book review the master and margarita

The Literary Edit

Review: The Master and Margarita – Mikhail Bulgakov

The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov

When I decided to read the BBC’s Top 100 Books , my main reason for doing so was to expand my reading repertoire. And while it was something of a relief when I finished the hundredth book just a matter of minutes before I turned thirty, in the months that have since passed I’ve missed having a list to choose from. and often considered working my way through the additional hundred books that made the BBC’s Top 200 Books, particularly after finishing one of my most recent reads, The Mater and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov.

It’s not a book I had heard of until I launched my Desert Island Books series, but after editor Sam Baker and Bookstagrammer Bookish Bronte both chose it as one of their desert island reads it was firmly on my radar. I was then recently recommended it by someone I met at a party, and so I swiftly bought a copy from Gertrude and Alice, before settling in for a night of reading.

Like many people, I’m often wary of my literary abilities before beginning a Russian classic, but much like Dostoyevsky’s Crime and Punishment – which I raced through – I was hooked from the get go with The Master and Margarita.

A unique tale unlike anything I’ve read before, Mikhail Bulgakov’s much-loved book is considered by many critics as one of the best novels of the twentieth century, as well as the foremost of Soviet satires. Fusing fantasy with magical surrealism and political satire, The Master and the Margarita is a pacy read set in 1930s Moscow. It tells the story of the devil and his cronies who descend on the Russian capital, putting the entire city on edge with their diabolical humour and magic tricks, while the authorities look on, entirely powerless. Before the arrival of the devil, a “Master” wrote a novel about Pontius Pilate (this serene novel within the novel is entirely integrated in the story), which was dismissed by the regime, therefore sending the Master into a mental asylum. Meanwhile, Margarita, the Master’s clandestine lover, makes a pact with the devil to save her companion writer.

A perfect example of the Russian tradition of wit, imagination and satire that features a wonderful cast of characters – including a talking black cat with a penchant for chess and vodka – Bulgakov effortlessly combines the historical, the biblical and the magical to deliver one of literature’s most accomplished and creative books.

About The Master and Margarita

Nothing in the whole of literature compares with The Master and Margarita . One spring afternoon, the Devil, trailing fire and chaos in his wake, weaves himself out of the shadows and into Moscow. Mikhail Bulgakov’s fantastical, funny, and devastating satire of Soviet life combines two distinct yet interwoven parts, one set in contemporary Moscow, the other in ancient Jerusalem, each brimming with historical, imaginary, frightful, and wonderful characters. Written during the darkest days of Stalin’s reign, and finally published in 1966 and 1967, The Master and Margarita became a literary phenomenon, signaling artistic and spiritual freedom for Russians everywhere.

About Mikhail Bulgakov

Born in 1891 in Kiev, now the capital of Ukraine, Mikhail Bulgakov studied medicine at Kiev University, practicing briefly before being drafted by the Whites (anti-Bolsheviks) in 1918 as a field doctor. He was sent to the Caucasus, where, after leaving the military, he began working as a journalist. Along with humorous sketches, Bulgakov wrote White Guard (1924), an autobiographical novel about his experience in the civil war and one of the first serious works of literature on the subject. The Days of the Turbins (1926), a play based on White Guard, was supposedly one of Joseph Stalin’s favorites and helped establish Bulgakov as one of Russia’s preeminent playwrights. He died impoverished and blind in 1940 shortly after completing his masterpiece, The Master and Margarita.

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Moscow’s Magic Realism

By Boris Fishman

May 27, 2016
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Were it a kinder world, Mikhail Bulgakov’s incandescent novel “The Master and Margarita” would be commemorating its 75th rather than 50th anniversary, for the author completed it in 1940, just as his own brief life was ending. But in the Soviet Union of the time — then concluding one of the most grotesquely violent decades in history — the fate of authors like Bulgakov was so precarious that he was fortunate to die of natural causes. Having finished the book, he reportedly said to his wife from his deathbed: “Now it deserves to be put in the commode, under your linens.” She did not even try to get it published. A censored version finally appeared in 1966-67.

The novel spans several spring days in 1930s Moscow during which the capital is visited by the Devil himself, trailed by a piebald entourage including an easily insulted giant cat with a fondness for vodka and guns. Registering himself as a foreign “artiste” specializing in black magic, Woland (as the novel’s Devil is known) proceeds to expose, via a series of séances at the Variety Theater, the greed and servility that rules even socialist Moscow. But this is a warm-up. Woland is in Moscow for Margarita, an unhappily married woman who once loved the Master, the author of a novel about Pontius Pilate’s consignment of Christ to the cross, chapters of which appear in Bulgakov’s novel. The Master burned most of the manuscript after it was turned down by a publisher and committed himself to a mental asylum. At Woland’s invitation, Margarita goes through hell — literally — to search for her beloved.

But this tells you nothing. “The Master and Margarita” is one of those novels that, even in translation, make you feel that not one word could have been written differently. I’ve read it half a dozen times now, in three translations and in the original, and its mystery has only increased. It’s like those 10-ruble notes that Woland rains down on his audience at the Variety — they change into bottle labels the next day. You try to hold the novel’s face, and it turns away once again.

With his plays mostly banned, Bulgakov used every freedom inside the covers of “Margarita,” and its pages bristle with a deeply informed indifference to every dogma, whether historical, religious, political or artistic. Bulgakov’s earthbound Christ ignores the mythology of the Gospels and Soviet atheism both, as does a Satan figure who is munificent and majestic rather than petty and evil. The Pilate narrative is equally dark on the rules: It migrates from one teller to another, from speech to novel inside a novel to dream. Few novels have incorporated fantastical elements into straight realism, the absurd into the sane, as hilariously and boldly as this one. (Long before there was Latin American magic realism, there was Soviet magic realism. It was a lot funnier.)

But what other style could fit a world where heaven was now, indeed, hell? What kind of diabolical sorcery could compare with the disappearance of millions by Stalin and his security apparatus? The novel’s galling play was to propose that, in a place like the U.S.S.R., justice was with the dark forces: the gospel according to the Devil.

Initially, Bulgakov’s talent exonerated his politically questionable background. The author epitomized the Russian intelligentsia snuffed out by the Bolsheviks, of which his contemporary Nabokov was also a member — impossibly cultured, preoccupied with the fate of the nation, conservative but not reactionary, liberal but not revolutionary, molecularly Russian but open to Europe and, above all, fastidiously humane. Even Stalin counted himself an admirer — he attended one of Bulgakov’s plays 15 times. And when Bulgakov reached a nadir and burned an early draft of “Margarita,” it was to Stalin he wrote, asking permission to emigrate if his country could not find use for his talents.

Bulgakov could not bend. It wasn’t for lack of trying — he didn’t believe that a Russian writer could function outside his homeland, and tried sincerely to write a play with the right message. (The closest he came, a play about Stalin’s early years, was banned by the dictator himself.) But Bulgakov’s great fortune was that for some reason, he was allowed to live, though relatively little of his work reached the public, a death of a different kind. “For me, not being allowed to write is tantamount to being buried alive,” he wrote to Stalin.

