Date of Award
1-1-2016
Document Type
Masters Thesis
Degree Name
M.A.
Organizational Unit
College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences, Lamont School of Music
First Advisor
John J. Sheinbaum, Ph.D.
Second Advisor
Gregory Robbins, Ph.D.
Third Advisor
Jonathan Leathwood
Keywords
Duality, Leitmotif, Siegfried, Wagner
Abstract
The character Siegfried, much like the whole of Richard Wagner's The Ring of the Nibelung, is open to interpretation by scholars and critics from a variety of different perspectives. Although these interpretations often reflect the historical, political, and cultural circumstances of their times, they nevertheless claim some legitimacy by appealing to the musical and dramatic texts of the Ring for evidence. This thesis examines Wagner's conception of Siegfried and different historical perceptions of the character, discusses ambiguity both in the drama and in the music itself, and suggests a reading of Siegfried as having a dual purpose: that of a concrete, free-willed agent (the Man) and that of an idealized hero serving a necessary role in the larger context of the drama (the Idea). The thesis concludes with a four-part analysis of Siegfried Act III, Scene ii that compares four readings of the character, three supporting different historical readings and one grounded in the Man/Idea duality.
Publication Statement
Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.
Rights Holder
Elizabeth Mary Szott
Provenance
Received from ProQuest
File Format
application/pdf
Language
en
File Size
93 p.
Recommended Citation
Szott, Elizabeth Mary, "Man and Idea: Complexity and Duality in the Hero of Wagner's "Ring"" (2016). Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 1162.
https://digitalcommons.du.edu/etd/1162
Copyright date
2016
Discipline
Music