Sickness, healing, and opera: Wagner’s Parsifal

Richard Wagner’s opera Parsifal is examined as a study in illness, pain and healing. Wagner’s intention was to communicate directly to the audience the “emotional content” of the suffering of the character Amfortas. This presentation of suffering allows us to take from the opera some general ideas about the nature of illness and healing and their metaphorical representation in art. Further insights can be gained from the genre of classical tragic drama, of which Parsifal is a modern example.