Wagner's Rienzi and the creation of a people

Abstract

morality.) The events of the plot are, understandably, condensed and simplified in Wagner's libretto. (Incidentally, this was one of the first popularly successful operas whose libretto was written by the composer.) Some of these changes go beyond mere simplification and are quite significant for the opera's politics. Rienzi's fall from his office of tribune, his subsequent regaining of power, and his declaration of himself as senator are omitted in the opera. The Rienzi of the novel, as several commentators have noted, is not the single-minded fanatic we see in Wagner. He is married to the aristocratic Nina di Raselli, whose role is admittedly limited to support for her husband's political ambitions; however, she at least provides Rienzi with private sphere, thus humanizing his character. Irene does appear in the novel, and her romance with Adrian, the major source for the character of Adriano, is more or less as in Wagner's version, but she is comparatively minor character. In particular, the close, possibly even incestuous relationship between brother and sister is missing from the novel, which contains no transgressive sexuality to subvert the norm of domesticity. Wagner leaves out the element of Rienzi's story that characterizes his seminoble origins. The notary comes literally from nowhere. Both the novel and the opera, however, include pivotal moment in Rienzi's life that represents the source of his hatred for the nobles-the death of his younger brother at the hands of member of the Colonna family. Bulwer's Rienzi exclaims several times in the course of the novel, Blessed art thou who hast no blood of kindred to avenge! In incorporating this phrase into his text Wagner changes it from an expression of an unbearably painful obligation to threat: Woe to him who has spilled the blood of my kin! Revenge is at the core of Wagner's conception. In contrast with this picture, Bulwer's account stresses the importance of remembering historical traditions. Liberty, he states, should not be a matter of impulse and caprice, because this will not dispose people to support the cause of liberty consistently. Rather, To such prostration of soul, such blindness of intellect, even the noblest people will be subjected, when liberty, which should be the growth of ages, spreading its roots through the strata of thousand customs, is raised ... [and] flourishes and withers with the single spirit that protects it.9 It is crucially important to preserve national memory rooted in traditions. Bulwer never refers to the French Revolution, but his views suggest that 1789 is the repressed in his novel. It is the classic example of the kind of revolution he opposes, one that explicitly rejects tradition. Wagner does not have this sense of the importance of tradition and fixed origins. Therefore, the revolution's reliance on the single figure of Rienzi is not tragic mistake. Rather, the people are at fault, to much This content downloaded from 207.46.13.124 on Wed, 22 Jun 2016 05:05:55 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms