioned in the Þrymskviða, Loki is referred to as “Laufey´s son” (18,20)58, a familial title. Here we see another side of the trickster god. Loki ‘s father Fárbauti was a giant and his mother was a woman from Asgard named Laufey or Nál59.This is immortalised in the words of Gylfaginning: “Loki eða Loptr, sonr Fárbauta jǫtuns. Móðir hans er Laufey eða Nál”60 . Loki, or Loptr, son of the giant Fár bauta. His mother is Laufey, or Nál. At times, Loki seems to be confirming gender and sexual binaries by having (female) wives and creating three monster offspring by the ogress Angrboda: the Midgard Serpent (Jǫrmungandr), Fenris the giant wolf, and Hel ruler of the underworld at Niflheim. Loki also has two sons by their wife Sigryn named Nari and Narfi, none of whom seem to be mentioned during Ragnarǫk, curiously. The sons of Þórr, however, are mentioned and reclaim their father´s mighty hammer after the end of days, in a renewal event. At this event we are reminded that Loki has already killed Baldur as mentioned in Baldrs draumar 61, and now must lead into the Lokasenna for their final act before the destiny in Ragnarǫk – Loki as an instigator of chaos rebalances the cosmos. Dumézil mentions that because Loki does not have a cult, or various places named after them, such as Þórr might have, they do not have a function62 within the tripartite system. This is not so. Various other deities in the pantheon do not have places named after them, or visible signs of cultic activity. For instance, the goddess Jǫrd has a sacred site mentioned in the poems, but is not a central actor in 57 Snorri Sturlason Poems of the Elder Edda. Terry, Patricia, (trans), Revised edition. University of Pennsylvania Press, 1990 pp.85- 89 58 Terry, Patricia, “The Lay of Thrym” in Poems of the Elder Edda. Philadelphia University Press, 1990 p. 87 59 Lindow, John, Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs.Oxford University Press, 2002 p. 216 60 Snorri Sturlason, Prologue and Gylfaginning ed. trans. Anthony Faulkes. Clarendon Press, 1989 p.26 (33.35) 61 Terry, Patricia, “Baldrs draumar” stanzas 8-10 in Poems of the Elder Edda. Philadelphia University Press, 1990 p. 242 62 Dumézil, Georges, Loki, Les Dieux et les hommes, 1. G.P. Maissonnouve, 1948 1562734 the death of Baldur, which is considered arguably to be one of the most important myths in the pantheon of Germanic and Norse religion. Davidson attests that there are but three deities actively worshipped in a cult: Óðinn, Þórr and Freyr. Others, including Loki, appear cult-less, going by the lack of reference to their worship in the body of literature that survives. Therefore, the idea of others not having cults is only circumstantial due to our lack of available source evidence. Loki could indeed have had a cult just as Freyja almost certainly did,63 yet the real importance of having a cult is not an important factor in whether a god was important or not. Loki has been shown as an important figure in the mythology, and yet no evidence appears of a cult. There perhaps is no real need for a physical cult if a god’s status went beyond requiring a place of worship; this further attests to Loki’s fluidity – they are not pinned down to one place or space in terms of worship. Monuments attest to the myths of Loki. For instance, on the Gosforth Cross, Cumbria (note fig. above)64 Loki is shown in one scene bound and with the poison dripping upon them. As Davidson points out this myth is attested in the written literature of Gylfaginning, stanza 51.5-10 “—ok urðu þau bǫnd at járni”65 — and these bonds became iron. In the myths associated with Loki, oftentimes geographic details are presented on the various trips that Loki makes with other gods. This is important as it consolidates the Norse worldview, showing how the gods interact with their societies, and in particular how Loki is viewed as being counted amongst the Æsir. Geographically, Loki is bound in chains nearby to the river Sliðr (Fearful)66 , which Saxo Grammaticus suggested contained weapons67. In the myth of Vǫluspá68 we get a brief glimpse into the pain of Loki bounded in the cave, during stanza 34 “Hapt sá hón liggia undir Hveralundi, lægiarn liki Loka ápþekkian” 63 McKinnell, John, “Some Basic Considerations” In Both One and Many: Essays on Change and Variety in Late Norse Heathe- nism. Philologia, 1994 p. 1 64 