A Wagner Matinee - Book Report/Review Example

Teacher Response to A Wagner Matinee story The theme of the story A Wagner Matinee is poignantly true more than we care to admit. It is a story about a good life that was left behind by the character of Georgiana in exchange for a difficult that changed her. And the good life that she once had was suddenly remembered through music only that she has to return back to an ugly reality after the performance has ended. This was the story of the narrator’s aunt Georgiana whose life and circumstance resembles many of us.

It is a story of good life that was lost and could not be had again no matter how much she wanted back of which many of us could relate. The good life that Georgiana once was metaphorically represented by her love of the classical music. She used to be one of the cosmopolitan ladies but her good life ended when she married a farmer. She dramatically changed that the narrator Clark was even embarrassed to be associated with her with how she now look because she is shabbily dressed when Clark met her in the train station.

Georgiana’s new station in life may have dramatically change her appearance but her old self is still within her represented by her love of music. Her difficult life however made her bury her old self because remembering made it too painful for her. Thus she advised Clark “it was unwise to love anything that much, or it may be taken from you. Oh, dear boy, pray that whatever your sacrifice may be, it be not that” so that he would not suffer the same fate that she did. The poignant plot of the story begun when Clark brought Georgiana to the symphony to see the performance of Richard Wagner.

The excitement and the glee which was lost for a very long time came back to Georgiana with the idea of going to the performance. She went in black cotton dress which looked cheap compared to other audience but this did not bother her in enjoying the performance. But what was striking in the story was her reaction of hearing again a long lost love of music that she used to love. She sobbed in between performances and still sobbed when the performance has ended telling Clark “I dont want to go, Clark, I dont want to go!

” For me, this is very poignant because Georgiana was reminded of a good life, reacquainted with her old love (music) but her life is different now. The performance was only temporary but she wanted to go back to her old life. Unfortunately however, she has to go now to her present reality making it more hurtful compared before because she is reminded of what was taken away from her. She may have adjusted to her difficult life already but now she had to readjust again because her old life came back to her through the performance of Richard Wagner.

The story may be an exaggeration but its theme is very true to most of us. We may not have given up a good life for marrying a farmer but had given up something we really love because of another choice. And what is painful is that such change is permanent that no matter how much we would sob or feel sorry such as what Georgiana has done in the story, it will not come back again.