Death-Devoted Heart:Sex and the Sacred in Wagner's Tristan and Isolde

Sex and the Sacred in Wagner's Tristan and Isolde

Nonfiction, Entertainment, Music, Music Styles, Classical & Opera, Opera, Religion & Spirituality, Philosophy, Aesthetics
Cover of the book Death-Devoted Heart:Sex and the Sacred in Wagner's Tristan and Isolde by Roger Scruton, Oxford University Press, USA
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Roger Scruton ISBN: 9780199986989
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA Publication: November 20, 2003
Imprint: Oxford University Press Language: English
Author: Roger Scruton
ISBN: 9780199986989
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
Publication: November 20, 2003
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Language: English

A tale of forbidden love and inevitable death, the medieval legend of Tristan and Isolde recounts the story of two lovers unknowingly drinking a magic potion and ultimately dying in one another's arms. While critics have lauded Wagner's Tristan and Isolde for the originality and subtlety of the music, they have denounced the drama as a "mere trifle"--a rendering of Wagner's forbidden love for Matilde Wesendonck, the wife of a banker who supported him during his exile in Switzerland. Death-Devoted Heart explodes this established interpretation, proving the drama to be more than just a sublimation of the composer's love for Wesendonck or a wistful romantic dream. Scruton boldly attests that Tristan and Isolde has profound religious meaning and remains as relevant today as it was to Wagner's contemporaries. He also offers keen insight into the nature of erotic love, the sacred qualities of human passion, and the peculiar place of the erotic in our culture. His argument touches on the nature of tragedy, the significance of ritual sacrifice, and the meaning of redemption, providing a fresh interpretation of Wagner's masterpiece. Roger Scruton has written an original and provocative account of Wagner's music drama, which blends philosophy, criticism, and musicology in order to show the work's importance in the twenty-first century.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

A tale of forbidden love and inevitable death, the medieval legend of Tristan and Isolde recounts the story of two lovers unknowingly drinking a magic potion and ultimately dying in one another's arms. While critics have lauded Wagner's Tristan and Isolde for the originality and subtlety of the music, they have denounced the drama as a "mere trifle"--a rendering of Wagner's forbidden love for Matilde Wesendonck, the wife of a banker who supported him during his exile in Switzerland. Death-Devoted Heart explodes this established interpretation, proving the drama to be more than just a sublimation of the composer's love for Wesendonck or a wistful romantic dream. Scruton boldly attests that Tristan and Isolde has profound religious meaning and remains as relevant today as it was to Wagner's contemporaries. He also offers keen insight into the nature of erotic love, the sacred qualities of human passion, and the peculiar place of the erotic in our culture. His argument touches on the nature of tragedy, the significance of ritual sacrifice, and the meaning of redemption, providing a fresh interpretation of Wagner's masterpiece. Roger Scruton has written an original and provocative account of Wagner's music drama, which blends philosophy, criticism, and musicology in order to show the work's importance in the twenty-first century.

More books from Oxford University Press, USA

Cover of the book Oxford American Handbook of Urology by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book The Posthumous Memoirs of Bras Cubas by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book Ethics in Psychology and the Mental Health Professions : Standards and Cases by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book Dinner with Lenny: The Last Long Interview with Leonard Bernstein by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book Armageddon Averted : Soviet Collapse, 1970-2000 by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book Desert Christians:An Introduction to the Literature of Early Monasticism by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book Paul Revere's Ride by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book The Quantum Ten: A Story of Passion, Tragedy, Ambition, and Science by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book Apocalyptic AI:Visions of Heaven in Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, and Virtual Reality by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book Cleopatra:A Biography by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book Music In The Seventeenth And Eighteenth Centuries by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book Affective Neuroscience : The Foundations of Human and Animal Emotions by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book The Jewish Teachers of Jesus, James, and Jude:What Earliest Christianity Learned from the Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book Taking Our Country Back: The Crafting of Networked Politics from Howard Dean to Barack Obama by Roger Scruton
Cover of the book How To Think Like a Neandertal by Roger Scruton
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy