Excerpt from Guide to the Music of Richard Wagner's Tetralogy: The Ring of the Nibelung; A Thematic Key Most significant in relation to this whole is the very first scene in The Rhine-gold, which takes place in the pure primordial element, water, whence, according to the mythical representation, all existence must arise, and which consequently precedes all differentiation, all individual dispersal of the unified primitive existence according to the law of phenomena, as well as all rivalry between individuals and all guilt. Before any kind of distinctly individual form appears before our eyes, be fore the spiritual utterance of a single human word has as yet been heard, by means of the instrumental intro duction, the absolute art of music gives to this merely elementary Being, this sacredly serene and innocent state of Nature, wherein as yet all desire is latent, a pre-eminently adequate expression. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.