Maggie Yang, Period 1, 12/20/23

Maggie Yang, Period 1, 12/20/23
Modern Mythology 2024

Literature Circle - Modern Myths

Although he is not the main character in The Witch's Heart by Genevieve Gornichec, my strongest feelings about this novel stemmed from how Loki was characterized. His notorious moniker as “God of Mischief” and “the trickster god” meant that I initially eyed him warily, but seeing him through the eyes of Angrboda, who seemed to fall for him immediately, I found myself split between two opinions.

Similarly to Skadi, who chastised both Angrboda’s absent husband and the trickster in Asgard (who, unbeknownst to her, were the same person), I couldn’t fully forgive him for his actions when he killed Skadi’s father, or when he left Angrboda alone for far longer than she should have been. But, Skadi did not see the same side of Loki that Angrboda could see. As a lover, as a husband, or as a father. Especially during Hel’s childhood, he showed so much love to his wife and his daughter that I could hardly believe that he would have been able to stomach having another wife and two other children in Asgard. With all of these different faces he put up, it was impossible to tell who was the “true” Loki, or if there even was one at all. Even now, after finishing the novel, I can’t tell if he loved Angrboda, Hel, Fenrir, and Jormungand, who he could be free with, more than Sigyn, Narfi, and Vali, who he depended on to maintain his status in Asgard. Ultimately, he betrayed both sides in the end.

Loki’s major decisions only add more to the mystery. When a threat to his position in Asgard appears, he reveals Angrboda’s location to the gods and destroys the safe haven she had built for their children. Their children who he himself had called monstrous were taken and sealed away. If not for Angrboda’s ancient and powerful magic, she would have died as well. Despite doing this to seemingly secure his status, he still plans Baldur’s death and causes the deaths of Narfi and Vali. He dooms Sigyn to eternal pain. At the very end, he sides against the Asgardians he worked so hard to gain favor with. He fights along his sons–the great wolf, Fenrir, and the World Serpent, Jormungand–who he had previously betrayed, and brings safety to the ruler of the underworld, Hel. His actions are questionable at best, and I can’t see the line of reason that he follows. Maybe it was another joke that went too far, or a punishment that he didn’t realize was too much to handle. A thought that crossed my mind was that perhaps he didn’t love either of his families and was always acting with his own self interest in mind. Or, keeping with the theme of fate present in Norse mythology, it could have been forced upon him by the prophecy of Ragnarok.

Gornichec has managed to write a character that I both love and despise, yet, even if Loki’s true allegiance could be uncovered, this is only one version of Loki that we see. In reality, Loki was a figure created several millennia ago, and we may never know of his true nature. Now, at least I can begin to understand more about about the legends of the gods and monsters of Norse mythology, and the apocalypse which is clouded in so much uncertainty that no one knows if it has happened, will happen, or will never happen at all.