Blog #42 1/07/20
Junhong Li Period 1Aim:
How does Norse Mythology illustrate the theme of vengeance?
Do Now:
What is vengeance and do you think it is justified?
Vengeance is when one takes matters into their own hands in an attempt to right what's wrong, by bringing harm to another. There was a general consensus amongst the class that excessive vengeance was definitely wrong, as "An eye for an eye only makes the world blind"(Mohandas Gandhi, Sid Meier's Civilization VI). This question was asked as to lead into the stories "The Children of Loki" and "Freya's Unusual Wedding," where characters of the stories eventually take revenge on those who wronged them.Angrboða, Loki's mistress
Her name means "the bringer of grief," and she indeed lived up to her name. Her children with Loki would bring grief for all parties involved. The gods would kidnap these children from Angrboða, she would never see these children again. The wisest Odin, the mightiest Thor, and Tyr's right hand would be lost to these children, and Loki would not meet these children again until Ragnarok. We discussed for what reason he would have an affair and why would he love someone called "the bringer of grief," and we concluded that he was simply bored with his current life. It is also mentioned that Loki himself is a "bringer of grief" as a troublemaker, so he might sympathize with Angrboða.
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| Picture from "The Scary Children of Loki - Norse Mythology Stories - See U in History" by See U in History / Mythology. |
The Children of Loki
The children of Loki mentioned in the presentation were-
JörmungandrJörmungandr was a snake who grew to enormous sizes. It was chucked into the ocean by Odin when the gods discovered that it was growing in size rapidly. Unfortunately, the snake didn't drown and grew to a large enough size to encircle the world Midgard. Thor meets it trice later and is killed by its poison on the third time, which was during Ragnarok. However, Thor gets the last laugh because he managed to kill the snake first.
Hel
Hel was a maiden who grew to normal sizes. However, only half her body was beautiful, the other half was rotten and skeletal. She had the ability to kill people with a simple thought or touch, as well as revive them through the same method as well. She was quiet and well mannered, so Odin made her the ruler of Niflheim and Helheim. She would rule over those who died cowards or by sickness or old age.
Fenrir
The children of Loki mentioned in the presentation were-
- Hel, the ruler of Helheim and Niflheim
- Jörmungandr, the ever-growing Midgard serpent
- Fenrir, the big bad wolf
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| Jörmungandr gets fished by an ox head, from a 17th-century Icelandic manuscript. |
JörmungandrJörmungandr was a snake who grew to enormous sizes. It was chucked into the ocean by Odin when the gods discovered that it was growing in size rapidly. Unfortunately, the snake didn't drown and grew to a large enough size to encircle the world Midgard. Thor meets it trice later and is killed by its poison on the third time, which was during Ragnarok. However, Thor gets the last laugh because he managed to kill the snake first.
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| "Loki's Brood" by Emil Doepler. |
Hel was a maiden who grew to normal sizes. However, only half her body was beautiful, the other half was rotten and skeletal. She had the ability to kill people with a simple thought or touch, as well as revive them through the same method as well. She was quiet and well mannered, so Odin made her the ruler of Niflheim and Helheim. She would rule over those who died cowards or by sickness or old age.
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| "Fenrir and Odin" by Lorenz Frølich |
Fenrir was a wolf who grew to enormous sizes. It was known to be cruel like its father, but unlike its father, it was a companion to the god of honor and justice, Tyr. However, Odin feared Fenrir due to a bad dream and decided that Fenrir needed to be bounded so that it will be harmless. So, in an attempt to trick the wolf, Odin and Co. asked it to display its strength. They chained it down multiple times, but he broke through every time. Finally, the gods asked the dwarves to make Gleipnir, a silk ribbon, persuaded Fenrir to be tied in it. Fenrir agreed, only on the condition that it would be released if it could not break the ribbon, and that its insurance would be the hand of a god. Tyr volunteered as tribute, and as expected, the gods did not release Fenrir. After chewing off Tyr's hand, Fenrir held a grudge against the gods, saying that it would've been a friend if they hadn't betrayed it. But then the gods stuck a sword in its mouth so it can't ever bite down. But then it would proceed to break out of its bonds during Ragnarok and swallow Odin.
