Richard Wagner has come to be seen as the quintessential artist of the nineteenth century. Borchmeyer here provides the first systematic and comprehensive account of Wagner's aesthetic theory, examining his hitherto neglected prose writings and his ideas on music drama from the various standpoints of literature, the linking of ideas, and the sociology of art. The preeminent importance for Wagner of classical Greek art and mythology emerges with particular clarity, while his links with the great figures and forms of world theatre-- Shakespeare, the commedia dell'arte, the popular theatre, and the puppet theatre--are traced in detail. The influence on Wagner of the historical and social novel is also discussed. The author provides the first comprehensive analysis of Cosima Wagner's Diaries, and throws unexpected sidelights on Wagner's relationship with Nietzsche, in particular his important contribution to Nietzsche's The Birth of Tragedy.

Richard Wagner: Theory and Theatre

Biographies & Memoirs

Spencer, Stewart

Borchmeyer, Dieter

Arts & Literature

Clarendon Press

Richard Wagner continues to be the most controversial artist in history, a perpetually troubling figure in our cultural consciousness. The unceasing debate over his works and their impact--for and against--is one reason why there has been no genuinely comprehensive modern account of his musical dramas until now. Dieter Borchmeyer's book is the first to present an overall picture of these musical dramas from the standpoint of literary and theatrical history. It extends from the composer's early works--still largely ignored--to the Ring Cycle and Parsifal, and includes Wagner's unfinished works and operas he never set to music. Through lively prose, we come to see Wagner as a librettist--and as a man of letters--rather than primarily as musical composer.
Borchmeyer uncovers a vast field of cultural and historical cross-references in Wagner's works. In the first part of the book, he sets out in search of the various archetypal scenes, opening up the composer's dramatic workshop to the reader. He covers all of Wagner's operas, from early juvenilia to the canonical later works.
The second part examines Wagner in relation to political figures including King Ludwig II and Bismarck, and, importantly, in light of critical reactions by literary giants--Thomas Mann, whom Borchmeyer calls "a guiding light in this exploration of the fields that Wagner tilled," and Nietzsche, whose appeal to "philology" is a key source of inspiration in attempts to grapple with Wagner's works.
For more than twenty years, Borchmeyer has placed his scholarship at the service of the famed Bayreuth Festival. With this volume, he gives us a summation of decades of engagement with the phenomenon of Wagner and, at the same time, the result of an abiding critical passion for his works.

Drama and the World of Richard Wagner

Community & Culture

Princeton University Press

Richard Wagner: Werk - Leben - Zeit

Reclam Philipp Jun.

Goethe. Werke in sechs Bänden. Jubiläumsausgabe.

GOETHE, JOHANN WOLFGANG VON

Simm, Hans-Joachim

Dewitz, Hans-Georg

Apel, Friedmar

Birus, Hendrik

Insel, Frankfurt

Sämtliche Werke, Briefe, Tagebücher und Gespräche, (Ln) 40 Bde., Bd.5, Dramen 1776-1790

Huber, Peter

Deutscher Klassiker Verlag

Die Frage «Was ist deutsch?» ist ihrerseits typisch deutsch – keine andere Nation hat so sehr um die eigene Identität gerungen und tut es bis heute. Wie vielfältig und faszinierend die Antworten auf diese Frage im Lauf der Jahrhunderte ausfielen, das zeigt Dieter Borchmeyer: Von Goethe über Wagner bis zu Thomas Mann schildert er, wie der Begriff des Deutschen sich wandelte und immer wieder neue Identitäten hervorbrachte. Er erzählt von einem Land zwischen Weltbürgertum und nationaler Überheblichkeit, vom deutschen Judentum, das unsere Auffassung des Deutschen wesentlich mitgeprägt hat, von der Karriere der Nationalhymne und der deutschesten aller Sehnsüchte: der nach dem Süden. Borchmeyer erklärt, wie gerade die deutsche Provinz – etwa Weimar und Bayreuth – Weltkultur schaffen konnte und was es für Deutschland bedeutet, sich entweder als Staats- oder als Kulturnation zu verstehen. 
Dieter Borchmeyer zeichnet ein facettenreiches und eindrückliches Bild des deutschen Nationalcharakters. In einer Zeit der Umbrüche, in der Deutschland wieder einmal seine Rolle sucht, ist diese große Geschichte der deutschen Selbstsuche Spiegelbild und Wegweiser zugleich.

Was ist deutsch?: Die Suche einer Nation nach sich selbst

Rowohlt Berlin

Weimarer Klassik.

Beltz-Athenaeum

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