The Trickster and the Troll

The Trickster and the Troll by Virginia Driving Hawk Sneve is a folk tale from two cultures. Written to reflect the stories of her children's cultures - Lakota and Norwegian - it is the story of what happens to when people stop believing in the stories of their heritage.

Troll moved from Norway with his human family. He went because the mother asked him to watch her sons as they moved to a new land. Troll always do what mother ask of them.

But along the way Troll gets lost. When wondering on the plains looking for his family he stumbles across Iktomi - the Lakota Trickster. Where as Trolls may be mischievous or wicked and are usually gentle and helpful, Iktomi is truly a trickster. He lies and cheats to better lesser beings, including humans. He never does what he can make someone else do for him. And he never learns from his mistakes. Although his other side is Ksa, wisdom, in this story only Iktomi is present.

Iktomi agrees to help Troll find his humans. Once they are found, Iktomi goes to find the Lakota. But he cannot. They are no longer within the ancient grounds. They have been moved to a reservation.

Both Troll and Iktomi find that their people no longer believe in them. What will the tricksters do when they have no humans? How will they survive? And will they be around when later generations hear of their stories or will they be only a memory?

Sneve, Virginia Driving Hawk. (1997). The Tirckster and the Troll. Lincoln, NE: University of Nebraska Press.