“Margarita” has too many achievements to list, but the way it keeps faith in love and art even in moments of unspeakable humiliation and cruelty must be the greatest. In my home it stands on that small shelf of titles reserved for the most difficult days. Although sacred to Russians, the novel has been something of a cult classic in America. Maybe it’s the humor: America grew up on vaudeville and slapstick, more youthful and accessible forms, whereas Russian humor is winking and wry, at home between the lines. It’s time for “The Master and Margarita” to rise to its rightful place in the canon of great world literature. Let it inspire American authors with its openness to sentiment, its dedication to the loftiest questions. In the last century it has, surely against its own wishes, proved bitterly prescient about the way of the world again and again. May the 21st prove its political preoccupations obsolete. But as literature, it will live forever.

Boris Fishman is the author of “A Replacement Life” and “Don’t Let My Baby Do Rodeo.” This essay has been adapted from the foreword to a new edition of “The Master and Margarita” published this month by Penguin Classics.

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Life Got You Down? Time to Read The Master and Margarita

Or, how to be happy with russian literature.

‘“And what is your particular field of work?” asked Berlioz. “I specialize in black magic.”’

If many Russian classics are dark and deep and full of the horrors of the blackness of the human soul (or, indeed, are about the Gulag), then this is the one book to buck the trend. Of all the Russian classics, The Master and Margarita is undoubtedly the most cheering. It’s funny, it’s profound and it has to be read to be believed. In some ways, the book has an odd reputation. It is widely acknowledged as one of the greatest novels of the 20th century and as a masterpiece of magical realism, but it’s very common even for people who are very well read not to have heard of it, although among Russians you have only to mention a cat the size of a pig and apricot juice that makes you hiccup and everyone will know what you are talking about. Most of all, it is the book that saved me when I felt like I had wasted my life. It’s a novel that encourages you not to take yourself too seriously, no matter how bad things have got. The Master and Margarita is a reminder that, ultimately, everything is better if you can inject a note of silliness and of the absurd. Not only is this a possibility at any time; occasionally, it’s an absolute necessity: “You’ve got to laugh. Otherwise you’d cry.”

For those who already know and love The Master and Margarita , there is something of a cult-like “circle of trust” thing going on. I’ve formed friendships with people purely on the strength of the knowledge that they have read and enjoyed this novel. I have a friend who married her husband almost exclusively because he told her he had read it. I would normally say that it’s not a great idea to found a lifelong relationship on the basis of liking one particular book. But, in this case, it’s a very special book. So, if you are unmarried, and you love it and you meet someone else who loves it, you should definitely marry them. It’s the most entertaining and comforting novel. When I was feeling low about not being able to pretend to be Russian any more, I would read bits of it to cheer myself up and remind myself that, whatever the truth about where I come from, I had succeeded in understanding some important things about another culture. It is a book that takes your breath away and makes you laugh out loud, sometimes at its cleverness, sometimes because it’s just so funny and ridiculous. I might have kidded myself that you need to be a bit Russian to understand Tolstoy. But with Bulgakov, all you need to understand him is a sense of humor. His comedy is universal.

Written in the 1930s but not published until the 1960s, The Master and Margarita is the most breathtakingly original piece of work. Few books can match it for weirdness. The devil, Woland, comes to Moscow with a retinue of terrifying henchmen, including, of course, the giant talking cat (literally “the size of a pig”), a witch and a wall-eyed assassin with one yellow fang. They appear to be targeting Moscow’s literary elite. Woland meets Berlioz, influential magazine editor and chairman of the biggest Soviet writers’ club. (Berlioz has been drinking the hiccup-inducing apricot juice.) Berlioz believes Woland to be some kind of German professor. Woland predicts Berlioz’s death, which almost instantly comes to pass when the editor is decapitated in a freak accident involving a tram and a spillage of sunflower oil. All this happens within the first few pages.

A young poet, Ivan Bezdomny (his surname means “Homeless”), has witnessed this incident and heard Woland telling a bizarre story about Pontius Pilate. (This “Procurator of Judaea” narrative is interspersed between the “Moscow” chapters.) Bezdomny attempts to chase Woland and his gang but ends up in a lunatic asylum, ranting about an evil professor who is obsessed with Pontius Pilate. In the asylum, he meets the Master, a writer who has been locked away for writing a novel about Jesus Christ and, yes, Pontius Pilate. The story of the relationship between Christ and Pilate, witnessed by Woland and recounted by the Master, returns at intervals throughout the novel and, eventually, both stories tie in together. (Stick with me here. Honestly, it’s big fun.)

Meanwhile, outside the asylum, Woland has taken over Berlioz’s flat and is hosting magic shows for Moscow’s elite. He summons the Master’s mistress, Margarita, who has remained loyal to the writer and his work. At a midnight ball hosted by Satan, Woland offers Margarita the chance to become a witch with magical powers. This happens on Good Friday, the day Christ is crucified. (Seriously, all this makes perfect sense when you are reading the book. And it is not remotely confusing. I promise.) At the ball, there is a lot of naked dancing and cavorting (oh, suddenly you’re interested and want to read this book?) and then Margarita starts flying around naked, first across Moscow and then the USSR. Again, I repeat: this all makes sense within the context of the book.

Woland grants Margarita one wish. She chooses the most altruistic thing possible, liberating a woman she meets at the ball from eternal suffering. The devil decides not to count this wish and gives her another one. This time, Margarita chooses to free the Master. Woland is not happy about this and gets her and the Master to drink poisoned wine. They come together again in the afterlife, granted “peace” but not “light,” a limbo situation that has caused academics to wrap themselves up in knots for years. Why doesn’t Bulgakov absolve them? Why do both Jesus and the Devil seem to agree on their punishment? Bulgakov seems to suggest that you should always choose freedom—but expect it to come at a price.

One of the great strengths of The Master and Margarita is its lightness of tone. It’s full of cheap (but good) jokes at the expense of the literati, who get their comeuppance for rejecting the Master’s work. (This is a parallel of Bulgakov’s experience; he was held at arm’s length by the Soviet literary establishment and “allowed” to work only in the theatre, and even then with some difficulty). In dealing so frivolously and surreally with the nightmare society in which Woland wreaks havoc, Bulgakov’s satire becomes vicious without even needing to draw blood. His characters are in a sort of living hell, but they never quite lose sight of the fact that entertaining and amusing things are happening around them. However darkly comedic these things might sometimes be.

While The Master and Margarita is a hugely complex novel, with its quasi-religious themes and its biting critique of the Soviet system, above all it’s a big fat lesson in optimism through laughs. If you can’t see the funny side of your predicament, then what is the point of anything? Bulgakov loves to make fun of everyone and everything. “There’s only one way a man can walk round Moscow in his underwear—when he’s being escorted by the police on the way to a police station!” (This is when Ivan Bezdomny appears, half naked, at the writers’ restaurant to tell them a strange character has come to Moscow and murdered their colleague.) “I’d rather be a tram conductor and there’s no job worse than that.” (The giant cat talking rubbish at Satan’s ball.) “The only thing that can save a mortally wounded cat is a drink of paraffin.” (More cat gibberish.)

The final joke of the book is that maybe Satan is not the bad guy after all. While I was trying to recover my sense of humor about being Polish and Jewish instead of being Russian, this was all a great comfort. Life is, in Bulgakov’s eyes, a great cosmic joke. Of course, there’s a political message here, too. But Bulgakov delivers it with such gusto and playfulness that you never feel preached at. You have got to be a seriously good satirist in order to write a novel where the Devil is supposed to represent Stalin and/or Soviet power without making the reader feel you are bludgeoning them over the head with the idea. Bulgakov’s novel is tragic and poignant in many ways, but this feeling sneaks up on you only afterwards. Most of all, Bulgakov is about conjuring up a feeling of fun. Perhaps because of this he’s the cleverest and most subversive of all the writers who were working at this time. It’s almost impossible to believe that he and Pasternak were contemporaries, so different are their novels in style and tone. (Pasternak was born in 1890, Bulgakov in 1891.) The Master and Margarita and Doctor Zhivago feel as if they were written in two different centuries.