Discussion
We discussed why Loki's children were a snake, a wolf, and a half-dead-half-living woman. We concluded that they represent his traits, as he is a snake, a wolf, and alive, but his death is prophetized and certain. He was also the outcast amongst his family and the gods, as the weakest giant, and as the annoying trickster.
We discussed Hel's duality and how she represented not only death but a cycle of life and death. She had the power to revive the dead and kill the living, and it was effortless to her. However, she was not evil nor good, like her father. Unlike her father, she kept to herself and didn't cause needless trouble. She was the neutral bystander, as justice is blind but death is Rated E for Everyone.
We discussed the materials used in the creation of the ribbon Gleipnir, which included:
We discussed if Odin was justified in chaining up Fenrir, and there was a group consensus of "No," as Fenrir himself claimed that he would've been a friend to the gods, had they not chained him up. This was led into a lesson on not judging others by a preconceived notion and to give everyone a chance at proving themselves. However, I think he was justified, but his actions of defiance against fate were useless. When he traded his eye for wisdom, he gained an ability to see visions of the future. When he saw Fenrir consume him in his dream, he should've known that fate was unavoidable. However, even so, chaining up Fenrir would've eased his mind at the time, so I think he is not to blame. After all, the whole idea of Norse mythology is that Ragnarok is unavoidable, but that won't stop the gods from trying their best to prolong it from happening.
Finally, we concluded this story with a video.
Freya's Unusual Wedding
In this story, Thor wakes up one day and his wife Sif isn't missing her hair. But his hammer was gone. So of course, he questions Loki first and finds out that it's actually not his fault this time. The king of the giants Þrymr had stolen the hammer while Thor was sleeping, the same hammer Thor keeps next to himself while he sleeps, in his room, in the land of the gods, where giants usually dare not tread unless they were Loki or offering to do the gods a favor. And then Þrymr even offers to return the hammer, the weapon of the mightest of gods, able to level mountains. He wasn't going to return the hammer for free though. He, like a certain other giant, wanted the hand of the most beautiful Freya in marriage in exchange for the hammer. Since Freya didn't want to marry some giant, Loki decided to get Thor to dress up as a bride and go to Þrymr to retrieve his hammer personally. So then he did. After showing up, Thor proceeded to eat excessively and lack manners, and Loki proceeded to get questioned by the giants about "Freya's" habits. After bluffing his way through, Loki managed to even get them to present the hammer to "Freya" and place the hammer on "Freya's" lap. The same hammer which couldn't be wielded without Járngreipr, a special pair of gloves. And then Thor proceeds to reveal himself, grab the hammer, and kill Þrymr and his servants.
Discussion
We discussed why Loki's children were a snake, a wolf, and a half-dead-half-living woman. We concluded that they represent his traits, as he is a snake, a wolf, and alive, but his death is prophetized and certain. He was also the outcast amongst his family and the gods, as the weakest giant, and as the annoying trickster.
We discussed Hel's duality and how she represented not only death but a cycle of life and death. She had the power to revive the dead and kill the living, and it was effortless to her. However, she was not evil nor good, like her father. Unlike her father, she kept to herself and didn't cause needless trouble. She was the neutral bystander, as justice is blind but death is Rated E for Everyone.
We discussed the materials used in the creation of the ribbon Gleipnir, which included:
- The sound of the footsteps of a cat
- The beard of a woman
- The roots of a mountain
- The sinews of a bear
- The breath of a fish
- The spittle of a bird
- Lightness
- Softness
- Sturdiness
- Toughness
- Transparentness
- Cohesiveness
We discussed if Odin was justified in chaining up Fenrir, and there was a group consensus of "No," as Fenrir himself claimed that he would've been a friend to the gods, had they not chained him up. This was led into a lesson on not judging others by a preconceived notion and to give everyone a chance at proving themselves. However, I think he was justified, but his actions of defiance against fate were useless. When he traded his eye for wisdom, he gained an ability to see visions of the future. When he saw Fenrir consume him in his dream, he should've known that fate was unavoidable. However, even so, chaining up Fenrir would've eased his mind at the time, so I think he is not to blame. After all, the whole idea of Norse mythology is that Ragnarok is unavoidable, but that won't stop the gods from trying their best to prolong it from happening.
