The Greatest Work of Art Ever?

For many people, Wagner's epic 4-opera cycle "Der Ring des Nibelungen," popularly know as the Ring Cycle, is the greatest work of art ever created. It certainly is among the most controversial, and for good reason. Wagner wrote it to address ideas and issues of the mid to late 19th century but, such was his genius and ambition, that it has powerfully spoken to every generation since and is relevant in 2019 in crucial ways. It is, on one level, the story of a powerful and flawed man who builds castles in the sky but does not pay the people who have done the hard labor. He enslaves, he abuses, he steals. He is sworn to uphold the laws of the land and of the universe, yet sees himself as above the law. He has a wife who insists on abiding by the laws of marriage, children who are both loved and neglected, and has fathered children outside of wedlock. And yet he is not necessarily evil and his weaknesses and limitations mean that other people, including one of his daughters, must take up the mantle and save the world. Literally. We see the destruction of the world at the end of the cycle but then are asked, and ask ourselves, what comes next? I have seen 47 complete cycles and, with each one, still have more questions even as I manage to achieve some answers. That is one, but only one, measure of the greatness of a work of art. Here is an article I have just published about the Ring Cycle. Please be sure to click all of its embedded links to listen to the music and read additional articles. It is worth the time. https://www.wqxr.org/story/how-green-my-ring-cycle-wagner-nibelung-fred-plotkin-operavore-environment/