Character Analysis: How Stories Came To Earth

In trickster tales, another common element of these stories is the usage of “brain over brawn.” The purpose of brain over brawn is where the character may lack some physical strength, but makes up for it by outsmarting whomever it is going up against. In “How Stories Came to Earth,” Anansi was not the most immense character, but he was able to capture Osebo the leopard by convincing him to put his paws on the sticks he planted on the outside of the hole. He was then able to wrap a string of webs around his paws and take him to the sky-god. This is a prime example, considering that it displays how Anansi was much more petite than the leopard, but he was still capable of capturing him. In “Coyote Steals Fire,” it is said that “Coyote was able
to pull the outer part of his body off.” This enabled him to depart from the external part of his body, which was neighboring Thunder, and run a distance away from him. This ultimately led to Thunder trying to destroy his “shell” rather than Coyote himself. This is another good example of brain over brawn due to the fact that he was able to outmaneuver Thunder to save his life, rather than endure a duel with him. Lastly, in “Puss in Boot”, Master Cat was able to persuade the ogre to transform into a rat by saying, “I’ve heard, for example, that you can change into a rat or a mouse. I confess that seems utterly impossible to me.” This permitted Master Cat to devour the ogre and seize the kingdom for his Master, hence showing brain over brawn. Brain over brawn is one of the most exciting and entertaining elements found in trickster tales.