Wagner's operas in general, and the Ring cycle in particular, have been goading the criticising classes into print for a century and a half, with still no end in sight, but the sacrifice of all those trees has produced very little in the way of a critical consensus; not even on such basic matters as what the Ring is about. Many of the enthusiasts I know hold that there really isn't anything that the Ring is about. It is, they say, a bald tale, lacking verisimilitude, and populated by an unlikely gaggle of dwarves, giants, dragons, talking birds, flying horses, love potions, magic helmets and shopworn Norse deities. Neophytes are advised to close their eyes and listen to the music (remarkable by any standards) but not to read the supertitles.

LRB 5 August 2004 | PDF Download