How Siegfried was Slain

During our brief unit about the connections between music and literature and how music is an essential component of being human, we will read a selection from the German epic The Nibelungenlied. The selection in World Masterpieces in entitled "How Siegfried was Slain." You may read the selection online. The translation varies slightly from the World Masterpieces version; however, the length is relatively the same.

German Composer Richard Wagner (1813-1883) transformed The Nibelungenlied into the four-part Ring cycle, which World Masterpieces claims is Wagner's "finest work."

After reading and analyzing "How Siegfried was Slain," we will view a clip of the opera to compare and contrast the literature with the musical interpretation of it.

To watch and hear Siegfried's death from a production of Richard Wagner's opera, click here.

You can also check out the operatic selection of Siegfried's funeral by clicking here.

If you were absent during the Siegfried discussion or did not comment in class, please let the class know what you are thinking by commenting here on the following two questions:

1. What flaw ultimately leads to Siegfried's death? Why do you think so? What evidence do you have for this tragic flaw in the text?
2. Describe the ideal hunter and discuss how Siegfried illustrates that ideal. What place do you feel hunting plays in society, and why do you think it has that place?