Wagner's Ring and German Drama: Comparative Studies in Mythology and History in Drama [Hardcover]

Wagner'sRing, an important phenomenon of the German drama tradition, is situated and examined alongside other major works of the canon. Wagner defines tragedy as a mythological drama. The theoretical foundation of theRingis a complex dialectic of history and myth. By contrasting theRingwith the dramas of Schiller, Hebbel, Hofmannsthal, and Brecht different facets of Wagner's work are uniquely highlighted beyond theoretical generalizations or broad overviews. This series of comparisons offers fresh insight into the interrelationships of theRingwith the previous German drama tradition, and also investigates its influence on twentieth-century drama and opera.

Scholars of German literature and culture will appreciate this innovative interpretation and study of theRing. New ideas proposed include the suggestions that Schiller'sWallensteintrilogy might have served as a covert source for theRingand thatAriadne auf NaxosandMahagonnyrepresent parodies of theRing. The theory underlying theRingwill attract musicologists and interdisciplinary literary scholars interested in the interrelationship between words and music and literature and opera.

Preface
Introduction: On Finding Mythical-Historical Parallels Between Music-Drama, Spoken Drama, and Opera
Wagner and the Eighteenth Century: History and Myth, Tasso and Tannh?user, Wotan and Wallenstein
The Nibelung Legend in the Nineteenth Century: Wagner and Hebbel
Br?nnhilde on Naxos: A Study of the Wagnerian Influence on Hofmannsthal's Dramas and the Hofmannsthal-Strauss Dramas
Wagner and Brecht, or, Show Me the Way to Nibelheim, O Don't Ask Why, O Don't Ask Why
Conclusions: History or Myth?
Literature