Unlike Pasternak, though, Bulgakov never experienced any reaction to his novel during his lifetime, as it wasn’t published until after he had died. One of the things that makes The Master and Margarita so compelling is the circumstances in which it was written. Bulgakov wrote it perhaps not only “for the drawer” (i.e. not to be published within his lifetime) but never to be read by anyone at all. He was writing it at a time of Black Marias (the KGB’s fleet of cars), knocks on the door and disappearances in the middle of the night. Ordinary life had been turned on its head for most Muscovites, and yet they had to find a way to keep on living and pretending that things were normal. Bulgakov draws on this and creates a twilight world where nothing is as it seems and the fantastical, paranormal and downright evil are treated as everyday occurrences.

It’s hard to imagine how Bulgakov would have survived if the novel had been released. Bulgakov must have known this when he was writing it. And he also must have known that it could never be published—which means that he did not hold back and wrote exactly what he wanted, without fear of retribution. (Although there was always the fear that the novel would be discovered. Just to write it would have been a crime, let alone to attempt to have it published.) This doesn’t mean that he in any way lived a carefree life. He worried about being attacked by the authorities. He worried about being prevented from doing any work that would earn him money. He worried about being unable to finish this novel. And he worried incessantly—and justifiably—about his health.

During his lifetime Bulgakov was known for his dystopian stories “The Fatal Eggs” (1924) and “The Heart of a Dog” (1925) and his play The Days of the Turbins (1926), about the civil war. Despite his early success, from his late twenties onwards, Bulgakov seemed to live with an awareness that he was probably going to be cut down in mid-life. He wrote a note to himself on the manuscript of The Master and Margarita : “Finish it before you die.” J.A.E. Curtis’s compelling biography Manuscripts Don’t Burn: Mikhail Bulgakov, A Life in Letters and Diaries , gives a near-cinematic insight into the traumatic double life Bulgakov was leading as he wrote the novel in secrecy. I love this book with the same intensity that I love The Master and Margarita . Curtis’s quotes from the letters and the diaries bring Bulgakov to life and are packed full of black comedy and everyday detail, from Bulgakov begging his brother not to send coffee and socks from Paris because “the duty has gone up considerably” to his wife’s diary entry from New Year’s Day 1937 which tells of Bulgakov’s joy at smashing cups with 1936 written on them.

As well as being terrified that he would never finish The Master and Margarita , Bulgakov was becoming increasingly ill. In 1934, he wrote to a friend that he had been suffering from insomnia, weakness and “finally, which was the filthiest thing I have ever experienced in my life, a fear of solitude, or to be more precise, a fear of being left on my own. It’s so repellent that I would prefer to have a leg cut off.” He was often in physical pain with a kidney disease but was just as tortured psychologically. There was the continual business of seeming to be offered the chance to travel abroad, only for it to be withdrawn. Of course, the authorities had no interest in letting him go, in case he never came back. (Because it would make them look bad if talented writers didn’t want to live in the USSR. And because it was much more fun to keep them in their own country, attempt to get them to write things praising Soviet power and torture them, in most cases literally.)

It is extraordinary that Bulgakov managed to write a novel that is so full of humor and wit and lightness of tone when he was living through this period. He grew accustomed to being in a world where sometimes the phone would ring, he would pick it up and on the other end of the line an anonymous official would say something like: “Go to the Foreign Section of the Executive Committee and fill in a form for yourself and your wife.” He would do this and grow cautiously hopeful. And then, instead of an international passport, he would receive a slip of paper that read: “M.A. Bulgakov is refused permission.” In all the years that Bulgakov continued, secretly, to write The Master and Margarita —as well as making a living (of sorts) as a playwright—what is ultimately surprising is that he did not go completely insane from all the cat-and-mouse games that Stalin and his acolytes played with him. Stalin took a personal interest in him, in the same way he did with Akhmatova. There’s some suggestion that his relationship with Stalin prevented Bulgakov’s arrest and execution. But it also prevented him from being able to work on anything publicly he wanted to work on.

How galling, too, to have no recognition in your own lifetime for your greatest work. When the book did come out in 1966-7, its significance was immense, perhaps greater than any other book published in the 20th century. As the novelist Viktor Pelevin once said, it’s almost impossible to explain to anyone who has not lived through Soviet life exactly what this novel meant to people. “ The Master and Margarita didn’t even bother to be anti-Soviet, yet reading this book would make you free instantly. It didn’t liberate you from some particular old ideas, but rather from the hypnotism of the entire order of things.”

The Master and Margarita symbolizes dissidence; it’s a wry acknowledgement that bad things happened that can never, ever be forgiven. But it is also representative of an interesting kind of passivity or non-aggression. It is not a novel that encourages revolution. It is a novel that throws its hands up in horror but does not necessarily know what to do next. Literature can be a catalyst for change. But it can also be a safety valve for a release of tension and one that results in paralysis. I sometimes wonder if The Master and Margarita —the novel I have heard Russians speak the most passionately about—explains many Russians’ indifference to politics and current affairs. They are deeply cynical, for reasons explored fully in this novel. Bulgakov describes a society where nothing is as it seems. People lie routinely. People who do not deserve them receive rewards. You can be declared insane simply for wanting to write fiction. The Master and Margarita is, ultimately, a huge study in cognitive dissonance. It’s about a state of mind where nothing adds up and yet you must act as if it does. Often, the only way to survive in that state is to tune out. And, ideally, make a lot of jokes about how terrible everything is.

Overtly, Bulgakov also wants us to think about good and evil, light and darkness. So as not to be preachy about things, he does this by mixing in absurd humor. Do you choose to be the sort of person who joins Woland’s retinue of weirdos? (Wall-eyed goons, step forward!) Or do you choose to be the sort of person who is prepared to go to an insane asylum for writing poetry? (I didn’t say these were straightforward choices.) On a deeper level, he is asking whether we are okay with standing up for what we believe in, even if the consequences are terrifying. And he is challenging us to live a life where we can look ourselves in the eye and be happy with who we are. There is always a light in the dark. But first, you have to be the right kind of person to be able to see it.

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The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov | Book Review

The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov is one of my favourite books I have ever read. This book holds a special place in my heart as it depicts beautifully with all the necessary nuances the most important characteristics related to Russia and Eastern Europe during the course of the tragic 20 th century. Having an Eastern European heritage, Bulgakov ’s book has always resonated with me at a personal level as no other book ever had.

The Master and Margarita is a multi-layered book with many symbolic references. It does help to dig into the history of Russia and Eastern Europe of the 1920s and 1930 to better understand all the symbolism in Bulgakov’s masterpiece.

