Cosima's Diaries

Diary Entry of January 16, 1883

Overview

A medical consultation reveals both Wagner and Cosima to be in surprisingly good health, prompting them to joke that neither will ever die—a moment of lightness on a rainy, housebound day. Wagner ranges widely across intellectual territory: reading pamphlets, reflecting on Napoleon's strange charisma, and critiquing the state of the Catholic church and modern French saints. The evening reaches a peak when he plays an intricate "Harlequin" improvisation at the piano, concluding with "Du lieber Augustin," and then reads aloud the opening scenes of Faust with unrestrained admiration, calling it purely German.

Content

Tuesday, January 16:

R. dreamed his old dream — that he had offended me, that I wished to leave him, that he then wanted to starve himself to death. A consultation with Dr. Keppler reveals that my heartbeat is the strongest imaginable, and since he is also completely satisfied with R.'s condition, we joke at breakfast that neither of us will ever die! It is raining again, consequently no outing. R. reads Dr. Forster's pamphlet, in order, as he says, to steel himself for his preface to Stein's book.

At lunch he talks about Wolzogen's lecture and says he would have more doubts about its value if he saw anything of significance on the other — the enemy — side; but there is nothing there, and so he is pleased with these announcements and with these supporters of his side. As I am playing with Stiefel, his little hare, he says, "He is splendid, the symbol of everything which should arouse our pity; and that's what the German Emperor shoots at!" In the course of the day he observes what a terrible thing this military setup is — nowhere in the world has there been anything like it before.

Since I am slowly getting on with Tolstoy's novel, we talk about Napoleon and the strange admiration he inspired in his contemporaries. I cannot remember how we came to talk about the Reformation and the ensuing state of the Catholic church. When I mention Saint Francis of Sales, R. says he has no confidence in these latter-day French saints with their elegant robes — at any rate, he cannot imagine them. He writes today to friend Sulzer about the history of the Persians, having recalled that Sulzer expressed views about the Persians similar to Gob.'s.

In the evening he plays the very detailed "Harlequin" improvisation, with "Du lieber Augustin" at the end! Death is now dancing with Harlequin! And late in the evening he reads the first two conversations between Faust and Mephisto with unutterable admiration, joy, and delight: "That is German," he says. Shakespeare shows us the world as it is; Goethe shows a free spirit's playfulness with it.