A Knight at the Opera examines the remarkable and unknown role that the medieval legend (and Wagner opera) Tannhuser played in Jewish cultural life in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The book analyzes how three of the greatest Jewish thinkers of that era, Heinrich Heine, Theodor Herzl, and I. L. Peretz, used this central myth of Germany to strengthen Jewish culture and to attack anti-Semitism. Readers will see how Tannhuser evolves from a medieval knight to Peretzs pious Jewish scholar in the Land of Israel. ...
Read More
A Knight at the Opera examines the remarkable and unknown role that the medieval legend (and Wagner opera) Tannhuser played in Jewish cultural life in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The book analyzes how three of the greatest Jewish thinkers of that era, Heinrich Heine, Theodor Herzl, and I. L. Peretz, used this central myth of Germany to strengthen Jewish culture and to attack anti-Semitism. Readers will see how Tannhuser evolves from a medieval knight to Peretzs pious Jewish scholar in the Land of Israel. The book also discusses how the founder of Zionism, Theodor Herzl, was so inspired by Wagners opera that he wrote The Jewish State while attending performances of it. A Knight at the Opera uses Tannhuser as a way to examine the changing relationship between Jews and the broader world during the advent of the modern era, and to question if any art, even that of a prominent anti-Semite, should be considered taboo.
Read Less
Add this copy of A Knight at the Opera: Heine, Wagner, Herzl, Peretz, to cart. $25.25, very good condition, Sold by Midtown Scholar Bookstore rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from Harrisburg, PA, UNITED STATES, published 2011 by Purdue University Press.
Add this copy of A Knight at the Opera: Heine, Wagner, Herzl, Peretz, to cart. $42.90, new condition, Sold by Ingram Customer Returns Center rated 5.0 out of 5 stars, ships from NV, USA, published 2011 by Purdue University Press.
