The Ring of Truth: The Wisdom of Wagner's Ring of the Nibelung

Wagner #2

by Roger Scruton

The vital, carefully crafted discussion on Wagner’s masterpiece, offering deep insight into both the work itself and profound perspective on certain key philosophical questions

Richard Wagner’s Ring of the Nibelung is one of the greatest works of art created in modern times, and has fascinated both critics and devotees for over a century and a half. No recent study has examined the meaning of Wagner's masterpiece with the attention to detail and intellectual power that Roger Scruton brings to it in this inspiring account.

The Ring of Truth is an exploration of the drama, music, symbolism and philosophy of the Ring from a writer whose knowledge and understanding of the Western musical tradition are the equal of his capacities as a philosopher. Scruton shows how, through musical connections and brilliant dramatic strokes, Wagner is able to express truths about the human condition which few other creative artists have been able to convey so convincingly. For Wagner, writes Scruton, the task of art is to “show us freedom in its immediate, contingent, human form, reminding us of what it means to us. Even if we live in a world from which gods and heroes have disappeared we can, by imagining them, dramatize the deep truths of our condition and renew our faith in what we are.”

Love, death, sacrifice and the liberation that we win through sacrifice—these are the great themes of the Ring, as they are of this book. Scruton's passionate and moving interpretation allows us to understand more fully than ever how Wagner conveys his ideas about who we are, and why the Ring continues to be such a hypnotically absorbing work.

Genres: Music, Philosophy, Nonfiction, History, Germany, Art, Classical Music

416 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 9, 2016

About the author

Sir Roger Scruton was a writer and philosopher who has published more than forty books in philosophy, aesthetics and politics. He was a fellow of the British Academy and a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He taught in both England and America and was a Visiting Professor at Department of Philosophy and Fellow of Blackfriars Hall, Oxford, he was also a Senior Fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, Washington D.C.

In 2015 he published two books, The Disappeared and later in the autumn, Fools Frauds and Firebrands. Fools Frauds and Firebrands is an update of Thinkers of the New Left published, to widespread outrage, in 1986. It includes new chapters covering Lacan, Deleuze and Badiou and some timely thoughts about the historians and social thinkers who led British intellectuals up the garden path during the last decades, including Eric Hobsbawm and Ralph Miliband.

In 2016 he again published two books, Confessions of A Heretic (a collection of essays) and The Ring of Truth, about Wagner’s Ring cycle, which was widely and favourably reviewed. In 2017 he published On Human Nature (Princeton University Press), which was again widely reviewed, and contains a distillation of his philosophy. He also published a response to Brexit, Where We Are (Bloomsbury).

Reviews

[David]

Oh boy. I still have not listened to the Ring of the Nibelung, and I still consider this one of the best books I read in 2016. A brilliant analysis of Wagner, a powerful summary of his Ring operas, a masterclass on 19th century continental philosophy, and a compelling collection of wisdom on love, power, law, mutability, human life - there's a lot in this book that is worth reflecting on beyond any particular treatment of an opera or composer. Highly highly recommended.

[Robin Laiv]

Lõpp läks natukene käest ära...

Aga te võite minu, oluliselt lühemat, katsetust ka lugeda:
https://open.substack.com/pub/robinla...

[Dan Graser]

This is a strange book for me in that I have to sympathize with the very small group of people for whom this would be an appropriate text. When he decides to function as a modern philosopher of music, Roger Scruton speaks at a level that is far too technical for the lay-reader but also not nearly technical - in a musical sense - to be read as musicology or music theory. This is not to say he doesn't know his subject, but rather, the field he is operating in is one which most professional musicians don't recognize and most casual listeners will not see the need for.

The content of this work is wonderful for me, a professional musician who is an ardent lover of Wagnerian opera. There have been a few great works on the composer recently, the finest of which is from Alex Ross, "Wagnerism," and this book from Scruton focuses entirely on The Ring and an examination from the level of philosophy. Though he makes some technical musical arguments, the discussion here mainly stays at the philosophical and theological implications of the work's plot and the symbolism inherent in its characters. His examination of Wotan is particularly striking, though I found the Siegfried analysis lacking. He gives you a deft summary of the drama as well as some of the philosophical and aesthetic challenges from the likes of Nietzsche and Adorno.

So, to whom is this recommended? Well, if you are a musician who happens to enjoy Wagner, this will function as an interesting new level of discourse to which we are not frequently exposed in our theory/musicology curricula. For the casual fan of the operas? I think you will only enjoy this if you have some musical training, know the Ring inside and out from a musical and dramatic point of view, and are perfectly fine reading books that deal at the philosophical and psychological level as pertains to the experience of music and opera...I know, like I said earlier, a small group of people.

[Luiz H.S.L. de Vasconcellos]

Who else to appreciate a genius than another one?!

