Last Friday, I attended a fantastic cultural event that let me to experience an interesting psychological phenomenon. My aunt took me to the Lyric Opera of Chicago as an early graduation gift and we saw The Girl of the Golden West. At first, I was quite confused on why we were seeing something Western in a arena usually reserved for the Renaissance works of opera written in flowery romance languages, but then my aunt explained that this opera was the Italian librettist Giacomo Puccini’s idea of the Wild Wild West. Thus, we enjoyed a three-hour production of cowboys, bandits and native Americans singing in Italian (with subtitles helpfully provided on a large screen).
I later discovered the term for the slight awkwardness produced by this culture clash: cognitive dissonance. As an American, it was somewhat jarring to see cowboys belting out arias and a name drop like “Jack” or “Johnson” amid Italian dialogue.
However, there are many operas where the subject matter does not match the language in which it is written, but the dissonance is less noticeable. One example is Aida: set in Egypt, written in Italian, based on the writings of a Frenchman This led me to contemplate why this opera seemed more dissonant as well as what the values of these operas are.
I think the reason TGotGW was especially dissonant to me (and other Americans) is because we are much more familiar with a topic like the American West than something like ancient Egypt. When the names, scenery and characters we understand are presented in a new context, we struggle to juxtapose the two. I wonder how Egyptians feel then, when watching either opera. Would something like Aida feel just as dissonant to them?
These productions (both dissonant and not) are valuable as a medium to understand one culture’s interpretation of another. One example of where Puccini’s interpretation deviated from reality was in his portrayal of Native Americans. The show only had two, and they were both submissive servants of white people. I think this shows how a culture may get a warped understanding of another if not all voices are heard. When currently analyzed, attendees can see what the most prevalent ideas about a culture were from a primary source. Many operas are decades old, but can still teach us something new.
I later discovered the term for the slight awkwardness produced by this culture clash: cognitive dissonance. As an American, it was somewhat jarring to see cowboys belting out arias and a name drop like “Jack” or “Johnson” amid Italian dialogue.
However, there are many operas where the subject matter does not match the language in which it is written, but the dissonance is less noticeable. One example is Aida: set in Egypt, written in Italian, based on the writings of a Frenchman This led me to contemplate why this opera seemed more dissonant as well as what the values of these operas are.
I think the reason TGotGW was especially dissonant to me (and other Americans) is because we are much more familiar with a topic like the American West than something like ancient Egypt. When the names, scenery and characters we understand are presented in a new context, we struggle to juxtapose the two. I wonder how Egyptians feel then, when watching either opera. Would something like Aida feel just as dissonant to them?
These productions (both dissonant and not) are valuable as a medium to understand one culture’s interpretation of another. One example of where Puccini’s interpretation deviated from reality was in his portrayal of Native Americans. The show only had two, and they were both submissive servants of white people. I think this shows how a culture may get a warped understanding of another if not all voices are heard. When currently analyzed, attendees can see what the most prevalent ideas about a culture were from a primary source. Many operas are decades old, but can still teach us something new.