Davidson, Hilda E., Lost Beliefs of Northern Europe. Routledge Publishing, 2001 p. 50 65 Snorri Sturlason, Prologue and Gylfaginning ed. trans. Anthony. Faulkes. Clarendon Press, 1982 p. 49 66 Ibid., p. 67 67 Davidson, Hilda E., “Commentary on Saxo Grammaticus”, History of the Danes I-IX (vol.2). Woolbridge, 1980 68 Jónsson, Finnur, Sæmundr Edda: Eddukvæði. Vǫluspá Stanza 34 Prentsmiðja D. Östlunds, 1905 p.11 1562734 A captive she saw lying under Cauldron´s Grove, in the shape of malignant Loki, unmistakable.69 This is important because it demonstrates the pain Loki is willing to endure as a consequence of meeting their destiny. What came as a footnote to the poem Lokasenna70 attests that Loki is bound under a poisonous snake from which their wife Sigyn captures the poison in a bowl. When Sigyn goes to empty the bowl Loki writhes in the form of earthquakes. This scene is related to ideas of Utgard-Loki being a Prometheus character in Greek mythology, Prometheus who gave fire to humanity, Loki instead gives a renewal of the world. The geographic details provided in these myths help consolidate the Norse worldview. The people could visualise where these places were, and attest to their place name or function when they saw fit to ‘find’ these sacred places. For example, the idea of a bound god is attested across other cultural identities such as the Greek myth of Prometheus, and the writhing of a bounded Loki creating earthquakes may have originated from south-Eastern Europe71 in the Caucasus mountains, where Prometheus was held - Loki in this guise as Utgard-Loki may have then been transmitted through oral histories by the Greeks or perhaps even from merchants. Therefore, areas of myth locations would hold a special meaning to the society, and so the location of Loki being bound would be an important aspect of the myth. Geography then, consolidates the Norse worldview. It is in this consolidation of the Norse worldview that we can begin to fully understand the nature of Loki. In relation to Frakes, we need to understand the binary conception of a duality. Here two opposing representatives make up the balancing of chaos and good, although as we know being chaotic is not necessarily considered to be evil as such, but a challenge to the system. According to De Vries, Loki does not willingly engage in actions that will benefit the gods, but is instead forced to do so72 . I would argue that Loki is the only one who could solve the problems of the gods and therefore is again counted amongst them for their very purpose in solving problems, whether Loki crea- 69 Snorri Sturlason. Dronke, Ursula, (Trans.) The Poetic Edda: Volume II Mythological Poems. Clarendon Press, 1997 p. 16 70 Lindow, John, Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs. Oxford University Press, 2001 p. 213 71 Davidson, Hilda E., The Viking Road to Byzantium. Routledge Publishing, 1976 p. 313 ff 72 De Vries, Jan, Loki…Und kein Ende. In Festschrift für Franz Rolf Shcröder zu seinem 65. Geburtstage, ed. Wolfdietrich Rasch, 1959 p. 9 1562734 tes these problems or not, that it is part of their role in the system of mythology. Loki does not conform to one form or function, but instead queers both of these aspects, while being fluid in that they create and solve problems. Interestingly, Schjødt further likens Loki to a god “who either was inspired by Christianity or was a product of the conceptions and fantasy of late pagan poets”.73 Owing to the lack of sources we have and the difficulty in relying on them, it is impossible to determine which of these options is correct. Schjødt74 seeks to identify Loki as a degenerative quality of mythological life, moving from the helper of the gods to their chief antagonist. In doing so, Loki is showing the inevitable journey towards Ragnarǫk. I would agree that Loki is indeed the gods’ helper, but serves as an antagonist in order to fulfil destiny, and thus serves in their role as a duality of the system. Like Frakes, I would argue that Loki disrupts the mythological system and takes on the three functional qualities put forward by Georges Dumézil, all the while subverting them. By doing so, Loki is enacting the path toward Ragnarǫk in mythic future tense. It is by Loki´s hand that the functions of the gods are attacked, and by killing Baldur, Loki has put in motion the sequence of Ragnarǫk as stated