A Comparison Of Anti-Semitism By Richard Wagner

Richard Wagner and 19th Century Anti-Semitism Western Civilization has no set definition that is universally accepted. The subject can be broadly characterized as a study of history and culture in the western region of the world. Correspondingly, there is no precise meaning behind the works of 19th century German composer Richard Wagner (1813-1883) as pieces of art are open to interpretation. However, it is abundantly clear that Wagner is directly associated with anti-Semitism, a term coined in the late 19th century in Germany that can be generally defined as a hatred or hostility against Jews and their Jewish heritage. In more recent years, Wagner’s musical compositions and works of art are often portrayed as anti-Semitic due to the large following of
Paul Lawrence Rose states the following in his study about Wagner: “‘Wagner is a first example of the baffling transition from the atheistic, social radicalism of a barricade fighter in 1848 to extreme racist antisemitism and to poetry of the pagan Germanic myth.’ There seem indeed to be two Wagners: one the revolutionary, freedom- loving Wagner; the other the reactionary, racist Wagner. Which, it is often asked, is the true Wagner?” (Rose 1).
Also evident is the notion of Wagner as an effective performer who spoke to his audience and entertained them through witty and brass comments on society. This evidence is supported in a study by Marc Weiner about the “Anti-Semitic Imagination” of Wagner. Weiner states: “Nineteenth-century audiences were sensitive and receptive to the racist implications of Wagner’s musical material for the Nibelungs…The ‘hissing and gurgling’ of Jewish speech that Wagner emphasizes in ‘Das Judentum in der Musik’ is discernible in the violent interlocution of the Nibelungs in large part because much of their exchange is set to a staccato and dissonant music in the upper half of their vocal registers”