Depiction of Human Nature, Good, and Evil

Woland, the Devil in the book is an ambiguous character; he is like a human character. When it comes to his deeds, there is no clear distinction between good and bad. Here, the Devil is a meticulous observer of humanity, of contemporary Moscow and of ancient Jerusalem . Woland concludes that people of Moscow living in the 1930s and people of Jerusalem living in the times of Yeshua (Jesus) have the same qualities – the essence of human nature does not change even if the structure of the state changes – it is still impossible to transform a “human soul”. Times change, discoveries happen but human nature remains the same, no matter what political system or religion is in place.

In the book, Woland expresses these feelings in the following way:

“(…) they are people like any other people, they love money (…)”.

Woland refers to human greed, an ever-existing quality of human character regardless of the times and places one lives in.

Greed is also one of the ‘evil’ characteristics which can be shown in people’s behaviour as a feeling superior to others, a love of spectacle.

In ancient Jerusalem, the crucifixion of Yeshua is depicted as a spectacle where over one thousand people come to see it despite hot scorching weather. Pilate puts his career first above the life of an innocent man; he goes against his own values for his personal gain – to satisfy his own greed.

During Black Magic Debut Carnival in contemporary Moscow , there was a double queue, when one of Woland’s assistants rained down money on people. According to the ideology of the Soviet Union, people were supposed to be unconcerned with a personal gain, but the reality was often opposite as shown in the book.

Cowardice is another human trait described in The Master and Margarita that does not change despite the passage of time.

In Moscow, the Master betrayed his own values for fear of repercussion. He burnt his novel, and he ended up in the psychiatric hospital. He did not stand up for what he believed in. The Master betrayed his artistic freedom – what Bulgakov refers to as the foundation of the civilisation.

In the ancient Jerusalem, Pilate also betrayed his own values for fear of repercussions from the Cesar. He preferred to sacrifice Yeshua’s life.

At the same time, there are positive characteristics of human nature shown by Bulgakov such as compassion.

In ancient Jerusalem during the crucifixion, there was a tradition to grant a freedom to one of the criminals. In contemporary Moscow , Margarita chooses compassion for Frieda over her love for the Master.

Good and Evil need to coexist as depicted in the conversation between Woland and Matthew the Levite:

“What would happen if there is no evil or shadow, everyone has a shadow”.

Both need to exist to appreciate the good.

The Soviet Union’s ideology referred to great ideas such as hard work, unity, solidarity but completely ignored the diversity of human nature where both good and evil are part of it. Despite the lofty ideals of communism there were still selfish and greedy people. Communism in its ideology ignored evil side of the human nature. It is worth remembering that not everyone has an evil side – it might be just a shadow as per Woland’s words.

Bulgakov used a quote from Faust by Goethe at the very beginning of the book. It is important to note that Faust is seen as the archetype of the magician who sells his soul to the Devi in exchange of material and immaterial pleasures . The reference to Faust in The Master and Margarita serves as a reminder that the coexistence of good and evil has always been a part of human nature.

The Master and Margarita shows us that there is no clear distinction between good and evil; the boundaries are often blurred. That ambiguous nature of the reality one lives in is also beautifully shown by Bulgakov. In the Soviet Union an innocent person could be labelled bad and disappear, be killed. Similarly, in the ancient times , Yeshua was sentenced to death just for thinking differently; then society grants the freedom to one of the criminals and not to an innocent man.

As mentioned earlier, Woland is an ambiguous character who is able to feel sorry and compassionate after killing of Berlioz. The Master , similarly, like Woland, is an ambiguous character . He is removed from the collective society and thinks independently but at the same time he is unable to stand up for his ideals out of cowardice. The Master is a reminder to people that the power of words is important in fight against the tyranny of any kind, stories can change the course of history. Pilate is also an ambiguous character . He has got the pangs of conscience because he did not stand up for his beliefs to save Yeshua.

All the characters in The Master and Margarita have both sides: good and evil which coexist together, and this is the essence of human nature. Needless to say, this is the reality that most people have lived in throughout the most tragic events in the history of humankind.

Creative and Religious Freedom | the Importance of Words, Stories as the Foundation of the Civilisation

These famous words from The Master and Margarita : “Manuscripts do not burn” serve as a reminder of the power of stories over the oppression and terror. Words can transcend many spheres – can impact the course of history. Writing is the expression of freedom which is the foundation of civilisation.

If people forget what constitutes the foundation of civilisation, then this is a path for evil and tyranny to triumph. Bulgakov reminds us that Yeshua died but his words live on because he believed in his freedom and stood up for his values.

Authority either imposed by the state or by the religious entity destroys spiritual and creative freedom. In the Soviet Union and Jerusalem , religious freedom did not exist out of fear by those in power for the competitive ideas.

In order to stand up for your own ideals, one must understand the meaning of freedom. In both cases, as shown in The Master and Margarita , in Moscow and Jerusalem people did not love freedom enough to stand up against the tyranny.

The Meaning of Historic Accuracy and its Influence in Creating Totalitarian Regime

The Master and Margarita reminds us about the false narrative having always been a part of public discourse since the biblical times.

A story of Yeshua as shown by Bulgakow is a blow to a biblical narrative. Bulgakov portrays Yeshua as weak and fragile, in other words, very human. On the other hand, Yeshua in the Bible is nothing more than God – he is the God.

In The Master and Margarita , Yeshua says that someone wrote down something that he said but then reading it did not resemble at all what he preached : “These people are unlearned and have confused everything I said. I am beginning to fear that this confusion will last for a very long time. And all because he untruthfully wrote down what I said.”

There is the inconsistency between the reality and written record – the untruthfulness of recorded history. During the communism, the narrative was used to show the ideology as the best utopian system. False narrative can create a new political system or religion affecting people’s lives for centuries. Bulgakov reminds us to be aware of and to be alert to false statements . This brings to mind “ fake news” in the current world affairs.

In the reality of the Soviet Union and of countries under communism regime (like in many other regimes) , the questions and doubts were not allowed. In the Master and Margarita , the totalitarian regime of Moscow during the 1930 is so bad that even the Devil in the person of Woland seems to look good and mellow in comparison.

In the Soviet Union, arrests, disappearances, deportations to the Gulag, a constant sense of fear was a part of daily life. No one was sure of his or her faith. This is shown in the story of Stepa Likhodeyev. Also, the Master was defeated by fear of being arrested, deported or killed. He burned his manuscript before there “was a knock on the door”.

The truth in the totalitarian reality constitutes a paper and a stamp. One needs ID and signature for everything. One of the attendees to the Black Magic Ball, Nikolai Ivanovich needed a written note confirming he was present at the Ball so he could present it to his wife and the police. When he receives the note stating that he attended Satan’s Ball, he only questions the date and the mention of the Satan seems to be perfectly normal.

“Remove the document – and you remove the man” words uttered by Koroviev showed that in the totalitarian regime there is the superiority of being a number over being a human being. It is a norm in all the totalitarian regimes. It was used not only in the Soviet Union, countries under communism dictature, but also in Nazi Germany and many others. In this sort of reality, people have no rights; the power goes to the greediest ones and others are resigned with no hope. This can also be seen in the current times when it comes to refugees, immigrants – the documents one posses by the accident of birth dictates the course of one’s life and how one is perceived and what rights one has.

A talent is not important in life – only supporting the ideas of regime can propel someone in life. If your writing was not in line with the idea of communism, you could not create. The ones who compromised their values had a good life such as in the example of Margarita’s husband in Moscow or Pilate in the ancient Jerusalem . The Master also compromised – he did not stand up for his own beliefs and as a result he could not create. However, his attitude was far more ambiguous in a moral sense.

The totalitarian regime monopolises how the individual thinks and all the spheres of life are affected.

In relation to existing evil, the Master says at some point: “If only it were all so simple” . If only these evil people committing evil deeds could be separated from the rest of us but the reality is never so simplistic. As mentioned earlier, the difference between evil and good is often blurred and is a part of human nature. It leads us to remember the famous words by Solzhenitsyn:

“The line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is ready to destroy a piece of his own heart”.

Moral Dilemmas under Totalitarian Regime

The Master and Margarita portrays a number of moral dilemmas faced by people living under the regime.

The examples of these dilemmas are: Margarita going into pact with evil to save the Master; Margarita choosing compassion for Frieda over her love for the Master; again Margarita was married at the time when she met the Master but her husband was a part of the state (there is a mention that her husband was responsible for killing another person) ; and the Master did not stand up for his beliefs.

Bulgakov points out to the tragedy of human existence where good and evil often coexist and the choice between two is not always an easy one and often it is an impossible choice.

Enforcement of Ideas under Totalitarian Regime

In search of peace, the Master goes to the psychiatric hospital which symbolises the Heart of Hell .

In the Soviet Union, enemies of the state were sent to the psychiatric hospitals, they were considered mad because they thought differently. Also, there is a reference to Yeshua who was called a “madman” for thinking differently to the rest. In Moscow of the 1930s, the psychiatric hospital as shown in the book is quite a normal place, with kind and competent people and a great service . It seems as this is the only place in the book which is “good” . However, this is only a façade. Patients in the hospital are forced to adapt a “new” worldwide and those who dare “doubt” like The Master or Ivan Bezdomny end up in the psychiatric hospital so that they stop questioning collective ideas imposed by the state.

Despite the external appearance of being professional, the psychiatric hospital constitutes a tool to implement the state ideology, it is, as mentioned above, the Heart of Hell .

In the Master and Margarita , even Woland is surprised how badly damaged the Master was after his stay in the psychiatric hospital.

The conclusion is that the system that appears to be logical, competent if cannot be questioned, then it is a tyranny, it is evil.

Attitudes towards Totalitarian Regime

Yeshua is a symbol of spiritual freedom – he is a fighter. He is the only positive person in The Master and Margarita. He is shown without his divine qualities – he is just a good and noble person with a strong moral compass who doubts and questions the surrounding reality . He stood up for his beliefs and he did not submit to the authority but fights back even if it means death. Yeshua’s spiritual belief led to light – compassion and courage are the most important qualities. His words live on and had an impact on the course of the history. Yeshua is shown as a human being, as one of us so that we can connect with but ultimately there is no place in this world for noble people like him.

Pilate is shown as weak and confused , similarly to the Master. He is a symbol of misery, lack of freedom . He is very human – he has got good ideals but too weak to stand up for what he believes in, even when the life of an innocent man is at stake . He suffers because of his inability to follow his own moral compass. He is not free – he submits to authority. Pilate does not fight – he puts himself, his greed over his values.

The Master is a symbol of artistic freedom, but he is not free in the way that Yeshua is . He is sensitive but weak and confused – like Pilate but unlike him – the Master has strong beliefs and thinks independently but this is not enough to get closer to “light” like Yeshua. The Master is still broken by the system. Fear of persecution and cowardice does not allow the Master to stand up for himself. He does not fight the system – he submits to the authority . He does not keep a creative freedom as a way leading to “light” . He chooses death – the symbol of peace but with no creative freedom. The Master wants to save himself, but freedom has a higher price. Ultimately, similarly like in case of Yeshua, there is no place in the world for people like the Master, with a strong moral compass but too weak to follow it.

Conclusions

The Master and Margarita shows that in order to find “light” – spiritual, creative freedom one can get lost on a path as life is full of moral dilemmas. Without people there is no evil. The Devil could not take Yeshua’s power as he stood up for his values. Evil exists because people allow it. We can not only refer it to the Soviet Union but also to Nazi Germany and other regimes. These regimes were created by the people who allowed the evil to flourish in their hearts and by the people who did not oppose it due to their moral weakness which showed up through indifferent attitude and their inability to stand up against man–made evil. People do not often love freedom enough to stand up against the tyranny.

The paradox in The Master and Margarita is that Woland is more human than God and humans are more evil than godly. Woland needs people to implement evil for evil to flourish. The words of Edmund Burke come to mind:

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing”.

Bulgakov shows the reader that God and Evil do not have an absolute power over people, but they are prepared to do everything to gain the power: God will sacrifice his son (a symbole of greed) and Evil will look the other way when suffering happens (a symbol of cowardice) . It is all very human.

The Master and Margarita by Bulgakov is a wonderful book, with many reflections about the nature of humanity. I would highly recommend this masterpiece to everyone. Reading this book with other historic books can allow to understand the tragic times of the 20 th century in Central and Eastern Europe. For those interested, I would refer you to the following books:

The Origin of Totalitarianism by Hannah Arendt

Captive Mind by Czeslaw Milosz

Ordinary Men by Robert Browning

At the Mind’s Limits by Jean Amery

The Gulag Archipelago by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century

Sunken City by Marta Barone | Book Review

Diary of an Invasion by Andrey Kurkov | Book Review

The Library at Night by Alberto Manguel | Book Review

“The Master and Margarita” is an exceptional reading. I really liked the way a kind of codependency between good and evil was suggested along the story. It’s a “thesis” of morality and perspective. A great one. The best thing, I think, was the way the characters played with everyone’s mind, including the readers’. This book defies “normality” and makes you ask yourself some serious questions about the true “colors” of our society. It’s a great book!

Great review!!! I admit that I share your view; this is a wonderful book!

Thank you so much. I am glad you enjoyed the book. 📙📖🤗🤗

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The Oxford Culture Review

"i have nothing to say, and i am saying it" – john cage, review: ‘the master & margarita’.

Adapting Mikhail Bulgakov’s The Master and Margarita for the stage is, by any account, an ambitious undertaking. The novel is notorious for the multiplicity of interpretations it allows, simultaneously presenting satire, socio-political critique, philosophical allegory, and theological musing. Beyond this, Bulgakov’s prose is stylistically mercurial as he jumps between 1930s Moscow and Pontius Pilate’s Jerusalem, incorporating elements of magical realism along the way. Despite these obstacles, Magnolia Productions’ interpretation is the latest in a whole host of dramatic adaptations, from Edward Kemp’s 2004 stage rendition to the BBC’s radio play broadcast earlier this year. It seems that there is something irresistible about the dramatic challenge of staging Bulgakov’s book.

Although Master and Margarita does have a plot of sorts, to say that it is a love story between Margarita and the Master is about as comprehensive as saying that Slaughterhouse Five is a book about aliens. This is one of the many levels at which the novel operates, and to their credit Magnolia Productions did not try and narrow down the interpretational complexities of the novel. Conversely, Florence Hyde’s script didn’t take as many liberties with the text as were perhaps necessary for a convincing stage rendition. Without the context of Bulgakov’s prose, the dialogue was appropriately kaleidoscopic but ultimately missing the grounding needed to make it a convincing social critique. In remaining so faithful to Bulgakov’s language, this script overlooked the radically different nature of the apparatus available to the novel and the drama. Consequently many of the most effective moments were improvised, particularly Josh Dolphin’s exceptional performance as Azazello. It was at the points where Dolphin and Ali Porteous (as Woland) went off-script to interact with the audience that the satirical nature of Bulgakov’s novel was most convincingly captured.

