Valkyrie

Wotan finds himself with no way out. Either he can return the ring to the Rhine maidens by stealing it from Fafner and loses his power by breaking the treaty or he holds off and falls under the curse because he has profited from the theft which has paid for the castle.

What is worse? If Alberich who does not suffer the same legal and moral constraints found a ruse to take the ring that would be the end of the gods’ power. The power of the ring would overcome the might of the spear.

Wotan considers two stratagems. Bring together brave men in the fortress of Valhalla to defend it against the armies of Alberich. But men have been emasculated by Wotan’s laws. Wotan has revisited Erda in the depths to replenish his resources. She bears him Brunnhilde, the Walkure with her eight sisters. Their mission is to arouse men to reawaken their aggression and select the boldest and most courageous by competition. Once dead, the victors will go to populate Valhalla, the Hall of the Elect, the somewhat artificial selection procedure for what price courage when it is produced by conditioning?

Seeing the weakness of this strategy Wotan comes down to earth under the name of Walse, wolf and couples with a wolf woman. Two twins are produced: Siegmund and Sieglinde, the Walsungen. Siegmund is his wolf-cub. Wotan brings up the boy to be secretive and to hold laws in contempt, he aims to make him an accomplice who will instinctively kill the dragon and return the ring to the Rhine maidens of his own accord whilst leaving Wotan uncompromised.

One day when Siegmund returns to his home he finds it reduced to ashes, his mother slaughtered and his twin sister Sieglinde carried off. Much later Sieglinde has been given in marriage to a wealthy landowner Hunding against her will. On the day of this legal but odious wedding Wotan appears, disguises as a traveler and thrusts the sword Nothung into the trunk of the ash which holds up Hunding’s great hall. He declares: he who can draw the sword from the ash will become invincible. Siegmund is abandoned, desperate. His father has disappeared. Everywhere he goes he is driven on outside the law.

Master of Donner and thus master of tempests Wotan creates a violent storm which drives Siegmund towards Hunding’s abode and the sword. As expected, he finds his twin sister there. He does not recognize her but finds a kindred soul in her not without reason.

Hunding has unmasked Siegmund as the wolf cub, the hereditary enemy of dogs and assailant of his allies. He threatens him with death in the morning. Night is sacred while he is his guest.

According to plan, Siegmund draws the sword promised for his distress. The unplanned part is the incest. The two lonely people fall head over heels for each other. By the time they recognize each other, it’s too late. They accept their incest and flee into the forest by night. There they will live out the Ring’s first love story.

Wotan entrusts Brunnhilde with protecting Siegmund when it comes to the fight against the husband Hunding.

Brunnhilde, the Walkure born of Erda is all feeling and prophetic intuition. But the other projection of Wotan’s feminine soul is Fricka, the guardian of marriage and convention.

Jealous and scandalized Fricka angrily demands Siegmund’s head. Wotan points out that if it is inspired by deepest love even adulterous and incestuous union is more legitimate than a marriage based on coercion and custom.

But Fricka replies that that would be to create precedents and lead to Wotan’s downfall since his power is based on the rule of law. Now with a conspiratorial air, Wotan reveals his plan: Siegmund is to save the gods. As a free man he can defeat the dragon with the sword. He has won and return the ring to the Rhine maidens. Wotan would not be sullied because Siegmund acts for himself.

Fricka triumphantly destroys the plan: Siegmund is not independent, he is a creature manipulated by Wotan. She reminds him of his futile schemes: the conditioning, the storm, the sword.

Torn between his two animas: Brunnhilde, the sentiment and Fricka, logic. All Wotan is able to turn out is slaves. All he encounters are images of himself. The free creature he needs has to be created of his own accord. But then he would risk not carrying out the plan. The breach has widened. The dilemma has become worse.

In despair, he countermands the Walkure’s orders. She is to protect Hunding.

To the fate motif in the music Brunnhilde appears to Siegmund who is watching over the sleeping Sieglinde. She announces his forthcoming death and the future birth of their child. But in despair the hero would rather kill his sister and himself than leave her in the hands of strangers. Overwhelmed with emotion, the Walkure disobeys. She will protect Siegmund. Thus she wins her autonomy from Wotan. She exists. But during the mortal combat Wotan emerges and his spear breaks the sword leaving his son defenseless before the thrusts of Hunding.

Brunnhilde has gathered up the remains of the sword carried off the swooning Sieglinde and fled to rejoin her sisters on a wild rock. She begs them for a horse to help Sieglinde escape. In vain, for they all cravenly refuse.

Sieglinde begs for death but when Brunnhilde declares that she has conceived a son. She is transformed and wants to live. Brunnhilde tells her to head east where the dragon Fafner lies in watch over his gold. This is a place Wotan avoids. The Walkure names the future child Siegfred and prophesies that he will be the noblest hero of them all. She covers Sieglinde’s flight by confronting the angry Wotan. Overwhelmed, Sieglinde blesses Brunnhilde. A fundamental and culminating theme appears that of compassionate love of selfless sacrifice.

But debts have to be paid. Brunnhilde will be put to sleep by Wotan on the rock underneath a fir tree surrounded by a circle of fire. Wotan is in torment. He has caused the death of his beloved son; Sieglinde is a fugitive and he must part from his favorite daughter who is his double, his anima once again, intuition and feeling are repressed. It is the price of the curse. But there is one hope. Wotan utters an incantation: only he who knows no fear may cross the circle of fire and waken the Walkure.

Siegfried’s theme rings out prophetically. He is a free creature, will he kill the dragon? Will he return the ring to the Rhine maidens? Will he raise the curse? Over the questioning fate theme, fire continues to encircle the rock.

Everything stops for 17 years.