in the preChristian myth Vǫluspá. This myth depicts a seeress, the Vǫlva, recounting her sacred knowledge after being called up by Óðinn to learn more wisdom. The wisdom she speaks of is in many of the myths already mentioned here within the poem, ending in an account of Ragnarǫk. It is a detailed account of all the events associated with Ragnarǫk, including Loki steering the ship laden with differing evils to fight the gods75 . It is this precise action that Loki allows to happen and in fact takes control of, which highlights their ultimate destiny - to bring about the destruction of order, and to rebalance the cosmos. Loki’s attack in the pre-Christian myth Lokasenna therefore shows how the gods have become lazy, incompetent and shirking their responsibilities as functionaries to the system. It is through this timeline that Loki is bound and left to have poison drip onto their body, showing the suffering they need to endure in order to meet their destiny. The final section of Ragnarǫk is the rebirth of the world, with humans Ask and Embla emerging from the Yggdrásil tree to repopulate the earth. Baldur also returns from Hel, resurrected in an almost Christ-like fashion. This is the destiny that Loki instiga- 73 Schødt, Jens .P., “Om Loke endnu engang” ANF 96:49-86:49, 1981 74 Ibid, pp.80-84 75 Ibid. p. 6 1562734 tes, a re-emergence of order from the bounds of chaos, and it is only Loki who could produce this; no other god, save for Heimdall, could do so. Heimdall is mentioned only because he embodies all three functions as Baldur does, and fittingly, he comes to his death by combatting Loki who also dies in this fight during Ragnarǫk. The duality with Óðinn and now Heimdall here is astounding. Heimdall and Loki are both opposites to each other in function and form, ending their respective lives going up against one another. Interestingly, in the Hauksbók version of the poem, the emphasis is placed on warfare as the cause of Ragnarǫk, rather than through the death of Baldur.76 The pre-Christian myth of Loki and Iðunn with her golden apples also clearly demonstrates the nature of the god as a charming and intelligent trickster. There are two accounts of this myth, an incomplete version in Haustlǫng, and the more in-depth treatment of Skáldskarpamál by Snorri Sturluson, writing in the 13th Century CE. The story goes that Óðinn, Loki and Hœnir grew hungry on a trip, and so took a cow from a nearby farm. It was not cooking on the fire as they expected it to, and so an eagle sitting atop a tree offered to cook the meat in exchange for a share in the portions left. The meat was cooking along when the eagle took off with most of the meat! Loki seeing this, grabbed a stick to try and retake the carcass and instead was found to be stuck in the meat from the stick he whacked it with. Now flying under the eagle high above the clouds, the eagle revealed his identity as Thjazi, a giant king, who was not going to let Loki go unless they bargained for something. Loki grew wise to this and agreed to deliver Iðunn to his home, with the golden apples of immortality. Returned to Ásgarð, Loki lured the innocent Iðunn out of the hall, at which point Thjazi, waiting as an eagle, scooped her up in his claws and carried her off. Soon after this, the gods noticed something was wrong, they were each aging with wrinkles and immediately saw the guilt Loki was carrying. A heated debate occurred and Loki was threatened with death unless they manage to return Iðunn and her apples. Loki borrowed the feather-cloak of Freyja, transforming themselves into a falcon, and then went flying off to Jotunheim the home of the Jotun, or giants. Loki then transformed Iðunn into a nut (maybe an acorn), and carried her under their wings back to Ásgarð. The gods back at Ásgarð had created a bonfire in which Thjazi, when chasing Loki back home, singed his wings as Loki swept and flipped in and out of danger. The singeing of Thjazi´s wings meant he fell into Asgard, flightless. The gods took this opportunity to kill the giant, now that Iðunn was safely back. 76 Lindow, John, “Mythology and Mythography” in Ed. Carol J. Clover and John Lindow. Old Norse-Icelandic Literature: A Critical Guide. University of Toronto Press, 2005 p. 31 1562734 This myth shows the nature of Loki as not just a trickster, but a trickster who is intelligent, charming and