86 pages • 2 hours read
Neil GaimanNorse Mythology
Fiction | Novel | Adult | Published in 2017A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
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Odin
Odin is the all-father: the oldest, wisest, and most cunning of all the gods. He is the source of life for all beings—gods and mortals alike. Odin sacrificed an eye to receive the all the wisdom of the world. He hanged himself from Yggdrasil, the tree of life, for nine days; during this time, he died and was resurrected, granting him knowledge of the runes and of magic. Odin has two ravens, Huginn and Munnin, “thought” and “memory,” respectively. Odin brought war to man; he attends to the dead who fell in battle, serving as their leader in Valhalla. Odin is Thor’s father and Loki’s brother.
The other gods of Asgard turn to Odin for wisdom and guidance. Though he is wise, his prophesies are limited to his own interpretation of what he sees in his dreams. This brings his own share of folly. He has a vision of the monster wolf, Fenrir, wreaking havoc during Ragnarok. Consequently, he has Fenrir bound. Odin will lead the gods of Asgard and the warriors of Valhalla into battle against Loki’s forces during Ragnarok. Fenrir, now unbound, will eat Odin, revenging his imprisonment.
Thor
Son of Odin, the all-father, and Jord, the earth goddess, Thor is the Norse god of thunder. Thor is red-bearded and the strongest of the gods; he wields the legendary hammer, Mjolnir, which he used to slay many giants. Thor is husband to Sif and stepfather to Ullr. Thor is relied on by the other gods as the chief defender of Asgard and Midgard and is a central figure to the stories in this collection. His hammer, Mjolnir, was given to him by the dwarves Eiti and Brokk. Mjolnir makes Thor’s formidable power even greater. The hammer is unbreakable, can grow in size, and will always return to Thor’s hand when thrown.
While Thor is incredibly powerful, he is not the most intelligent god. His rash nature sometimes leads to trouble, though his strength and the might of Mjolnir usually solve whatever problem he causes. Thor is strong enough to drink down the level of the ocean, lift the Midgard serpent, and wrestle with old age. Thor has something of a one-sided rivalry with the Midgard serpent; he thinks about it throughout Norse Mythology, and nearly catches it with the sea giant, Hymir. He will kill Jormungundr during Ragnarok, but he will fall due to the serpent’s venom.
Loki
Son of Laufey and Farbauti, the giant, and blood brother to Odin, Loki is the handsome and wicked trickster god in Norse mythology. Loki is the most cunning god; he uses his wit as his main weapon, though he is capable of flight and shapeshifting. Loki is equally a blessing and a bane to Midgard and Asgard; his weakness is drinking. Loki plays a pivotal role in Ragnarok, the Norse apocalypse. Loki fathers the monsters Hel, Fenrir, and Jormungundr with the giantess, Angrboda.
Loki tricks Hod, the blind son of Odin and Frigg, into killing his brother, Balder, with a dart made from mistletoe—the one substance that can injure him. To the other gods, this is the last straw. They hunt Loki down, capturing him in a net of his own design while he hides in the form of a salmon. They use the entrails of his son, Narfi, to bind him to a rock while a serpent drips poison into his face. His wife, Sigyn, collects this poison to spare him from his agony. He will remain bound and suffering until Ragnarok, when he will lead the forces of Hel into battle against the Aesir, to exact his revenge. He will fall in battle against Heimdall, the watchman of the gods.
Balder
Son of Odin and Frigg, Balder is the most beloved of the Aesir gods. Balder is often compared to the sun: All love him in a similar way to they way that the world loves the sun. When Balder has a dream foretelling his own death, Frigg goes around the world taking an oath from each element, plant, animal, and being stating that they mean him no harm. She asks everything except mistletoe. Balder is nearly indestructible after this. Loki, however, discovers Balder’s one weakness, and tricks Balder’s blind brother, Hod, into killing him. Balder returns after Ragnarok to lead the surviving gods and mortals in Idavoll.
Fenrir
Son of Loki and a giantess, Fenrir, also known as Fenris wolf, grows to be a massive wolf. Along with his brother, Jormungundr—the Midgard serpent—and his sister Hel, Fenrir is taken from his mother's stronghold when Odin has a vision of Loki’s infidelity with the giantess. Fenrir appears to have a bond with the god Tyr, who played with him when Fenrir was a puppy. Odin has a vision of Fenrir in Ragnarok. Fenrir is the last thing Odin sees in the vision; consequently, he and the other gods attempt to bind him in chains. They use Fenrir’s pride in his strength to attempt to subdue him in increasingly strong bondage; however, Fenris breaks through each. The dwarves fashion a subtle, ribbonlike bond, stronger than any other. Suspecting treachery, Fenrir agrees to be bound, but only if a god will put their arm in his mouth as assurance of honesty. Tyr volunteers, and when Fenrir cannot escape, he bites off Tyr’s hand.
Fenrir represents the irony of prophesy. Odin’s vision indicates that Fenrir will become a threat. However, by betraying the wolf, the Aesir make him into the very threat they were attempting to avoid. Fenrir is chained to a rock and vows vengeance against the gods. If they had not betrayed him, he would have been their friend and ally. When Fenrir is unchained during Ragnarok, he slays Odin in revenge. Fenrir, in turn, is slain by Odin’s son, Vidar.
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By Neil Gaiman