Magnolia Productions cannot be faulted for their ambition in choosing Master and Margarita as a topic. Reducing Bulgakov’s monumental work down to ninety minutes is a feat in and of itself. And there were some beautifully staged moments, such as when Margarita flew over the heads of the audience to the sounds of Tom Kinsella’s astutely atmospheric score. Nonetheless, I was left unconvinced by the efficacy of their production as a stand-alone dramatic piece. A close familiarity with the novel seemed to be a prerequisite for making any sense of what was happening, and from there draw out the interpretational layers that Bulgakov offers. In terms of both style and content, the adaptation needed to be bolder to make the leap from page to stage convincing. Paradoxically, a less faithful translation might have got closer to the chimerical brilliance of the original text. While this rendition offered moments of genuinely amusing entertainment, it ultimately fell prey to Bulgakov’s web of multiple narratives and styles.

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The master and margarita, by mikhail bulgakov, recommendations from our site.

“I defy anyone to read those opening pages…and not have it slightly get under their skin and haunt them…I believe that there’s been a lot of dispute about whether Mikhail Bulgakov was writing against Soviet atheism or in favour of it, against religion or in favour of it. Like all great art, it’s shot through with ambivalence. But I don’t think he could ever have written this other than through the collision of the creative impulse and the soulless worldview of Soviet communism. I just don’t think it would have been created other than through that rather disfiguring collision between creativity and conformity. And, for that reason alone, I just think it’s an astonishing book.” Read more...

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Nick Clegg , Politician

“ The Master and Margarita is brilliant, not only for its interweaving of past and present and linking of different timelines with the Pontius Pilate story, but also the complexity of the relationship between good and evil in it. You really feel for the evil characters — you find yourself backing them completely in their worst actions. The Rolling Stones song ‘Sympathy for the Devil’ was heavily inspired by The Master and Margarita . It’s a beautiful commentary and reflection on questions like ‘what are we doing in our lives, why are we here?'” Read more...

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“It’s all about compassion for yourself, for others and really how ultimately that’s all that matters.” Read more...

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“The Master and Margarita is the most mystical and mysterious way of describing the primitive and base sort of simplification of society under the Soviets.” Read more...

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Other books by Mikhail Bulgakov

The white guard by mikhail bulgakov, our most recommended books, war and peace by leo tolstoy, on liberty by john stuart mill, middlemarch by george eliot, nineteen eighty-four by george orwell, the odyssey by homer and translated by emily wilson, the confessions by augustine (translated by maria boulding).

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There’s no good without evil

“The Master and Margarita” is a controversial piece of work, which exploited my imagination and understanding. Even though it is written in an easy manner, specific to children novels, I’ve constantly felt there was still more to discover about its characters and meaning. Young or old, it’s never too late to “experience” a story of good and evil, which defies the so-called “normality”. This book is a philosophical “thesis” of morality and perception. Give a chance to this great classic, and don’t ever be surprised if it’s going to stick to your memory!

The narration.

While the narration of “The Master and Margarita” takes place on the 3 rd person, the omniscient objective storyteller uses several narrative threads for telling the story. The anti-communist voice showed an important influence in the readers’ experience and helped contouring complexly the setting.

The main characters of “The Master and Margarita”

Woland (Satan, who pretends to be a professor of dark magic)
Azazello (one of Satan’s two helps. He keeps a human form)
Yeshua (Jesus)
Behemoth (one of Satan’s two helps. He is shown as a massive walking black cat)
Pontius Pilate

The Moral of the story

It has completely astonished me to discover – only after finishing the story – that it is recommended mostly for the age 7-11. Most probably, if I had looked for its age rating before reading it, my curiosity for “The Master and Margarita” would’ve vanished immediately – and it would’ve been a complete loss.

While its language and action are decent – completely right for a young child -, the approached themes are complex, and the message of the book can initially come unclear, making it hard even for the older readers to deepen it. Wasn’t “The Little Prince” by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry also initially considered a simple children book? It was definitely an understatement.

“The Master and Margarita”, I think, is a beautiful way to teach every reader, no matter their age, the dynamic of the world. Good and evil are codependent; there is no one without the other. As in the Chinese “Yin and Yang”, good and evil include each other and contour the reality. This story is a mesmerizing way of illustrating the very middle of morality and belief.

𝐈𝐟 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐢𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐠, 𝐚𝐭 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐭, 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐠𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐭. “The Master and Margarita”, Mikhail Bulgakov

The moral of the story is exactly the codependent relation between good and evil, which is if not influent, influenced. Many contemporary books promote the idea that there is no such thing as bad people, but only good people who sometimes do bad things (“It Ends with Us”- Colleen Hoover). Even so, in the end, is the evil tempting people, or is easier for them to blame it for their own sins and will?

Themes in “The Master and Margarita”

“The Master and Margarita” is a life metaphor that shows there’s no good without evil. The novel is a smart combination of hope, fate and magic, which didn’t fail to impress me. The magical elements, the realism features and the biblical circumstances offer “The Master and Margarita” the desired shape.

𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐫𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐢𝐬 𝐛𝐮𝐢𝐥𝐭 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭. “The Master and Margarita”, Mikhail Bulgakov

Starting with the very beginning of Christianity, the novel drives its readers straight into the Stalinist Moscow, when Satan’s ball needs a queen. Contrasting the fate and sins, the classic shows the constant immorality of society and their desire for social climbing. “The ends justify the means.” … Or not.

The evil is developed briefly in this great classic, in which the main course of the action is built up on the Satan’s coming on Earth for his annual ball. Unexpectedly, the evil is presented from a new perspective which somehow succeeded surprising me. While the previously mentioned character seems to tempt the immoral side of the “sinners”, the people still have free will and the decisions, therefore, are their own.

𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐮𝐛𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝. “The Master and Margarita”, Mikhail Bulgakov

The readers are subtly suggested the fine wicked tones that color a great part of our society. While the personal interests, selfishness and indifference rule the world, Earth becomes a favorable place for the installing of evil and chaos. Therefore, the ball is about to begin…

While people tend to believe whatever imposes itself more convincing, “The Master and Margarita” shows us their need to be given a scientific explanation to believe in good and evil. The simple morality is harder to be believed than the supernatural.

People and Power

On a second narrative thread, the story presents the dynamic between morality, humanity and power, including the consequences of an unbalanced relationship. Through Margarita’s “journey” along the story, readers are able to find out the sharp decay of a dehumanized person. As it appears in “The Master and Margarita”, human nature and, most of all, morality is often altered by possessing true power. While the woman is “transformed” by it, from an emotional simple lover to a powerful immortal witch, the narrator illustrates creatively her alteration of morality.

𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐚 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐞𝐲. 𝐒𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐛𝐮𝐲 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞𝐝. 𝐇𝐞𝐫 𝐡𝐮𝐬𝐛𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬. 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐚 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐨𝐤. 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐚 𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐨𝐫𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐥𝐚𝐭. 𝐈𝐧 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐫𝐭… 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐬𝐡𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐲? 𝐍𝐨𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐦𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭. “The Master and Margarita”, Mikhail Bulgakov

Love Beyond the Purgatory

The so-called “Master” and his lover, Margarita, seem to live a love story beyond Heaven or Hell. They live their life journey in an unofficial “purgatory”, being simple people who are predisposed to sinning. The man is divinely blessed to tell the story of Pontius Pilate. Therefore, the ending reveals that he is the one who needs to end the Roman’s “story”.

