29 more in the appendix. German passages are not translated. Bibliography of
about 75 entries, name and title index.Der Ring des Nibelungen: The Cycle
2034.New Studies in Richard Wagner’s “The Ring of the Nibelung.”Ed. Herbert
Richardson. Lewiston, N.Y.: Edwin Mellen, 1991. viii, 189p. ISBN 0-88946-
445-6. ML410 .W2 N49.
Nine papers given at a symposium in Seattle in 1987, many taking up unusual
aspects of the cycle: William O. Cord, “On Dwarves and Giants and Wagner’s
Ring”; John Daverio, “Wagner’s Ringas ‘Universal Poetry’”; Richard Justin,
“Darwin, Marx, Wagner: Dialectical Materialism in the Ring”; John C. Long,
“The Rhinemaidens of the Waste Land: T. S. Eliot’s Waste Landand Richard
Wagner’s Ring of the Nibelung”; Robert C. Martin, “Wagner’s Ring: A Door-
way to Perception”; William E. Grim, “Did Wagner Create Hitler? Reflections
on the Influence of the Ringon Modern German History”; Ruth Koheil and
Herbert Richardson, “Why Brünnhilde Is the True Hero of the RingCycle: An
Analysis of Her Psychological Development”; and two that are entered sepa-
rately: Sandra Corse on authority (#2051) and Brian Henderson on Finnegans
Wake(#2052).- Cord, William H.An Introduction to Richard Wagner’s “Der Ring des
Nibelungen”: A Handbook. Athens: Ohio U. Press, 1983. 163p. ISBN 0-8214-
0648-5. ML410 .W1 A289.
A convenient general introduction in popular style, giving sensible program
notes on each opera. No musical examples or analysis. Chronological table for
Wagner’s works, with dates of literary sources, sketches, premieres, etc. Discog-
raphy of complete recordings, bibliography of about 150 English-language writ-
ings. No index. - Holman, J. K. Wagner’s “Ring”: A Listener’s Companion and Concordance.
Portland, Ore.: Amadeus, 1996. 440p. ISBN 1-57467-014-X. ML410 .W22
H65.
A useful handbook of varied information, dealing with the myth, story, gene-
sis, characters, language, and staging. Identification of 145 motives and a con-
cordance of key words (in English translation only) that leads to text locations
for each appearance. Also long comments on the recordings. Backnotes and
index. - Donington, Robert. Wagner’s “Ring” and Its Symbols: The Music and the
Myth.Rev. ed. New York: St. Martin’s, 1974. 342p. ML410 .W15 D6.
First edition, 1963. German translation as Richard Wagners “Ring des
Nibelungen” und seine Symbole: Musik und Mythos (Stuttgart: Reclam,
1976). One of the most controversial books in opera literature. Donington
presents an ingenious interpretation of the story and characters in psychoana-
lytic (mostly Jungian) terms. For instance, Fricka is said to personify Wotan’s
superego. Provocative musical analyses follow from the author’s premises;
there are 91 examples of motives with discussion. Annotated bibliography of
380 Opera