Les Troyens by Berlioz Is Essay

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From this point-of-view, Aeneas can be viewed as having failed also from the role of hero because he did not succeed in averting the danger. Even so, it is important to note the fact that Berlioz portrayed him still as a chosen individual. The fact that Aeneas had a premonition in a dream of the falling Troy made him a particular actor in the scene. The symbolism in this sense is related to the dream and the warning. However, the warning came too late and Aeneas failed as the head of his men and as the potential defender of Troy.

There are two feminine characters in Les Troyens. One is Dido, Queen of Carthage, and Cassandra, the Trojan prophetess and Priam's daughter. Cassandra's role however is very important because it draws the attention on the Shakespearian influences of the opera. In most of Shakespeare's works there is such a present. One of the most important and notable is in Romeo and Juliet tragedy, one of Berlioz's sources of inspiration. In the Shakespeare play, as well as in Berlioz's, the prophet (in Shakespeare it is the priest) has deep premonitions over future events, uncertainties, and fears for the worst. However, similarly, both prophets failed to listen to their premonitions, and the tragedies took their natural course. They denied unconsciously their beliefs and feelings and their chosen nature. Thus, the Shakespearian influence is obvious.

The beauty of the opera lies in the way in which it was constructed.

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The influences as well as the language portray an almost perfect combination. The symbols of beauty rely on the way in which each scene is constructed. For instance, in the beginning of the opera, the scene between Cassandra and her suitor Coroebus is full of premonitions and a tragedy to come. However, the beauty of the feelings expressed in the scene seems to announce a tragic end to the love story. At the end of the scene, when the feeling of tragedy is upon the two lovers, the beauty of the emotions is rare. Berlioz managed to achieve this reaction by applying especially the Shakespearian influences of tragedy. Thus, on a tragic background, the love between the two points out in antithesis even more the depth of the sorrow to come. This is perhaps the actual key to the success of a tragedy in portraying the increasing pulsation of the human feeling.

Similarly, throughout the opera, the feeling of tragedy is combined with that of duty, or recognition, of pride, but most importantly of honor. This mixture offers true artistic beauty to the work because it creates a sum of emotions the audience can reach out, can identify itself with, and, above all, can feel. The beauty of Berlioz's work and in general of any opera creation lies in the success of such an emotional combination. It reaches out to the sensibility of the audience and thus transforms the opera into a….....

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