The Trickster

Today we're back to a fundamental Jungian Archetype which is of course also quite prevalent in literature and film: The Trickster. This archetype has its roots in mythology and religion, but as a character type it permeates nearly all culture. The Trickster can be anything from chaotic evil to lawful good but generally must have at least some of these characteristics:

• Fundamentally ambiguous and anomalous
• Deceiver and trick-player
• Shape-shifter
• Situation-inverter
• Messenger and imitator of the gods
• Sacred and lewd bricoleur

The Trickster is quite common throughout folklore, such as the Coyote from many Native American Creation Myths, or Hermes from Greek Mythology. Some might also consider the Serpent from the Garden of Eden to be a Trickster.

Keep in mind that a Trickster can also fit another archetype, such as Fizban from the Dragonlance Chronicles who was also a Wise Old Man/Sage, or Aang from Avatar who is also a Hero and a Child (not just literally, but also as far as the Jungian archetypes he fits into).

Some other good examples might be Spider/Anansi from Neil Gaiman's Anansi Boys, El-Ahrairah from Richard Adam's Watership Down, or Jareth, the Goblin King from the Labyrinth played by David Bowie with the impossibly exaggerated junk.

These would all be great examples. For my pick I'm going with Loki the "god of mischief" from Norse Mythology and the Prose Edda. Sometimes Loki is referred to as a god, sometimes as a Jotunn, which is like a supernatural giant. At times he serves the other gods and at times he causes major problems for them. He is also the father of many important mythological creatures and even the mother of Sleipnir, the eight legged horse I mentioned yesterday.

So who would you pick as an example of a Trickster? It doesn't have to be your very favorite, or even all that well known. Feel free to pick from folklore, literature, or film.

The Steadfast Steed

I was going to say loyal, but I already used that term for sidekicks. This is definitely not a Jungian Archetype, but it is a pretty common character in film and literature and besides, my good friend Leigh T Moore convinced me to do this one just so that she can pick a certain character. So she better get here quick to be the first one to comment about him.

I should clarify. This doesn't have to actually be a horse. This is sort of like a sidekick/mount/animal companion category. I'll even accept Chewbacca even though Han doesn't ride him around (as far as we know, at least). Gurgi from the Chronicles of Prydain would be another example of an animal companion that no one actually rode. You could also go with actual classic horses, like Rocinante, Red Hare, Shadowfax, Hasufel, Arod or Bill the Pony, or even mythical horses (with eight legs no less) like Sleipnir, Odin's horse from the Poetic Edda.

I'm going with a character from a film today, slightly different from my other choices, but probably not a huge surprise to most of you. I have always loved Artax from The Neverending Story. He was noble. He was swift. He was Atreyu's only companion on the greatest journey of his life. Well ... at least until the Swamp of Sadness that is.

I can tell you I wept like a crackhead without a rock when I first saw that scene and I still cry freely today whenever I watch it with my family. My one daughter calls me a tear-dropper and the other calls me sentimental. I'm not afraid to admit I cry during movies, hell, I don't really enjoy a movie that much unless it makes me cry. I'm an emotional writer, remember?

So who is your favorite steadfast stead or loyal animal companion? Did I give way too many examples and left nothing for you guys to come up with (except for Leigh)? I hope not.

The Wise Old Man/Sage

As you've probably noticed I've been going over some of the most common archetypal characters in literature and film this week. Not all are Jungian archetypes, but this one certainly is. Today I would like hear who your favorite Wise Old Man/Sage is. This archetype is slightly different from the Mentor, though of course in certain tales one character can fit both roles (think Dumbledore from Harry Potter).

I'm betting by now you can guess who may favorite is. I do love TLOTR and OMG (Olorin/Mithrandir/Gandalf) is certainly an awesome Wise Old Man but I'm getting a little tired of picking characters from Middle Earth every day, plus it feels a little lazy. I could go with one of two great examples from Star Wars, but instead I'm going to go with something a little more obscure today.

One of my favorite Wise Old Men is Dallben from the Chronicles of Prydain. I haven't actually even read all five volumes but I did read the Book of Three and the Black Cauldron when I was young. These books are not that famous but some of you may remember a rather well done animated Disney adaptation of the stories from the 80s. I can still remember exactly how Gurgi sounds when he talks about crunchings and munchings.

