The Real Tragedy Is Salieri’s
Nadia Odendaal
“AH! Then it must be an illusion. The things one feels absolutely certain about are never true. That is
the fatality of faith, and the lesson of romance.” - Oscar WIlde
Peter Shaffer offers Antonio Salieri as the play’s chief antagonist. In the most simple literary sense
Salieri is bad; driven by jealousy to destroy his impossibly capable rival, Mozart. However the
brilliance of Shaffer’s work lies in its complexities - how the writer engages with the concepts of good
and evil over the course of the play.
Despite the title bearing Mozart’s middle name, it could certainly be argued that Salieri is the play’s
central figure. Amadeus, which is Latin for “love of God”, was chosen ahead of “Mozart” or
“Wolfgang”. This may be interpreted as a deliberate reference to the Salieri’s great tragedy.
It is clear that the music and religion are the primary passions of First Kapellmeister Antonio Salieri.
The bargain he makes with God is not a simple quid-pro-quo negotiation, but rather a pledge to
temper his life with wholehearted dedication so that he might be a channel for God’s voice. This is not
a transaction made in the interest of professional or personal gratification, but rather one driven by
pure passion.
Despite his status being challenged, Salieri cannot help but recognise the talent of his rival. He
appreciates Mozart’s work on a truly profound level, and is undone by the knowledge that he could not
produce music of its calibre. It is as though God has chosen Mozart as His mortal instrument,
regardless of Salieri’s undertaking.
Salieri’s efforts to target Mozart are not entirely malicious, but rather reactionary. It is for this reason
that his battle against the great composer is so drawn out. There are certainly more direct methods
that might have been employed to dismiss Mozart than Salieri’s years-long campaign.
The most severe sense of pain stems from a lack of understanding. It is pain, in the wake of what
Salieri views as God’s betrayal, that leads him to resent Mozart so acutely. The incongruity between
Salieri and Mozart is the axis upon which the story revolves and although, it is Mozart that dies first,
the conflict takes the heaviest toll on Salieri.
Evil denotes the absence of good. There are, however, variations of evil - some instances of evil
occur as a direct result of immorality, while others present without explanation. This begs the
question: is the core evil in the play Salieri and his actions against Mozart, or is it whichever forces
lead Salieri to come up short against Mozart despite complete ardour for his vocation?
The true tragedy of Amadeus is Salieri’s. A man who is so completely devoted loses the grounding
upon which he has built his entire life.
Nadia Odendaal
“AH! Then it must be an illusion. The things one feels absolutely certain about are never true. That is
the fatality of faith, and the lesson of romance.” - Oscar WIlde
Peter Shaffer offers Antonio Salieri as the play’s chief antagonist. In the most simple literary sense
Salieri is bad; driven by jealousy to destroy his impossibly capable rival, Mozart. However the
brilliance of Shaffer’s work lies in its complexities - how the writer engages with the concepts of good
and evil over the course of the play.
Despite the title bearing Mozart’s middle name, it could certainly be argued that Salieri is the play’s
central figure. Amadeus, which is Latin for “love of God”, was chosen ahead of “Mozart” or
“Wolfgang”. This may be interpreted as a deliberate reference to the Salieri’s great tragedy.
It is clear that the music and religion are the primary passions of First Kapellmeister Antonio Salieri.
The bargain he makes with God is not a simple quid-pro-quo negotiation, but rather a pledge to
temper his life with wholehearted dedication so that he might be a channel for God’s voice. This is not
a transaction made in the interest of professional or personal gratification, but rather one driven by
pure passion.
Despite his status being challenged, Salieri cannot help but recognise the talent of his rival. He
appreciates Mozart’s work on a truly profound level, and is undone by the knowledge that he could not
produce music of its calibre. It is as though God has chosen Mozart as His mortal instrument,
regardless of Salieri’s undertaking.
Salieri’s efforts to target Mozart are not entirely malicious, but rather reactionary. It is for this reason
that his battle against the great composer is so drawn out. There are certainly more direct methods
that might have been employed to dismiss Mozart than Salieri’s years-long campaign.
The most severe sense of pain stems from a lack of understanding. It is pain, in the wake of what
Salieri views as God’s betrayal, that leads him to resent Mozart so acutely. The incongruity between
Salieri and Mozart is the axis upon which the story revolves and although, it is Mozart that dies first,
the conflict takes the heaviest toll on Salieri.
Evil denotes the absence of good. There are, however, variations of evil - some instances of evil
occur as a direct result of immorality, while others present without explanation. This begs the
question: is the core evil in the play Salieri and his actions against Mozart, or is it whichever forces
lead Salieri to come up short against Mozart despite complete ardour for his vocation?
The true tragedy of Amadeus is Salieri’s. A man who is so completely devoted loses the grounding
upon which he has built his entire life.