An uncommon work of analysis and criticism. And it is not only that we are seeing a saga revealed after the description of its origins - and detractors. It is not even the many comments on the importance of the music dimension for one interested in apprehending the manifest displayed of geniality. The whole book is about life, as we, humans, live it. The distress of our condition, the magnificence that it can achieve. Incomparable ... I lack words for expressing its dimension.

[Manuel Lorite Arauzo]

Maravilloso análisis filosófico, estético y en ocasiones musical, de la gran tetralogía del compositor germano. Indispensable.

[swodder]

This is a reasonable overview of The Ring and its philosophical themes. It covers all the main areas and offers some small amount of criticism of other interpretations that have been made of the cycle. Having previously read Scruton’s book on Tristan and Isolde (Death-Devoted Heart), which is far more revealing - though also more personal and speculative - I felt slightly let down but this more prosaic account of The Ring.

I may not have agreed with all the directions that the Tristan book followed but it was clever and insightful to experience. There isn’t a lot that anyone who is already familiar with the large amount of Ring cycle literature will pick up from this new work. However it’s still one of the best accounts that there is around and so if someone is not already familiar with other versions then Scruton’s pleasantly engrossing writing style is a good place to start. He is clearly a fan and the enthusiasm for the work comes across in every page.

I would also recommend Donington’s Jung analysis (Wagner's 'Ring' and its Symbols: The Music and the Myth) for a contrasting account.

[Will Fleming]

Scruton is unnervingly eager to dismiss Wagner's problematic anti-Semitism. He even uses the some-of-his-best-friends-were-Jews defense.

Aside from, it's certainly a worthwhile analysis of Wagner, although the style can be rather bombastic.

[Mariusz]

Being a Wagner fan, I was keen to explore the meanings embedded in the Ring cycle. Having read Richard Wagner’s biographies, and particularly aware of his solid grounding in the German philosophy of the 19th Century, I was reasonably certain that layers of philosophical thought must have been deposited by Wagner in this very important for him work. Given that the creation of the entire cycle took close to 30 years, it seemed probable that the work’s philosophical outlook may have evolved in line with the development of the German philosophical thought of the period, and with Wagner’s own views.

Roger Scruton’s work more than satiated my thirst. Layer after layer, in a methodical way, Scruton uncovers the hidden meanings deposited by Wagner. The parts of Wagner’s work whose meaning is mysterious, or which may appear incomplete, are projected against the backdrop of philosophical thought of the 19th Century, and Wagner’s own views expressed elsewhere, as a result of which these parts become complete and understandable. The author emphasises that the conclusions contained in the book have by no means been authorised by Wagner. They represent Scruton’s own detective work grounded in the history of philosophy and his own intellectual powers, the latter admired by many, regardless of his well-known strongly conservative views.

It is definitely not a book to be read by people who simply wish to understand better the story of the Ring. Having started my Ring-related literary exploits from Donnington’s “Wagner’s Ring and Its Symbols”, with Scruton’s work to follow, and only then intending to read Spencer’s “Wagner’s Ring of the Nibelung: A Companion”, I had to concede that exactly the opposite should have been done.

It is by no means a book which makes easy reading. Although concept formulation is delivered in very clear, and literarily beautiful, language, the density of concepts is such that it sometimes forces the reader to re-read passages again, and sometimes again still, in order to understand fully the author’s train of thought. Overall, a delight to read but best left for long evenings with nothing else to do.

[James]

This is an interesting book, but I think for totally the wrong reasons.
Roger Scruton, like me, is a devotee of Wagner. Interestingly, this book seemed to not be (I think?) aimed at musicians and opera singers like myself, but philosophers, or at least people who understood philosophical language.
An interesting thing about Wagner is that he wrote his libretti as well (should he have?), and the words hold just as much meaning as the music. I was interested to know what truth Scruton believed Wagner had found in the world, musical or not- what he believed the rampant anarchist Meister had revealed about us and our world.

This book completely lost me, however, when he asserted, quote: 'There are surely... few works of Christian theology that match Wagner's exploration of the Eucharist in Parsifal...' . This not only reveals that he is in the Wagner cult, but also shows that he has probably never read a single piece of Christian theology.
Parsifal is wonderful, but: if we assume that the term 'holy fool' was used by Wagner himself to describe Parsifal (a lot of Wagnerian terms just were not used by him, like 'Heldentenor' or 'Leitmotif'), that is just not correct- that's not what Parsifal is. A holy fool is not just a stupid person who happens to be, or in Parsifal's case, becomes, holy. It's way more complex than that. Therefore, as a piece of theology... Parsifal just isn't good! As an opera and work of art, or 'sacred festival stage play', it is formative and influential. As theology? No. You've lost me. Was this extreme statement made to provoke the ire of Christians, or does he actually believe it? I don't know, but I am afraid Catherine of Siena, Thomas Cranmer and John Chrysostom have more interesting things to say about the Eucharist.

