R. Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen through the philosophical prism of Positive Psychotherapy

Abstract

Using metaphors as an instrument of positive psychotherapy in some way reiterates the idea of the myths in Lévi-Strauss’ structuralism that natural phenomena are how myths seek to explain realities belonging to a logical order. Similarly, in their abstraction, metaphors strive to represent realities ‘clothed’ in words and cultural specifics. At the very same time, positive psychotherapy itself provides instruments for the analysis of these realities. The present study aims to provide a psychological view of R. Wagner’s Der Ring des Nibelungen through the lenses of positive psychotherapy. Due to the complexity of the work, the research focuses on two main leitmotivs of The Ring: cyclicity of life and love vs. power. Generally, the results indicate that the prism of positive psychotherapy allows one to find the deeper meaning hidden in work, revealing psychological motives of ‘why.’ Hence, it seems possible not only to use metaphors as an instrument of psychotherapy but also to broaden the use of positive psychotherapy as a ‘thinking cell’ in understanding life and culture.