The Ring as philosophy

Roger Scruton had written a short close analysis of what keeps The Ring relevant today, I mean besides just general high artfulness.

http://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/features/a-valhalla-state-of-mind

Robert

Thanks for the pointer, Robert. It is an interesting article which I am going to have to read again to get my head around. One assertion caught my eye was that at ...... the moment when (Wotan takes the Ring, etc.)........ and the humiliated dwarf curses the ring, our sympathies are entirely with Alberich, who has renounced all hope of happiness... Well, not mine! The treasure was stolen by Alberich in the first place. He has nothing to complain about.

Just a practical point - Prospect has a paywall and following your link leaves one behind it: you have had your three free articles. Go direct to the magazine site and the article is available free.

George Bernard Shaw wrote The Perfect Wagnerite: A Commentary on the Nibling's Ring (orig. publ. London 1898), which is an absolutely fascinating and thought-provoking analysis of the Ring Cyle as an interpretation of the revolutionary history of Europe from the revolutions of 1848 to the failed Paris Commune of 1871. Used reprint copies can be found, and it's also available online at Project Gutenberg. Highly recommended!
Unfortunately (unless you read German) Shaw's final thoughts on the topic appear only in a later German version that has a different chapter on Gotterdammerung than the original.