La Traviata
In the opera Germont is sometimes described as the personification of a judgmental culture concerning Violetta’s life as a courtesan. How is his role in the opera different from that in the novel La Dame aux camélias? Does he appear more in the opera or the novel? Be specific about where. At what point in the opera does Germont begin to understand the nobility of Violetta? How does Germont’s new identity in the opera alter the conclusion of the opera by comparison with the novel? In other words, does the novel end differently from the opera with regard to the issue of how Alfredo finds out about Violetta’s agreement with Germont to separate from Alfredo? Are there any reasons why the opera’s treatment of the conclusion of this story might be more effective dramatically than the novel’s? What similarities are there between the novel’s handling of the Alfredo-Violetta relationship and the novel’s treatment of Marguerite and Armand?
Triple meter (i.e., the waltz) is used as a kind of love theme throughout the opera (i.e., characters are in love when they are in triple meter and not in love when in duple or quadruple meter). How are duple or quadruple meter used versus triple meter in the events leading to the finale of Act III. Where is Violetta’s love for Alfredo symbolized in this way? Where is Violetta’s music barred in triple meter even when the surrounding music is in 4/4?
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