intuitive. It also showcases Loki’s heroism. This can be seen in the rescuing of Iðunn, something that Loki was adamant to do after experiencing guilt for sending her away, otherwise they too would have perished due to the loss of Iðunn’s apples of immortality. This myth also shows Loki and Óðinn moving around homes accompanied by a third figure (in this case, Hœnir). This trio pattern is repeated in many of the myths of Loki and Þórr, pushing against the argument that presupposed Óðinn Þórr and Freyr as the three tri-partite gods of the system. Here we see Loki being included in this system of trios in ways that at times benefit the gods – such as giving them their equipment and weaponry which hone their identities – or potentially harm the gods – such as when Loki lets Thjazi take Iðunn and her golden apples. This shows us the full complexity of the character of Loki, and in doing so paints a picture that is far more complex than the title “trickster god”. Instead, Loki is shown to express different behaviours and emotions, such as fear, guilt, and bravery, and to behave with both and honour and dishonour in relation to the other gods, who at times threaten Loki with death. Another feature of the adventures Loki performs is highlighted by Jacob Grimm, who likens Loki to the elemental position of fire77 and compares them to the god Hephæstus of Greek mythology. Both are extricated from the group of gods, and both are chained up, as is Loki´s son Fenrir78. This is also linked to the myth of Utgardr-Loki which features an eating contest in which the god Loki is pitted against the elemental fire of Logi, who of course beats Loki in the actual competition. Loki is related to the element of fire due to them being a brother of Hlêr (water) and Kari (air), to which this Logi (fire) is a third brother. This trio allows us to understand Loki as potentially relating to the Asgardians whilst existing as a separate entity. Grimm79 also makes sense of the blood-brothership, locating the name of Óðinn as perhaps being related etymologically to the words ôð (sense) and önd (breath and spirit)80. This means that as elements, Loki and Óðinn could be related, due to the ele- 77 Grimm, Jakob, Teutonic Mythology, Loki Grendel Saturn. Trans. J.S. Stallybrass 4th Ed. New York: Dover Publications Ltd., 1989 p. 241 78 Ibid, p. 241 79 Ibid, p. 242 80 Ibid, p. 242 1562734 mental nature of the name Óðinn and the relation of Loki as the fire element. But what do other scholars say about the nature of Loki? McKinnell’s thesis appears to substantiate my own, utilising the Claude Lévi-Strauss theorem of mythology: a strictly contemporary witness to social conditions at the time of preservation81 . According to McKinnell, myths are created by binary oppositions to social settings - such as good versus evil, Æsir versus Jótunn. According to Lévi-Strauss these mediators, or oppositions, can take on multiple oppositions that can lead to an even deeper understanding of a particular mediator82 . Moreover, all the oppositions will ultimately reflect one central binary opposition. McKinnell contends that the basic binary opposition is between civilisation and chaos, embodied by the gods and the forces of Ragnarǫk. Loki is regarded in this system as being both a destabilising influence in the universe and a heroic saving character83. This suggests that Loki is a balancer of order and chaos, and McKinnell suggests that Loki balances these forces precariously84. This is similar to my own view except I propose that Loki is part of a duality system with Óðinn, accepting their blood brother relationship, and that Loki is counted amongst the Æsir. With this in mind, binary oppositions can play a role in any duality, but in this case, it is complicated by the nature of the god Loki and their role in perpetuating the destiny that is Ragnarǫk. Loki is not necessarily on the side of good or evil; they operate, as Frakes mentions, in a way that is both inside and outside the system. The position of Loki inside and outside the system is touched upon by Margaret Clunies Ross. She uses the LéviStraussian model to explain early Scandinavian thought85 to which “the mythic world encodes” social norms and behaviours86. Loki is demonised in later thought and, through the preservation of these oral histories,87 the Christian writers may have wanted to portray Loki as being evil, going 81 Orton, Peter, “Pagan Myth and Religion” Ed. R. McTurk, In A Companion to Old Norse-Icelandic Literature and Culture. Black- well Publishing Ltd., 2005 p. 314 82 Lévi-Strauss, Claude, “The Structural Study of Myth”. In T. A. Sebeok (ed.) Myth: A Symposium. Bloomington IN, 1955 pp. 81-106 83 McKinnell, John, Both One and Many: Essays on Change and Variety in Late Norse Heathenism. Philologia 1, 1994 p. 37 84 Ibid., p. 37 85 Clunies-Ross, Margaret, Prolonged Echoes: Old Norse Myths in Medieval Northern Society. 