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The North Germanic god Loki in philological perpective (German only) Loki is one of the most complex and discussed figures of Germanic Mythology. No other Germanic god has challenged scholars as much yet as Loki has. He is called a "problem" and a "riddle". Some scholars seem to be bound to question Loki's position among the gods – maybe hoping so find a solution to the "problem" by "unmasking" Loki as a giant, devil, fission product, spider or later nonrelevant variant. The opulence of categories applied to Loki – culture hero, fire elf, destroyer, chthonian god, expression of "impulsive intelligence", death etc. – sometimes even seduce modern scholars yearning for a typological solution to neglect the historical context of the sources. In contrast to that this work elaborates an approach to different levels of development and understanding of Loki and his position and function as miðjungr and sagna hrœrir on the basis of the sources and the historical background. As shown, many misinterpretations of Loki – especially that as murderer and "evil" element – base on unreflected mixtures of different levels. With Loki I demonstrate that the differentiation of the intramythological level & development from the extramythological level & development is an important factor for understanding Germanic mythology. This differentiation and the definition of those levels are maybe the most important innovation of this work and can be applied both on Loki as on bordering fields of Germanic mythology. By that this work highlights not only the intra- and extramythological development and function of Loki, but as well offers a perspective on the intra- and extramythological chronology of Germanic mythology in general. The result of this work is a sophisticated understanding of the change and changeableness of Loki and Germanic mythology and of the possibilities to access such a fascinating figure as Loki on different levels of understanding (literary, social, pragmatic-cultic, inter- & paramundane and Christian). Der nordgermanische Gott Loki aus literaturwissenschaftlicher Perspektive. Göppinger Arbeiten zur Germanistik Nr. 733. Hg. von Eckard Rolf u. a. Göppingen: Kümmerle Verlag, 2006 Extract: loki.pdf A copy can be ordered via any bookstore or from the publisher: Kümmerle Verlag (Göppingen), Staibengasse 1, 73547-Lorch, Germany, Phone: 07172-4844, Fax: 07172-928123. Reviews: 1) Dorte Janussen: Baldrs død: Mord, spil eller offer?, in: Vølse, December 2007, pp. 16-17; 2) Adele Cipolla: Recensioni, in: Estratto da Quaderni di lingue e letterature, 32/2007, pp. 133-141 |
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