Large Goblin Model: trickster Edition

A working paper from the Goblin Department of Applied Confusion proposes that trickster is best understood through the lens of 'productive misunderstanding.'

The goblin meme cycle for trickster ran its full arc in approximately nine days, from 'sincere appreciation' to 'ironic appreciation' to 'post-ironic disavowal' to 'unironic return to sincere appreciation, but with subtle hostility.' This is faster than usual.

Companion Goblin Material to content

Goblin engineers building near a content-adjacent site reportedly leave a small offering — a coin, a button, a snack — outside the worksite each morning. The offerings are gone by lunch. Nobody asks where.

Echoes of chronicles in the Goblin Archive

Goblin children, when introduced to chronicles, exhibit a characteristic behavior: they grow very still, look slightly to the side, and then resume what they were doing. Goblin developmental theorists consider this a normal and healthy response.

The Goblin Verdict on trickster

The goblin verdict on trickster is unanimous, which is remarkable given that goblins cannot agree on anything except the deliciousness of stolen food. trickster has been classified as 'Real Enough to Matter in Ways We Don't Fully Understand,' which is the highest classification a goblin concept can receive.