Trickster is both a Creator and a Destroyer. He is a symbol of the radical and marginalized, as he proves that survival in the face of devastation is possible. Read books about Trickster as this character appears in mythology and literature from around the world.
1. Trickster Makes This World : Mischief, Myth & Art
by Lewis Hyde. North Point Press. From the publisher: "In Greece, Hermes the Thief invented the art of sacrifice, the trick of making fire, and even language itself. Hyde revisits these old stories, then holds them up against the life and work of more recent creators: Picasso, Marcel Duchamp, John Cage, Allen Ginsberg, Maxine Hong Kingston, Frederick Douglass, and others."
2. American Indian Trickster Tales
by Richard Erdoes (Editor), Alfonso Ortiz (Editor). Penguin Putnam. From the publisher: "Of all the characters in myths and legends told around the world through the centuries - courageous heroes, scary monsters, rapturous virgins - it's the Trickster who provides the real spark in the action. And nowhere is he more central to the story than in Native American folklore."
3. The Universal Myths: Heroes, Gods, Tricksters and Others
by Alexander Eliot, Joseph Campbell, and Mircea Eliade. Dutton Signet. From the publisher: "Crossing the boundaries of time, religion, and culture, universal myths have provided inspiration and guidance for countless generations- laying a foundation for the religious, social, and political heritage of nations and peoples since the beginning of time."4. Trickster in West Africa: A Study of Mythic Irony and Sacred Delight
by Robert D. Pelton. University of California Press. From the publisher: "The trickster appears in the myths and folktales of nearly every traditional society. Robert Pelton examines Ashanti, Fon, Yoruba, and Dogon trickster-figures in their social and mythical contexts..."5. Mythical Trickster Figures: Contours, Contexts, and Criticisms
by William J. Hynes (Editor), and William G. Doty (Editor). University of Alabama Press. From the publisher: "Contributions by leading scholars treat a wide range of manifestations of this mischievous character, ranging from the Coyote of the American Southwest to such African figures as Eshu-Elegba and Ananse, the Japanese Susa-no-o, the Greek Hermes, Christian adaptations of Saint Peter..."6. Trickster in the Land of Dreams
by Zeese Papanikolas. University of Nebraska Press. From the publisher: "Zeese Papanikolas forges seemingly disparate events and movements in western history - including some of its strangest and most exotic strains - into a coherent whole by examining them against the laughter and wisdom of Shoshonean trickster tales."7. The Trickster: A Study in American Indian Mythology
by Paul Radin, C G. Jung, and Karl Kerâenyi. Greenwood Publishing Group. From the publisher: "Anthropological and psychological analysis by Radin Kereny and Jung of the voraciously uninhibited episodes of the Winnebego Trickster cycle."8. Yoruba Trickster Tales
by Oyekan Owomoyela. University of Nebraska Press. From the publisher: "Yoruba Trickster Tales comes out of the tradition of evening storytelling, a popular form of entertainment in traditional African societies. A favorite genre among these folktales is the trickster tale, variations of which are found in many cultures around the world."9. A Ring of Tricksters: Animal Tales from America, the West Indies, and
by Virginia Hamilton, Barry Moser (Illustrator). Scholastic. From the publisher: This book includes "twelve trickster tales that show the migration of African culture to America via the West Indies."10. From Trickster to Badman: The Black Folk Hero in Slavery and Freedom
by John W. Roberts. University of Pennsylvania Press. From the publisher: "Roberts specifically examines the Afro-American trickster and the trickster tale tradition, the conjurer as folk hero, the biblical heroic tradition, and the badman as outlaw hero."