2 vols. Odense Publishing, 1994 86 Ibid., p.34 87 Orton, Peter,, “Pagan Myth and Religion” Ed. R. McTurk, In A Companion to Old Norse-Icelandic Literature and Culture. Blackwell Publishing Ltd., 2005 p. 316 1562734 against the social norm. In this sense, Loki impacts Norse society in a queer reading, which I discuss further in the next section. Loki and Norse society: How duality empowers Norse society and Loki’s central position Hilda Ellis Davidson suggests that the Norse gods reflect approved human behaviours, stating that humans “valued traditional laws which were believed to have been established by the gods they worshipped”88. Yet these types of portrayals tend to define the nature of Loki differently, offering no full explanation of the god, including their sexuality and gender identity, which are often repressed or avoided . Traditional laws reflected social norms and could promote a sense of unity within a community. Perhaps these norms are built into the myths, and by extension, the standing stones which commemorate them. For example, upon the Alskog Tjängvide stone in Gotland, the horse Sleipnir is depicted with Óðinn atop (as shown earlier). This confirms the known myth of The Building of the Walls of Ásgarð, in which the union of Loki and Svaðilfœri the stallion produced Sleipnir. In the myth Loki changes form and gender to a horse, a mare, and actually gives birth to 88 Davidson, Hilda E., Scandinavian Mythology. Hamlyn, 1982 p.8 1562734 Sleipnir. This is mentioned in the pre-Christian myth of Gylfaginning and also the horse Sleipnir is found in a description of Vǫluspá. This is mythical confirmation in stone of Loki’s changing gender as well as their pansexuality. This gender and sexual fluidity does not create tension amongst the other gods, but rather appears to be simply accepted. Queerness is mentioned directly in relation to Loki; for instance, Frigg recounts in her prophetic wisdom the travesties of Loki and Óðinn (Lokasenna 25). In this we see the complexity of Loki in that they perform their trickster capacities similar to those of the Egyptian god Seth, and we can see that Loki is more than a mere trickster and has an eschatological role in the formation of the mythic past, present and definitively its future (at Ragnarǫk). In the myths of the ancient Egyptians, the god Seth is identified as a trickster deity and brother to the office of kingship god Horus.89 Seth can be regarded as the charismatic and knowledgeable god of chaos. Yet, if we see images of the god in Egyptian contexts we may struggle to identify what species Seth is. Seth can be identified with at least 20 different species ranging from a pig to a fish. Within the writing system of ancient Egypt, Seth was used as a determiner alongside the Egyptian words for “storm”, “tumult” and other aspects of cosmic social changes. As an agent of Egyptian duality, Seth transforms the conception of normality and makes real the ideas of mystery and change. Régis Boyer notes that Loki is an anti-hero, a negative counterpart or parodic figure in mythology90 . This role aligns closely to that of the god Seth in Egyptian mythology. Seth, like Loki, is always fraught with situations or at least making sure things do not go as plan. Both are related to the opposition of kingship, and yet serve this kingship in balance - as both are necessary to equalise the world, in the duality of order (Horus, or Óðinn). In essence, both of these gods form a duality which is very strongly evident in Egyptian culture. Findings Through these examples Loki is conceptually similar in nature and function to Seth. With this in mind, we can make sense of the identities and ways-of-being in the Norse conceptions of gender. In the descriptions and lore surrounding the god Loki, we find a parallel definition of