Wagner's Ring cycle and the Greeks Daniel H. Foster

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Foster, Daniel H., 1967-

Series:

Cambridge studies in opera

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Wagner, Richard, 1813-1883. Ring des Nibelungen.

Wagner, Richard.

Ring des Nibelungen (Wagner, Richard).

Physical Description:

1 online resource

Other Title:

Ring cycle and the Greeks

Place of Publication:

Cambridge, UK New York Cambridge University Press 2010

Language Note:

English

Summary:

Through his reading of primary and secondary classical sources, as well as his theoretical writings, Richard Wagner developed a Hegelian-inspired theory linking the evolution of classical Greek politics and poetry. This book demonstrates how, by turning theory into practice, Wagner used this evolutionary paradigm to shape the music and the libretto of the Ring cycle. Foster describes how each of the Ring's operas represents a particular phase of Greek poetic and political development: Das Rheingold and Die Walküre create epic national identity in its earlier and later stages respectively; Siegfried expresses lyric personal identity; and Götterdämmerung destructively culminates with a tragi-comedy about civic identity. This study sees the Greeks through the lens of those scholars whose work influenced Wagner most, focusing on epic, lyric, and comedy, as well as Greek tragedy. Most significantly, the book interrogates the ways in which Wagner uses Greek aesthetics to further his own ideological goals

Contents:

Introduction

pt. 1. Epic. Introduction: what is epic? ; Retrospective narrative and the epic process ; The orchestral narrator and elementary epic ; Spiritual and factual realities in epic

pt. 2. Lyric. Introduction: what is lyric? ; Orpheus and lyric liberation ; First-person opera and lyric identity ; Lyric and the rebirth of tragedy

pt. 3. Drama. Introduction: what is drama? ; Opera and tragedy ; Opera and comedy ; Resolution and ambiguity in comedy and tragedy

Epilogue: Time, the Ring, and performance studies

Appendices: Wagner's primary and secondary sources. Appendix A. Wagner's primary sources ; Appendix B. Secondary scholarship by authors Wagner knew personally ; Appendix C. Secondary scholarship by authors Wagner knew by reputation or by reading

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 352-362) and index

Print version record

Other Format:

Print version Foster, Daniel H., 1967- Wagner's Ring cycle and the Greeks

ISBN:

9780511677175

0511677170

0511681666

9780511681660

9780511686153

0511686153

9780511682728

0511682727

051167628X

9780511676284

9780521517393

0521517397

0511739516

9780511739514

1107206731

9781107206731

1282536125

9781282536128

9786612536120

6612536128

0511678436

9780511678431

0511683642

9780511683640

0511679688

9780511679681

OCLC:

667096523

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license