It is interesting to read this book and see it as the work of a Wagner fan. It reveals the depth of devotion that the Wagnerians have for the Meister. It's just that it reveals it... not quite on purpose. Take it with a grain of salt.

[Davidg]

Like another reviewer, there was much of this that I didn't understand but would like to. Despite listening to, and performing,classical music for years, I don't have the musicological training to make the most of the chapter on music. And having tried to get my head round the history of Western Philosophy in the past, I still get my Hegel and Schopenhauer, etc confused.

Having seen Opera North's wonderful production last year, I was delighted to have an opportunity to broaden my understanding. I just wish I could hold all the leitmotifs in my head and recognise them when they appear. But is is good to have the music for them all. Now all I need is an annotated score,with them all marked.

I would have liked something more about how the death of the gods relates to the death of the Christian God, as proclaimed by Nietzsche. Scruton talks about Siegfried being the sacrifice that reunites Brunhild with Wotan, which does seem to also apply to the sacrifice of Jesus redeeming humankind. But there was no link given.

It sent me back to the music and I know I will have to read it again and hopefully grasp a little more.

[James Spencer]

I cannot say I enjoyed this. It is so full of jargon, unexplained concepts and assumptions of a high level of musical knowledge that at least for this reader I could not follow most of it. In fairness, I should have read it at my computer so I could play the motif's as Scruton discussed them but even then we would have been left with what I see as the worst of modern philosophy. Ironically at one point when discussing Wagner's view of the "redemptive task of art" (redemptive of what?) he says "This idea of the redeeming woman, of the Ewig-weibliche who lifts the man from his futile quests and offers him at last a consolation that is both sexual and metaphysical, begs for a psychoanalytic explanation, and there are many tedious commentators who have rushed to provide one." Scruton, Roger. The Ring of Truth: The Wisdom of Wagner's Ring of the Nibelung (p. 323). Harry N. Abrams. Kindle Edition. Ironic because he is IMHO just one more "tedious commentator."

[J.J. Rusz]

Roger Scruton’s analysis of the four operas that make up Richard Wagner’s Ring cycle is an attempt to counter modern productions uncomfortable with the composer’s mythological vision. This is by no means a quick read. Scruton patiently analyzes plots, motifs, themes, symbols, and more, assuming readers already familiar with the sprawling work and the controversies surrounding it. Wisely, I think, Scruton defers ultimately to the power of the music. The wisdom of the Ring is the experience itself, which even Nietzsche, Wagner’s harshest critic, could not entirely resist. Scruton is an intelligent guide.

[Chris Lira]

I only read part of this book page-to-page(the plot summaries sections); I only skimmed the other parts. This is not a book for the casual reader; this is a fairly scholarly analysis of Wagner's Ring Cycle operas. The author is a philosopher and there were some (for me, unreadable) sections on philosophy, and in-depth discussions on symbolism, etc. i should have just read a few Wikipedia articles on the operas rather than try to slog through this. YMMV, of course. If you are a lifelong Wagner fan who has seen multiple Ring Cycles, you may get more out of it than I did.

[Gaius]

I find Scruton's politics reprehensible, and yet his understanding and delineation of Wagner is profound. This, I'm sure, is one of the best books written about The Ring Cycle. It discusses all aspects of the work: music, themes, mythology, leitmotifs. It's written in that ideal middle-ground by being understandable for the layperson (such as myself) without trivializing the complexity of the ideas. I'd go as far as to say a book like this is almost essential if you want to "get" the operas; also get your hands on a translation of the libretto.

[Chris Maska]

The Truth of the Ring

For years, I have only been interested in orchestral versions of the Ring. I was not much interested in opera, particularly an opera loved by Nazis. Scuton's The Ring of Truth has changed that. The music is more complex than I imagined. Leitmotifs, that stand for characters and ideas are woven throughout the three operas. The music communicates unlike any other.

The message is not one I embrace, but it is not a racist message. I will not give it away, but only say that it is worth understanding.

[joan magrané]

L'he estat rellegint aquests dies, ara que l'Anell és la meva nova obsessió wagneriana. L'apartat on explica l'argument de la tetralogia és antològic i tot el contingut a propòsit del pensament (i història del pensament, en especial del segles XVIII i XIX alemanys: de Kant a Hegel) i de la música (anant més enllà dels tòpics de sempre fins al punt que segurament es fa bastant obscur per algú que no sàpiga gaire de música) és d'un nivell altíssim. Un llibre per tenir sempre a mà.