gender-fluidity and neutrality. Mirroring Seth, Loki is generally given male-identified pronouns, and similarly to 89 Te Velde, Herman, "Seth." In Ed. Redford D., The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Egypt. Oxford University Press, 2001 (single data-page online entry) 90 Dumézil, Georges, La religion des anciens Scandinaves. Payot, 1981 p. 134 1562734 the god Seth in ideas of form we can see in Loki an appearance that is not always stable or immediately apparent to a known gender form. What makes Loki exceptional in Norse religion is that their acceptance is deliberately categorised and identified by the Æsir and by the 13th Century compiler of Norse mythology, Snorri Sturlason. In agreement with John Lindow91, I believe that one of the most significant lines characterizing Loki’s personality is “Sá er enn talðr með Ásum” - That one who is for ever counted amongst the gods92 . This line from Gylfaginning93 , in Snorri Sturluson’s version within the Edda, is seen by Lindow as an inclusion of Loki into the fold of the gods, despite breaking patrilineal notions of belonging. In this sense Loki, whose father was a giant named Fárbauta and mother Laufey or sometimes Nál being one of the Æsir, should not count. Jakobsson94 states that many of the familial relations to the Æsir arethrough a patrilineal connection. Loki´s relation to the Æsir through their mother shows a change to the more traditional Viking belief that your status comes from the relation to your father. This means that Loki subverts the norm by having an Æsir as mother and a father as a giant, thereby queering patrilineal traditions. Furthermore, I would argue that Loki symbolises extended gender identity and sexuality concepts within Norse society. The context surrounding the shape-shifting forms of Loki derives primarily from the Norse conception of Hljuòð, or “shapeshifting”. For the Norse this is connected deeply to an understanding of identity. Loki takes the forms of several animals and genders at will, often to further an objective in which Loki would benefit. For example, in the pre-Christian myth Gylfaginning is mentioned the story of the building of Ásgarð´s walls. Loki woos Svarðilfari by taking the form of a mare - a female horse - in order to obstruct the builder’s ability to complete his task. In this, Loki become impregnated and soon gives birth to the eight-legged horse Sleipnir. Loki turns into a mere, changing form and gender, to woo the stallion -who is male - allowing a subversion of gender and there- 91 Lindow, John, Norse Mythology: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes, Rituals, and Beliefs. Oxford University Press, 2001 p.216 92 Author own Translation. Stanza from: R. Faulkes Gylfaginning and Prologue. UK: Clarendon Press 93 Snorri Sturluson, (Trans.) Anthony Faulkes Gylfaginning and Prologue. Clarendon Press, 1982 p.26 94 Jakobsson, A´rmann, “The Patriarch: Myth & Reality”. In Ed. S Lewis-Simpson Youth and Age in the Medieval North. Brill Pub- lishing, 2008 1562734 fore a queer reading in this myth. In social contexts, this shapeshifting phenomenon is thought to be present when you are a legendary Berserker upon the battlefield, who becomes as enraged as a bear, or when your spiritual guardian and avatar is shown as an animal to those who see you. DuBois however, comments that Loki is a trickster-demon of Christianised writing95, which various scholars also attest to in their writings. Lönnroth argues for 13th Century Icelander reception of the contemporary edition of Vǫluspá, how this premise can be echoed in the Viking Age with regards to its Pagan core, rather than its Christian additions96. I would argue that in this Norse context, the attribution of male-identified pronouns for this god were an effect of Christianisation and that the original (fluid) gender norms are replaced during the Christian era. I also contend that what is present in the 13th Century was ultimately cemented in place for and by post-Pagan writers as a product of their Romanized Christian faith. Christian influences across the Eddic poems must be recognised. Some scholars, such as Lönnroth, have pointed out we are possibly reading mythology in its Christianised and heavily redacted form. The contemporary concerns and fully Christianised understanding of what it is to be a moral, and indeed good, Norse people during the northern Middle Ages has resulted in the written transmission of oral mythology. In the pre-Christian myth of Lokasenna, Loki mocks the gods, and in return, invites negative reactions to the point where Loki is charged with counts of ergi (sexual perversion) and unmanliness unstated directly but alluded to in the stanza: “…but you spent eight years beneath the earth, a woman, milking cows, and bearing babies! that I call craven”97 And; “…But I find it strange to see among us a god who gave birth to babies”98 95 DuBois, Thomas A., Nordic religions in the viking age. University of Pennsylvania Press, 1999 p.50 96 Lönnroth, Lars, “Tesen om de två kulturerna: Kritiska studier i den isländska sagaskrivningens sociala förutsättningar”, Scripta Islandica 15, 1964-5 p. 1-97 97 Terry, Patricia, “The Insolence of Loki: Locasenna” Stanza 23. In Poems of the Elder Edda. University of Pennsylvania Press, 1990 p. 76 98 Ibid., p. 78 1562734 This is a critical queer reading of how Loki engenders their sexuality, at times for the good of the gods such as when turned into a mare to stop the master builder from winning a bet, or when accompanying Þórr to claim his hammer back. However, in this case Loki is attributed to giving birth to their three monstrous children (Jǫrmungandr, Hel and Fenrir), who ultimately play out the destiny of Ragnarǫk. Loki’s queerness, by giving birth, is both disruptive but plays a key role in the destiny of the gods. It is both necessary and functional. Lokasenna positioned by Sveinsson as being composed around 1000AD99 may be a late Pagan, or post-Conversion myth as the laws of ergi were codified after the introduction of the Christian church in Iceland (where Snorri writes) by the year 1000, in the lawbook Grágas. This still betrays an acknowledgement that Loki is key, and indeed necessary to, queerness in a post-Conversion worldview. Nið, a term referring to a sexual perversion law in the 13th Century, is also considered a charge of unmanliness, but it oftentimes refers to a duel rather than an outright charge of sexual misconduct. It builds upon the hyper-masculinity of the 13th Century Medieval Christian Icelandic world and as such this term as itself may not necessarily be attributed to the Viking period. This is pivotal in analysing Loki as a queer character and a queer role model in Norse society. The evidence against this being morally acceptable is developed by a Christian rather than Pagan audience, who would not have celebrated or encouraged such understandings of gender and sexuality within society. It clearly must have been acceptable, or at the very least tolerated amongst the Norse if it had to be banned by later Christian tradition. Judy Quinn discusses the post-Christian myth Hyndluljóð, arguing that Loki´s transformation into a female, who becomes pregnant after having sex with an evil woman and gives birth to all the witches and evils of the world signifies what Quinn deems condemning “lesbianism”. Loki’s transformation into a birthing mother is therefore an act of subversion.100 This means that by having two “women” making offspring and giving birth we arrive at a subversion of 13th Century understandings of gender norms and practices, which may in the Viking period have been acceptable in this context. If we read this in a queer guise, this act of two women having sex may appear to be portrayed in a negative light (given the outcome). However, the myth hints at rape when Loki shapeshifts into a woman, becoming engendered by the giantess in this story. The focus may be on the negative con99 Sveinsson, Einar., Snorri Sturluson Lokasenna. Almenna Bókafelagið, 1962 p. 21 100 Quinn, Judy, “Women in Old Norse Poetry and Sagas”. In (Ed.) R. McTurk, A Companion to Old Norse-Icelandic Literature and Culture, 2005 p. 524 1562734 sequences of sexual violence, rather than demonising same-sex desires. Although we cannot be certain, it is possible that the lesson being taught here is the negative consequence of rape, and the birthing of children in this context, rather than the negative impact of same sex desires between women. Loki’s gender fluidity and pansexuality may therefore appear to be accepted within the context of these myths. Potentially, the myths offer up the idea that fluidity can bring a positive outcome i.e. the birthing of children. In this