One thing which I especially liked about the writing was the usage of the biblical personalities’ original names – Yeshua, for example. Even though it initially was a little bit difficult to link those names to a story, everything came clear in the end. This whole originality contributed great and well to the authenticity of the novel.

“The Master and Margarita” censored

The Soviet censors considered the novel unacceptable and decided to completely forbid it from the public eye. The ex-URSS used to strongly deny the concept of fate or afterlife, and, as a communist state, totally canceled the books that promoted the contrary. Besides that, the story also offered women a kind of individuality, power and meaning in the course of the events, which also has been seen as one more reason for it being censored.

My favorite parts of “The Master and Margarita”

it’s written in a casual language
a great codependency of good and evil
the social and moral accents of the story
the complexity of the literary themes
the balance between faith and sinning
the story defies the social “standards” or “usual”
the engaging plot

Conclusions

“The Master and Margarita” was a book I’ve never thought I would so heartedly recommend one day. It is an important story for the universal classic literature, precisely illustrating the great role which morality owns in society.

Combining the old Jerusalem of Jesus Christ with the 30’s Stalinist Moscow, it is a novel that completely “cancels” the standards of morality and rebuilds them from the ground.

Through a powerful contrast realized between true faith and sinning, “The Master and Margarita” made me wonder about the nature of society’s true “colors”. How do we know when “far” becomes “too far”? Do the ends really justify the means?

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‘The Master and Margarita’ (1967) BY Mikhail Bulgakov – BOOK REVIEW

WoOoOoWWWIEEEE! The Master and Margarita was whirlwinds of magic and pure creativity pooped out from the colorful (to say the least) imagination of Mikhail Bulgakov.

Although I actually enjoyed reading this book, it left an impression on me like none other. Yes, the devil screwed with, killed, and exploited many of Moscow’s citizens but the narrator tells a captivating, alternative story of Jesus (Yeshua) and his death. This satire was inspired by Stalin’s reign and was created to lampoon Russia’s government at the time. Although the satire has a deeper meaning to it, it’s story was told whimsically with lots of grandeur, sarcasm, and unforgettable characters like Behemoth and Koroviev – the devil’s retinue!

For an awesome trip, pick up The Master and Margarita and get to reading!

Rating: ★★★

Fantastique : a French term for a literary and cinematic genre that overlaps with science fiction, horror, and fantasy.

Farce : a literary genre and type of comedy that makes use of highly exaggerated and funny situations aimed at entertaining the audience.

“The tongue can conceal the truth, but the eyes never! You’re asked an unexpected question, you don’t even flinch, it takes just a second to get yourself under control, you know just what you have to say to hide the truth, and you speak very convincingly, and nothing in your face twitches to give you away. But the truth, alas, has been disturbed by the question, and it rises up from the depths of your soul to flicker in your eyes and all is lost.”

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Book review: the master and margarita by mikhail bulgakov.

This iconic work of Russian literature (and according to some folks on the internet, magical realism) was honestly bonkers. The story is mainly about Satan and his cronies, wreaking havoc on the literary/theater community in 1930s Moscow. They have all sorts of supernatural powers, which they use to utterly confound, trick, entertain, drive mad, or even kill. Simultaneously, the bizarre love story between the Master and Margarita is punctuated by sections from a novel that Master is writing about Pontius Pilate and the crucifixion of Yeshua Ha-Notsri. One of the most bizarre scenes is a Satanic ball set in hell, which follows Margarita’s flight across Russia on a magical broomstick while completely naked.

The contrast between stuffy aristocrats like Arkady Apollonovich and fantastic characters like the demonic cat named Behemoth who can turn into a cat-like human adds humor to their interactions. Many of the scenes in which Satan’s posse harass these literati feel like slapstick humor, perhaps with the intention of critiquing Muscovites. However, Bulgakov’s rebuke is not clear enough to come off as didactic because the Satanic crew’s actions are sporadic and often in contradiction. In our book club meeting, we had a hard time discussing the book because we knew so little about 1930s Russia, the context in which the book was written. This would have been an incredible book to read in a class with a Russian professor who could speak to the motifs, historical context, and cultural impact of the work. Bulgakov wrote the book in the 30s, but it wasn’t actually published until the 60s, posthumously, because it was considered too controversial to publish until a later date (or perhaps the author’s death). Upon finishing the novel, I had a hard time identifying which characters and scenes would have made the story so controversial — my best guess is that the most controversial reference may have been the suppression of the Master’s novel for its religious themes by those in power.

The narrative voice of this novel is very characteristically Russian in that the narrator speaks directly to the reader, often with little asides that are akin to breaking the fourth wall. I absolutely loved the first Pontius Pilate scene and would read the Master’s novel, if it were a real novel and not a novel-within-a-novel, in a heartbeat. The ending felt very drawn out, in some ways giving the reader a satisfying sense of closure but also with a couple episodes of redemption that I didn’t fully understand. Apparently, when the manuscript was discovered after Bulgakov’s death, it still had incomplete sentences. We wondered aloud in our discussion as to whether the confusing ending was intentional or was meant to be corrected. Though this book was a difficult read, it was uniquely stimulating and left me wondering about the author’s intentions, the character’s motivations, the real world backdrop, and what it all meant.

Themes and Analysis

The master and margarita, by mikhail bulgakov.

The major themes of 'The Master and Margarita' include the conflict between good and evil, the significance of creativity and the arts, and the dangers of authoritarian control. The message of the book is that people may resist persecution and uphold their human ideals by using love, bravery, and the search of the truth.

About the Book

Article written by Charles Asoluka

Degree in Computer Engineering. Passed TOEFL Exam. Seasoned literary critic.

‘ The Master and Margarita ‘ by Mikhail Bulgakov explores themes like the need, to tell the truth when authority would prefer to cover it up and freedom of the spirit in an oppressive society as it deals with the interaction of good and evil, innocence and guilt, courage and cowardice. The novel’s main themes also center on love and sensuality.

Margarita abandons her spouse out of her devotion to the Master, yet she survives the ordeal. She and the Master are united spiritually and sexually. The story is a riot of sensuous impressions, yet the humorous portions underscore the meaninglessness of sexual fulfillment without love. Nikolai Ivanovich, who becomes Natasha’s hog-broomstick, is a mocking representation of rejecting sexuality for the sake of hollow respectability.

Bravery and Fear in The Master and Margarita

‘ The Master and Margarita ‘ by Mikhail Bulgakov presents a compelling case for bravery over cowardice by labeling the latter as “the worst sin of all.” The love between the master and Margarita, Pontius Pilate’s decision to sentence Yeshua (Jesus) to death in Yershalaim (Jerusalem) two thousand years ago, and the three storylines that make up the novel—the visit of Woland (Satan) and his entourage to Moscow, the love between the master and Margarita, and Pontius Pilate’s condemnation of Yeshua (Jesus) to death—all work together.

Most of the characters in the novel who are from Moscow fall far short of the definition of courage, which is the willingness to stand up against something in the service of the greater good. Woland and his gang’s antics expose the self-interest, greed, and dishonesty of the masses and their collective cowardice, which strengthens the status quo and all of its flaws—and there were many in Soviet society. Woland may or may not have malicious intentions, but regardless, the havoc he causes brings out the worst aspects of society.