Anyway Dallben is a sort of sorcerer who acts as both the guardian of and mentor for the protagonist Taran. Dallben is 379 years old at the beginning of the Book of Three, and has one of the most interesting back stories I can remember (paraphrased from Wikipedia):

In a manner similar to the Welsh legend or Gwion Bach, one day as a boy he was helping three enchantresses by stirring a potion they were making when it boiled over and scalded his fingers. When Dallben put his burned fingers into his mouth, he accidentally ingested some of the liquid. It was a potion of wisdom, and immediately Dallben was able to see the enchantresses for what they really were, and to understand everything around him. Deciding they couldn't have so much wisdom living under one roof, the enchantresses sent him out into the world, with three gifts to choose from before leaving.

The first gift was a sword, which would have made Dallben the most powerful warrior who had ever lived. The second gift was a harp, which would have made him the world's most famous bard, had he chosen it. Instead he chose the third gift, a book called the Book of Three. Orddu told him it contained everything that was ever known or would ever be known, and knowledge was something Dallben valued more than power or fame.

So who is your favorite Wise Old Man/Sage? Don't be afraid to pick OMG just because I've already mentioned him, and don't be afraid to pick Y or OWK just because I've already alluded to them. Choose whoever you like!

Loyal Sidekicks

Today I would like to hear about your favorite loyal sidekick, and no please don't ask me anything about pro sports from last night. I'm not too torn up about the Vikings loss, but the Braves losing to the Giants and thus ending the wonderful career of Bobby Cox is pretty sad.

Anyway, let's move on to more literary pursuits.

Who is your very favorite loyal sidekick? You can choose someone from literature if you like, but I'll allow film and TV as well, after all, those are just other ways of telling stories. You can select a courageous warrior, or a cunning wizard. You can pick a steadfast friend or a loyal pet. Or you can pick an irritating but hilarious dirt eating dwarf like Mulch Diggums from Artemis Fowl. No he's not the main sidekick, but he is fun as hell to read about.

You probably won't be that surprised to hear who my favorites sidekick is. If you know me well you know that I am an absolute fanatic for all things Tolkien and Middle Earth. Can you guess where I am going with this? That's right.

Samwise Gamgee.

Has there ever been a more loyal, courageous, humble, and un-assuming hero? Yeah, sure, Frodo is the one who bears the real burden and the one who endures the agonizing weight of The Ring as it weighs upon his mind, but in the end [SPOILER ALERT] it's Sam who puts Frodo on his back and carries him up the slopes of Mount Doom and into the bowels of Mordor.

What a brave little fellow. I'm not afraid to admit the Mount Doom scene makes me cry every time. There are a lot of literary theories about Sam and Frodo's relationship being an allegory for the relationship between an officer and his sergeant in the British armed forces, and they are very interesting, but I won't go into them here.

Who is your very favorite loyal sidekick?

Sympathetic Villains

Today I would really like to hear from everyone who your favorite sympathetic villain is. They can be an antagonist, an anti-hero, or just a supporting character who happens to be a real bad guy, but also one that you feel for, for whatever reason.

I'll allow you to select from film as well, just so that someone can pick Darth Vader, because even though he doesn't seem very sympathetic at first, once you know his whole back story how can you not pity poor Anakin Skywalker? [SPOILER ALERT] Driven to the darkside by fear and manipulation, forced into the killing younglings and attacking his mentor? Is there a more tragic tale out there?

The character you pick doesn't have to be completely evil, in fact it's best if they're not. They can even be a red herring, like one of my two favorites: Severus Snape from Harry Potter. Professor Snape certainly is a tortured individual, and one who we spend thousands of pages essentially despising on Harry's behalf. [SPOILER ALERT] But once we discover the truth about his past and the full depth of his courage, we really begin to admire him, in spite of some of his distasteful personality traits, or at least I know I did.

Or your character can be even more pathetic, like my second favorite sympathetic villain: Smeagol/Gollum from the Lord of the Rings Trilogy and The Hobbit. Like most sympathetic villains it takes quite some time to discover Gollum's past, [SPOILER ALERT] but once we do we certainly feel for him in his experience of being twisted for centuries by the addictive power of the ring.

So who is your favorite sympathetic villain? Try to pick just one but if you must break the rules like me and go with two, I won't really mind.