從《尼貝龍根的指環――完美的華格納寓言》看蕭伯納讀華格納《指環》

Abstract

蕭伯納是知名的文學家與劇作家，更是位著作甚豐的音樂論述家，其專書《尼貝龍根的指環──完美的華格納寓言》細密深奧，是了解華格納《指環》內容的重要文獻。具有豐富音樂及其他領域知識學養的蕭伯納，對《指環》的理解與思考深入，且獨具一格；書寫的筆觸幽默流暢，當中的撰寫方式與敘述內容卻又引人深思。

本論文分成「讀者蕭伯納」與「作者蕭伯納」兩部份切入。先看「讀者蕭伯納」對《指環》的理解，再從「作者蕭伯納」寫作的細節，挖掘其中深具價值但可能易被忽略的重點。期望藉由此論文梳理蕭伯納從「接受創作」到「進行創作」的美學經驗，提供理解《完美的華格納寓言》與華格納《指環》的一條道路。

George Bernard Shaw was, and is still regarded as not only a renowned literatus and a playwright, but also a prolific writer of music discourses. His book on Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen, The Perfect Wagnerite, is full of profound and abundant details, making itself a crucial source to understand this colossal work of Wagner. With his rich knowledge in music and works of other literature, Shaw understood and thought about The Ring deeply with his unique style; his writing is smooth and humorous, on the other hand, how he wrote it and what he chose to talk about is thought-provoking.

The main idea of this thesis is divided into two parts: “Shaw as a reader” and “Shaw as an author”. In the “Shaw as a reader” part, Shaw’s understanding of The Ring will be discussed, and then in the “Shaw as an author” part, some of the most valuable but potentially overlooked details will be dug out from the details of the author’s writing. Hopefully, this thesis will sort out Shaw’s aesthetic experience from “accepting a work” to “creating a work” and will provide a way to understand The Perfect Wagnerite, and thus to understand The Ring.