context, Loki’s acceptance by the Æsir, despite (or because of?) their gender-fluidity and dynamic sexuality may attest to the acceptance of gender-fluidity and queerness more generally amongst Norse Viking society. In breaking binary constructions of gender and sexuality, Loki gives permission for those in society to do the same. As Lönnroth presents Vǫluspá in relating themes and concepts to a 13th Century, relatively Christian, audience so too do I make the argument that the pre-Christian core of the mythology is receptive to a pre-Christian audience. If we take this basic premise to be true, then we could perhaps accept how this understanding of gender-fluidity and its associated queerness may have been given social understanding and acceptance by the Norse of the Viking Age. This social acceptance will have been modelled by the Æsir, and experienced by Loki. In this religious and sacred context of social acceptance, the Norse may have tolerated - and potentially encouraged - an existence of queer identities, as normality. If this is the case, then we may begin to understand a queer acceptance, transformed into something “othered” at the Conversion Period of Christianity. How this is possible may lie in the introduction of extended written texts, by which transmission of traditional knowledge - in this case social and religious ideas - may have been disjointed from the traditional means of oral transmission. When this happens, the law codes begin to emerge based upon an ecclesiastical perception and enforcement of a moral system. Essentially, Paganism was replaced by Christianity by the time of Snorri Sturlason writing in the 13th Century. In this we can now see what was once hidden, the dynamic religious society of the Norse and their socially relevant experiences. 1562734 Conclusion The role of Loki in the Norse mythology is a complex one. Comparatively across religions one can begin to understand the character of Loki to be more than a “trickster”, but a defier of order in their role to create balance in chaos. Loki is fiery chaos, fuelled by a desire to fulfil the gods’ destiny in Ragnarǫk. Loki indeed has a place in the mythology, greater than that of Dumézil´s model, and resting upon Frakes´s in this attempt to consolidate the very nature of Loki, a question pondered by academics across the decades. This thesis has shown that Loki is both a trickster, and an agent of chaos who fulfils the ultimate destiny. The relationship between Loki and the god Óðinn is an important one to which Loki finds themselves becoming equal in status to the god, and is counted towards the Æsir despite their subverted birth by a male giant and a woman Æsir. Loki has been shown to subvert both social and sexual norms whereby in a contemporary 13th Century setting their punishment and charges would be brought under the codes of Grágas. Yet in the Viking Age, the period prior to full Christianisation, we have found that Loki embodies a queerness of gender and sexuality that may have been accepted within Viking society. This thesis has outlined that Loki across the myths, reaches their ultimate destiny through the events of Ragnarǫk. Also, Loki queers the events of the myths, in both a pre-Christian context of original stanza texts, but also in the contemporary post-Christian context of the 13th Century, owing to acts of sexual perversion under the legal code of Grágas. I hope that Loki will continue to inspire scholarship and the rigors of questioning in terms of their queerness and position within Norse mythology. It is through this consolidation of the Norse worldview that we can begin to fully understand the nature of Loki, and how they relate to the balance of order and chaos in reaching their destiny. 1562734 BIBLIOGRAPHY -- In MLA style Bullivant, Stephen & Lee, Lois., A Dictionary of Atheism. Oxford University Press, 2016 Byock, Jesse, (Trans.) The Saga of the Volsungs: The Norse Epic of Sigurd the Dragon-Slayer. University of California Press, 2012 Clunies-Ross, Margaret, Prolonged Echoes: Old Norse Myths in Medieval Northern Society. 2 vols. Odense Publishing, 1994 Davidson, Hilda E., Lost Beliefs of Northern Europe. Routledge, 2001 — Myths and Symbols of Pagan Europe: Early Scandinavian and Celtic Religions. Bell and Bain Ltd., 1987 — Scandinavian Mythology. 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