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Die Zauberflöte and the Moral Law of Opposing Forces

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Die Zauberflöte and the Moral Law of Opposing Forces ©Copyright 2012 Denice Raymundo Grant Die Zauberflöte and the Moral Law of Opposing Forces Denice Raymundo Grant A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Musical Arts University of Washington 2012 Reading Committee: Craig Sheppard, Co-Chair Stephen C. Rumph, Co-Chair George S. Bozarth Program Authorized to Offer Degree: School of Music University of Washington Abstract Die Zauberflöte and the Moral Law of Opposing Forces Denice Raymundo Grant Chair of the Supervisory Committee: Professor Craig Sheppard, Co-Chair Professor Stephen C. Rumph, Co-Chair School of Music Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart’s Die Zauberflöte, set to Schikaneder’s libretto, brings to the forefront the Enlightenment models of light and darkness, good and evil. The traditional understanding of these concepts pits light against darkness, and good against evil. This thesis contends that Die Zauberflöte is a work which portrays a system that contains both good and evil, rather than one that depicts the clash of good against evil. The ancient Pythagorean Monad and Dyad explain this concept. The Monad, a single number, represented an indivisible principle said to belong to the Olympian Creator Gods, while the Dyad, a dual, divisible law, represented a principle which contained two opposing forces. This principle was the property of the demiurges, who, according to the ancients, rule the earth. The main purpose of the law of contrary forces is to enforce order, and it accomplishes this goal through a system of merit and demerit, rewards and punishments. In this paradigm, Sarastro and the Queen of the Night are symbols of Osiris and Isis, the Egyptian gods who formed a unified godhead operating by the law of opposing forces. Part of this godhead is also Typho, Monostatos in the opera, the representation of pure evil. The significance of ancient Egyptian mysticism is stressed in this study for a better understanding of the opera. To that end, three of the main sources for the libretto, the fables of Christoph Martin Wieland’s Dschinnistan, Ignaz von Born’s Über die Mysterien der Aegyptier, and Jean Terrasson’s The Life of Sethos are explored. In addition, the writings of the Freemasons as well as eighteenth-century literature and philosophy are examined to ascertain the degree to which the system of contrary duality was relevant in Mozart’s time. Table Of Contents Glossary ................................................................................................................................................. ii Acknowledgements .............................................................................................................................. iii Introduction ......................................................................................................................................... .1 Influences Behind the Libretto ............................................................................................................ 8 The Occult and Fairytale Literature ............................................................................................ 8 Egyptian Occult .......................................................................................................................... .13 Über Die Mysterien Der Aegyptier .......................................................................................... 15 The Life Of Sethos ...................................................................................................................... 18 The Enlightenment, Good and Evil, And the Golden Age ............................................................... 21 The Theme of Wisdom in Die Zauberflöte ....................................................................................... 34 Egyptian Godhead – Osiris, Isis, Typho............................................................................................ 47 Osiris ............................................................................................................................................ 49 Isis ................................................................................................................................................ 54 Typho ........................................................................................................................................... 59 Common Elements Between Egypt and Die Zauberflöte ................................................................. 63 Deities and Supernatural Good and Evil Guiding Spirits ........................................................ 63 The Snake .................................................................................................................................... 66 Morality – Maat, the Law of Opposing Forces.......................................................................... 69 Priests and Temples .................................................................................................................... 79 The Vow of Silence ...................................................................................................................... 81 Rituals of Initiation by Fire and Water ..................................................................................... 84 The Sacred Marriage of the Prince ............................................................................................ 96 Nature/Magic ............................................................................................................................ 100 The Flute/Music ........................................................................................................................ 105 Sacrifice ...................................................................................................................................... 115 Death: Facing the Sun at Midnight ................................................................................................. 125 Eternal Judgment: Psychostasia ..................................................................................................... 134 The Masonic Confirmation ............................................................................................................... 141 Mystical Symbols Translated Into Musical Language.................................................................... 146 The Idea of Balance................................................................................................................... 146 The Number Three .................................................................................................................... 147 Water – The Good Principle..................................................................................................... 149 Fire – The Evil Principle............................................................................................................ 151 Conclusion ......................................................................................................................................... 155 Bibliography ...................................................................................................................................... 158 i GLOSSARY Anagnorisis: Aristotelian concept involving a reversal of former perception Apopis: The Egyptian two-faced snake, the enemy of Re, the challenger of divine order Dichnistan: Literally the land of the Jiin, but also a collection of fairytales assembled by Dyad: two contrary items of the same kind Hermes: messenger of the gods, patron of merchants, interpreter of speech, Horus: Son of Isis and Osiris, embodied good, the opposite of Seth Initiation: A rite of passage required for acceptance into a secret society or order Isis: The wife of Osiris, part of the godhead, ruler of Nature Jiin: Genii, supernatural beings from the spirit world Maat: The law of opposite forces thought to be the order and harmony of the universe Mercurius: Alchemical spirit, messenger of the gods, good to the good, evil to the evil Monad: a term meaning "unit" used to signify an indivisible principle or law Osiris: Member of the Ennead, killed by his brother Seth, embodiment of benevolence Psychopomp: Conductor of the soul into the afterlife Psychostasia: Judgment of the dead in the Hall of Double Righteousness Re: Egyptian sun god Recognition: A shift from ignorance to knowledge involving a reversal of former understanding Seth: The one who killed his brother Osiris; embodied ‘evil,’ the opposite of Horus Thoth: The Egyptian scribe and Psychopompos, also a messenger of the gods Typho: Another name for Seth, the embodiment of Evil ii ACKNOWLEGEMENTS The preparation of the following thesis has encompassed a time of intense focus, a steep learning curve, and tenacious perseverance. Its creation and completion would not have been possible, however, were it not for the help and dedication of some very special people. I would like to take this time to acknowledge and thank them all of them. First of all, I would like to thank my extremely competent and capable professors at the University of Washington: Professor Craig Sheppard for the years of fantastic guidance in piano playing; Professor Stephen Rumph, whose vast knowledge and expertise finally set me on the right path; and Professor George Bozarth, again, a source of immense knowledge and skill. I would like to thank Dr. Roy Naden for being there step by step with me, for his expert editing and advice, and for getting me through the “vale of tears” by his unfailing support
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