This work gets its namesake from the Edda Poetica. This Prose Edda is similar and different from the ancient poems of Nordic nations. Sturluson's version is not only mythic in quality but also blatantly academic, helping the reader to understand poetry better by explaining through prose what poetry really is, and how it works on a technical level. He is attempting to preserve the scholastic endeavor.
That means that his efforts are simultaneously philosophical, religious, historical, and artistic, all in one package. He does include ancient mythology, especially the creation myths, the origin of the Danish nation, and other minor tales of a similar flavor. But then, he includes a passage of art theory among the gods. Because the gods are the voices discussing art theory, the implication is that Sturluson is attempting to truly capture the essence and goal of human poetry.
The purpose of poetry is to respond to the problem of time and human life, because humans are dying, but the writings of ages past are still preserved. So, poetry represents something literal and tangible to Sturluson: It represents legacy and the quest for meaning in the human life. Therefore, The Prose Edda is not primarily a work of mythology. It is first a work of pedagogy and academy, an attempt to normalize poetry as a tool among the people.