[Metodi Pachev]

A deep inquiry into the depths of the Wagnerian epic "The Ring of the Nibelung" involving philosophy, history, and music. Funny thing is that even though I learned a lot about the "Ring" (a favorite work of art of mine since a couple of years) now it seems even more enigmatic to me: the book reveals quite a lot, but Wagner's work is too complicated to be comprehensively analyzed.

[Bernat Lleixà]

Muy interesante libro sobre todo lo que rodea la estética de Wagner en relación al Anillo del Nibelungo. Algunas partes exige conocimientos musicales y otras partes cierta base de filosofía, pero se puede leer y comprender de forma relativamente fácil. Una buena forma de acercarse a esta destacada figura de la historia de la música y su obra más reconocida.

[E7boehm]

Good but may try to do to much. I think it started out as a nice read and ever more became a chore. I think Wagner may be better enjoyed than understood. It is very comprehensive but if you do not read scores or speak german you are constantly refreshing terms.

[Ben]

A knowledgeable and well written overview of the Ring, Wagner and Wagner's influences. Also sprinkled in is some of the beautiful sentimental babble Scruton can't help but fall into once in a while, which for my tastes is an added bonus.

[Ferhat Culfaz]

Over intellectualised and quite deep analysis of Wagner’s Ring Cycle. The leitmotifs are extensively covered but beyond third chapter is too much for most people.

[Steve Swanson]

Hard read

Helpful to understand all the background, main story points and characters, places and music intent but a challenges as a whole to read.

[Pablo]

Es interesante ver las razones por las que Wagner compuso su tetralogía de cierta forma, y por qué la música es como es; pero yo quiero ver/escuchar una ópera, no sacarme el grado en Ingeniería Aeronáutica. Gracias.

[Marks54]

Opera is a expensive acquired taste for me. I am further hindered by a lack of fluency in French, German, Russian, or Italian. I have become increasingly sympathetic to the deed to do homework in advance of attending a performance. A little bit of preparation generally goes a long way, especially if the music is really good. When the music is less accessible, more preparation is needed.

Then there is Wagner.

The Lyric began the Ring cycle this year and after an initial encounter with Wagner's Parsifal, I looked hard for a book that would provide an introduction to Wagner's four opera sequence. Scruton's book served this purpose well. It is a scholarly introduction to this complex work that provided historical background, introduced some of the critical tradition, tried hard to explain the complex of plot lines, and even provided an index of the varied musical themes that appear and reappear in these operas, along with some musical identifiers and some explanation of how the music fits with the story, setting, and characters.

So far, we have only seen Das Rheingold but I enjoyed the work immensely and did not feel left out. The book does a good job at identifying the layered meanings in the Ring cycle and there is a lot going on here, regardless of what one thinks about Wagner. This is a more academic than a popular treatment and so is a bit harder than it needs to be as a read. That is OK, since Wagner is clearly an acquired taste - at least for me. I fully intend to review Scruton's book as the series is presented and especially when it will be performed in its entirety in Chicago in 2020.

[Thomas]

This is fascinating, but it does help if you've seen the Ring Cycle. It helps even more if you're a musician or music scholar (I'm neither) and can understand terminology such as triad, diatonic scale, triadic arpeggio, chromatic / diminished chord, etc. At any rate, this goes more in depth than you ever though you could go with this tetralogy, impressive given how much ink has been spent on these operas over the decades. More than just a deep-dive into the music, it also goes deep on the philosophical etymology that informed Wagner's adapatation of the Old Norse sagas. Old Hegelians versus Young Hegelians? Who knew there was such a rivalry? Make it through this and you'll know more about Wotan, Freia, Fricka, Fafner, Fasolt, Siegfried, Brunnhilde et al. than anyone you know.

[Don McMorland]

Probably deserves more than 4 stars. My fault, but some of it was beyond my comprehension and some of it appeared to ramble and repeat more than seemed necessary. However I read it as I was approaching my fourth live performance of The Ring over several decades and after I had read much else about the work over many years. I found this book very valuable in advancing my understanding and thinking about The Ring and highly recommend it, though not for the Wagnerian novice.

[Chris Lawrence]

Quite astonishingly erudite on many levels. I can't say I understood it all, and I remember thinking a number of times as I read it that I'd need to read it all again to do it justice. I also wondered if some of the narrative (& musicological) transitions were more far-fetched than justified. But Scruton certainly knows his stuff, as I remember from Birkbeck.

[Tero W]

Definately no easy reading, and not always agreeable. But combines two areas of interest of mine: music and philosophy, and in very intriguing ways. Also, for a person who grew up in the seventies and faced a bit of cultural radicalism at school, the introduction to classics like Wagner is very refreshing.

[Flob]

I've been looking for a good book that sheds light on the Ring and this is it. I'm not completely convinced by the case for Wagner and I retain some of Nietzsche's opinion. Nevertheless the music is sublime.

[sadie]

fire