Finally, we concluded this story with a video.
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| "Ah, what a lovely maid it is!" by Elmer Boyd Smith. |
Freya's Unusual Wedding
In this story, Thor wakes up one day and his wife Sif isn't missing her hair. But his hammer was gone. So of course, he questions Loki first and finds out that it's actually not his fault this time. The king of the giants Þrymr had stolen the hammer while Thor was sleeping, the same hammer Thor keeps next to himself while he sleeps, in his room, in the land of the gods, where giants usually dare not tread unless they were Loki or offering to do the gods a favor. And then Þrymr even offers to return the hammer, the weapon of the mightest of gods, able to level mountains. He wasn't going to return the hammer for free though. He, like a certain other giant, wanted the hand of the most beautiful Freya in marriage in exchange for the hammer. Since Freya didn't want to marry some giant, Loki decided to get Thor to dress up as a bride and go to Þrymr to retrieve his hammer personally. So then he did. After showing up, Thor proceeded to eat excessively and lack manners, and Loki proceeded to get questioned by the giants about "Freya's" habits. After bluffing his way through, Loki managed to even get them to present the hammer to "Freya" and place the hammer on "Freya's" lap. The same hammer which couldn't be wielded without Járngreipr, a special pair of gloves. And then Thor proceeds to reveal himself, grab the hammer, and kill Þrymr and his servants.
This story was filled with plotholes, unexpected events, unexplained events, and had no moral. However, it was extremely entertaining. 10/10.
Connections with the Real World
Here, team 2 tried to connect these stories to the real world. They referred to the habits of Greek protagonists who tried to avoid fate, only to cause fate to occur when describing Odin's actions. They said that the moral of the story for the Children of Loki was "everybody deserves a chance." They said that the moral of the story for Freya's Unusual Wedding was "all the things in our world... are not as they seem." However, personally, I'm still not convinced the Freya's Unusual wedding had a lesson involved. While it is true that some stories in mythology are taught and passed down to teach a lesson, I believe there are exceptions that are only passed down as entertainment. The fact that Freya's Unusual Wedding was sung as a song even up until the 19th-century points to it being more for entertainment than having meaning.
Final Group Discussion
Finally, we answer the aim. Both stories ended in vengeance. Jörmungandr gets revenge on Odin by killing his son Thor. Fenrir gets revenge on Odin by swallowing him whole. Thor gets revenge on Þrymr by crashing his wedding with Freya. That is how vengeance plays a role in the stories of Loki's Children and Freya's Unusual Wedding.
Connections with the Real World
Here, team 2 tried to connect these stories to the real world. They referred to the habits of Greek protagonists who tried to avoid fate, only to cause fate to occur when describing Odin's actions. They said that the moral of the story for the Children of Loki was "everybody deserves a chance." They said that the moral of the story for Freya's Unusual Wedding was "all the things in our world... are not as they seem." However, personally, I'm still not convinced the Freya's Unusual wedding had a lesson involved. While it is true that some stories in mythology are taught and passed down to teach a lesson, I believe there are exceptions that are only passed down as entertainment. The fact that Freya's Unusual Wedding was sung as a song even up until the 19th-century points to it being more for entertainment than having meaning.
Final Group Discussion
Finally, we answer the aim. Both stories ended in vengeance. Jörmungandr gets revenge on Odin by killing his son Thor. Fenrir gets revenge on Odin by swallowing him whole. Thor gets revenge on Þrymr by crashing his wedding with Freya. That is how vengeance plays a role in the stories of Loki's Children and Freya's Unusual Wedding.
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