The Valkyrie by Wagner - how a specific ship is spinning the facts
I keep seeing Elriels talking about how Wagner's opera clearly shows Elriels endgame. So naturally, I went ahead and read about the opera composition. My surprise or not so surprise, how they've completely spun the narrative to make themselves believe it's about Elriel.
THEIR TWISTED NARRATIVE and I quote "Two lovers are kept apart because the woman is stuck in an unhappy marriage, and the gods have forbidden them from being together. They try to escape together, but a Valkyrie finds them and tells them they cannot defy the gods. Things end with the husband and lover fighting over her, with a legendary sword caught in the middle."
THE ACTUAL OPERA:
- The wife is married to a brutal husband.
- The wife falls in love and flees with her long-lost fugitive twin brother.
- The husband challenges the twin brother to a death duel.
- A Valkyrie is sent by her father, to protect the twin brother.
- Fricka (the Goddess of Marriage) wants the protection retracted because the lover-siblings have committed incest and adultery.
- The Valkyrie still goes to protect the twin brother but he still ends up dying. She then flees with the wife, who is now pregnant.
- Due to her defiance, the Valkyrie is put into a magical sleep, a deadly fire around her, and can only be saved by a brave hero.
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Die_Walk%C3%BCre
MY THOUGHTS: I wasn’t planning to theorise the opera at all or how it could potentially connect to the plot (outside of the fact that I think it’s obvious the Valkyrie cycle is about our girls….). Well, after reading and summarising it, I don’t see this being about Elriel at all, in fact if anything, its giving Elucien. Elain has been associated with sleeping beauty. I truly see Valkyrie cycle as women empowerment. ALL women, including Elain, Freya, Nesta, Gwyn, Emerie, Mor - they will all be Valkyries but in their own way. It doesn’t mean Elain will suddenly fight, but she will definitely step into her power. Also, them spinning the story as Gwyn being an evil Valkyrie trying to separate the lovers, is not surprising but still revolting.
Edit: I'm realising my post sounds more about Elucien than Gwynriel due to my analyses. But Gwynriel is my top ship. The Valkyries seems to evoke a double meaning in the fandom (Valkyries as in our girls, and Valkyries as in the opera). In anyway, I just wanted to share my analyses and call out twisted narrative that I keep seeing.