Download or read book Hermes the Thief written by Norman Oliver Brown and published by SteinerBooks. This book was released on 1990 with total page 182 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Hermes is a vital and complex figure in Greek mythology--trickster and culture hero, divine child and patron of stealthy action, master of magic words, seducer and whisperer. Shepherd, artisan, herald, musician, athlete, merchant--who is this tricky shape-shifter, confronting us at every turn? In this classic, prescient work (first published in 1947 and foreshadowing all subsequent work greeting the return of the gods), Brown asks: Is Hermes the Thief the prototype from which, by extension and analogy, the Trickster was derived? Alternatively, is the notion of trickery the fundamental idea and theft merely a specific manifestation of it? This thoughtful study will be of interest to anyone wishing a fresh view of an important, often misunderstood, character of Greek mythology.