Evening star., 1895-09-21
THE CASE OF WAGNER.
Called n Typical Decndent and the
Writer of Morbid Music.

Writer of Morbid Music.
Friedrich Niefzsche in the Fortnightly Review.
The service for which Wagner is indebted
to Schopenhaur is immense. There first did
the philosopher Of the decadence give him.
self to the artist of the decadence.
To the artist of the decadence-that is the
word. And it is here that my seriousness
commences. 1 am not at all inclined to be
quiet spectator. when this decadent ruins
our health-and music along with it. Is
Wagner a man at all? Is he not rather a
disease? He makes everything morbid
which he touches-he has made music NOR
bid.
necessary with his corrupt TASTE vino
claims that it is a higher taste, who knows
how to assert his depravity as law as
progress. as fulfillment.
And nobody defends himself Wagner's
power of seduction becomes prodigious the
smoke of incer Sc steams around him, tina
misunderstanding about him calls itself
'Gospei-it is by no means the Door in
spirit exclusively whom he has convinced.
should like TO open the windows little.
Air! More air.
1t does not surprise me that people de-
ceive themselves about Wagner in Ger
many. The contrary would surprise me
The Germans have created for themselves
Wagner whom they can worship: they
have never been psychologists, they are
| thankful they misunderstood. But that
people also deceive themselves about Wag-
| ner in Paris! where people are almost moth
ing else but psychologists. And In ST.
Petersburg where things are still OWNED
which ara not OWNED even In Paris. How
| Intimately related to the entire European
decadence must Wagner be- when he is
not recognized by 1t as decadent. He
belongs to 1t: he Is its Protagonist, its
greatest name.
People honor themselves when they exah
him to the skies. For no one to defend
himself against Wagner is already a sign
of decadence. Instinct is weakened. What
should be Stunned attracts people That
which drives still faster into the abyss is
put to the lips. You want an example?
One need only observe the regime which
| the anaemic, the gouty and the diabetic
| prescribe for themselves. Definition of the
vegetarian: being who needs a strength
ening diet. To recognize what is hurtful,
as hurtful, to be able to deny oneself what
is hurtful is a sign of youth and vitality
The exhausted is allured by what Is hurt
! full: the vegetarian by his potherbs. Dis
ease itself may be a stimulus to life, only
person must be sound enough for such a
stimulus. Wagner increases the exhaus-
tiop; il is on that account that he allures
| the weak and exhausted. Oh, the rattle
| snake joy of the cid master when he al
ways saw just 1.-The little children come
to him.
1 give prominence to this point Of view
WagEer's art is morbid. The problems
which he brings upon the stage-nothing
but problems of hysterics-the conyulsiye-
ness of his emotion, his over-excited sensi-
blity, his taste, which always asked for
stronger stimulants. his instability, which
he disguised as principles, and, not least, the
cnoice OF his heroes and heroines regarded
as physiological types "a gallery of morbid
individually. Altogether these symptoms
represent a picture of disease about which
there can be no mistake Wagner est un
nevrose