"Rigoletto" as Verdi's revenge on bad luck... -- 2001-2002 Cultural Literacy Class Forum

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Date Posted: 13:31:27 11/14/01 Wed
Author: L. Renavitz
Subject: "Rigoletto" as Verdi's revenge on bad luck...

As was mentioned in class, the characters of hunchbacks are most often evil and symbols of bad luck. The only exception to the aforementioned, that I know of, would be Quasimodo from "Le Notre Dame de Paris;" therefore, Rigoletto must fit into the hunchback stereotype.

It has already been observed that Rigoletto is malicious in nature, using caustic remarks in jest to hurt those whom the duke has already harmed by ravaging a female relative thereof.

But to whom does Rigoletto bring misfortune? One could not really say that anything but the duke's nature brought about the bad luck that Montorone experiences. The duke and the other courtiers experience no bad luck at all. In fact, the duke experiences quite a bit of good luck in the end by escaping death.

The only characters left for the bad luck to fall upon are Gilda and Rigoletto himself. Gilda has the misfortune of becoming a victim of the duke's lust; however, arguably she is redeemed by her death. (See post entitled "Gilda from 'Rigoletto' vs. Agnes from 'Agnes of God' for background information on that statement.) Thus it becomes evident that Rigoletto is the one that receives his own bad luck by loosing his daughter--his own flesh and blood and the only thing that brought him joy after the loss of his wife.

Therefore, the bad luck was misfortunate for Rigoletto. Replacing the character with what he symbolizes, one then understands that the opera "Rigoletto" expresses bad luck for bad luck. So, would the opera then become symbolic of Verdi's revenge on bad luck with his turning it upon itself. Perhaps; after all, he had enough bad luck by loosing a wife and small daughter within the same to two years of each other. Then does the opera become his form of poetic justice that Verdi himself would never see?

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