In many ways, Bulgakov reveals this moral cowardice. Nikanor Ivanovich Bosoy, the head of the tenants’ organization on Sadovaya Street, demonstrates how it affects housing distribution by accepting a bribe from Koroviev, Woland’s assistant, to allow them to stay in the flat. The state-approved authors are also cowards who care more about good dining and vacations than they do about making artfully risky or sincere statements. Moreover, Moscow is characterized by an obsession with bureaucracy, where “obedient” citizens frequently attempt to report one another to the covert secret police.

The show by Woland and his gang at the Variety theater, in which they make money fall from the roof and incite the crowd to engage in fighting to snag as much as they can, serves as the culmination of this exposing of cowardice. Hence, self-interested moral cowardice and the refusal to sacrifice one’s security or comfort for anybody else have completely undermined Moscow society.

In the passages of the book that deal with Pontius Pilate, Bulgakov elaborates on his contrast between bravery and cowardice. Pilate exhibits the same kind of cowardice as the Moscow story’s Pilate when he must decide whether to sanction Yeshua Ha-Nozri’s execution. Though he is charmed by Yeshua’s extreme compassion and secretly yearns to set him free, he confirms Yeshua’s death out of fear of the repercussions of acting differently.

This is a combination of his self-interested determination to maintain his hegemon status and a general dread of upsetting the hierarchy (Yershalaim is an environment held together by a delicate balance of power). For two millennia, Pilate feels guilty about his choice and dreams frequently of walking with Yeshua. In these dreams, the two men concur that the execution never took place and that “cowardice is the worst sin of all.” Yeshua, on the other hand, exemplifies truly unselfish heroism by demanding that the water from the executioner’s sponge be given to one of his fellow dying men instead of drinking it himself. Bulgakov thus supports the notion that bravery entails making personal sacrifices for the sake of a greater good.

This idea of bravery is developed by Bulgakov in the Margarita character. She pursues the master despite not even knowing if he is still alive since she has a strong desire to help others. She is willing to take a significant risk by agreeing to host Satan’s Ball alongside Woland because of her fearless determination. Although Woland’s cannot be characterized as “pure evil,” as was previously said, Margarita is unsure whether making a deal with the devil will have dreadful repercussions.

She decides to use a wish that Woland gave her to release Frieda, a tortured soul at the ball, instead of giving in to her want to be with the master, demonstrating her brave willingness to serve others. This devotion is rewarded by a second wish, which does bring the master back despite irking Woland a little. The master is energized by Margarita’s bravery, and as a result, Pilate can be released from his millennium-long purgatory. So, selfless acts of courage in the story have a beneficial ripple effect that benefits everyone who participates.

Censorship in the Soviet Union

The editorial board rejects The Master’s book, and its “Pilatism” is harshly criticized by reviewers. The Master suffers from depression and is sent to a mental facility because he is unable to publish the novel into which he has invested all of his life and energy. The censorship practiced by the Soviet Union on writers while Bulgakov was writing is being parodied in this instance. That troubled him and constrained his ability to pursue an art career. This means that Bulgakov himself can be seen in The Master.

Woland’s presence fills the gap left in Soviet society by the censorship of Christian principles. He and his goons exploit the censorship of religion, bringing it to light in the process.

The Duality of Good and Evil in Man

The prevalence of evil in human nature is clear, given that the majority of the individuals in the book are connected to Pilate in some way. Before finally finding salvation, Pilate endures two thousand years of suffering for his sins. The Master is particularly connected to Pilate because he published a book solely about the historical figure and because of his peculiar character traits, like his inability to find solace in the moonlight.

The Master is a victim of Soviet society, much like Yeshua Ha-Nozri, though. Varenukha throws out his arms “as though he were being crucified,” and Frieda “dropped to the floor with her arms out, making a cross,” are examples of other characters who are similar to Yeshua.

Woland and his minions use people’s inherent evil tendencies to their advantage to punish them for their transgressions. But ultimately, most of the characters receive some sort of pardon. Although Woland is the devil, he is not depicted as being wholly bad and can be persuaded to be forgiving and even nice.

Love and Hope

Without a doubt, the core of ‘ The Master and Margarita ‘ is love. The master and Margarita, the book’s namesakes, are committed to one another even when their journeys take them in very different directions and are aware of their love for one another from the moment they first meet (although they are both already married). So, it is demonstrated that love is more than just a shared emotion between two people but also a power that controls their lives, akin to fate or destiny. Love also represents a form of hope, and because of the master and Margarita’s dedication to one another, this optimism keeps them both alive. In the book, hope and love coexist together, much like lovers.

The narrator speaks directly to the reader at the beginning of Book Two to describe the kind of love that the master and Margarita have for one another. The rest of the book is therefore informed by this definition, giving the impression that their love will eventually bring them together. The narrator specifically criticizes the “vile tongues” of “liars” who claim that this kind of love doesn’t exist by describing this love as “genuine, faithful, and forever.” After that, the narrator begs the reader to “join” them to experience “such a love.” The discussion of this kind of love then permeates the entirety of the book. Bulgakov wants his readers to experience this love and see how it overcomes the suffering of both individuals.

The book challenges the reader to consider their relationship to love by arguing for its existence: are their loves “true,” “loyal,” and “everlasting”; and if not, why not? Or is this the kind of love that is uncommon and not available to everyone?

The solution appears to be based on hope and faith; everyone, according to Bulgakov’s book, should believe in this form of love. The master and Margarita remain in love with one another while not knowing whether the other is xstill alive. Their lives have meaning and purpose thanks to this idea; in fact, it keeps them alive.

The master’s and Margarita’s perspectives on their love, however, differ significantly. Margarita never loses hope that she will locate her sweetheart, but the master purposely avoids getting in touch with her because he fears that the rejection of his masterpiece has driven him insane. He believes that freeing her is the best way to show his love for her. Nonetheless, despite being apart from one another, both characters make an effort to preserve their love as much as they can.

How does Goethe’s ‘Faust’ relate to ‘ The Master and Margarita ‘?

The epigraph of ‘ The Master and Margarita ‘ opens with a quotation from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe’s play Faust. The traditional tale of Faust, also known as Dr. Faustus, selling his soul to the devil in exchange for knowledge and power, is retold in the play Faust. The concept of a Faustian agreement or bargain, in which a character exchanges something of metaphysical significance (such as their soul) for material wealth or power, is rooted in the tale of Faust. The Faustian pact’s conventional meaning is challenged in ‘ The Master and Margarita .’ The Devil appears in ‘ The Master and Margarita ‘ and strikes deals with the characters. Goethe’s “Faust” is a metaphor for the bargain Woland makes with the characters he encounters. One, in which, they sell their soul for material gain.

What is ‘ The Master and Margarita ‘ really about?

The fight between good and evil is the subject of ‘ The Master and Margarita .’ Through the portrayal of characters that represent these conflicting forces, the novel examines the nature of good and evil. Woland is portrayed as a dynamic and humorous character who sheds light on the moral decay of those around him. He and his retinue cause chaos in Moscow by manipulating and torturing people who are subject to their egotistical ambitions. Margarita, on the other hand, is a good and selfless person. She is persistent in her affection for the Master and her willingness to support him despite the challenges she endures. Her bravery and selfless deeds operate as a foil to the devil’s malice.

Is ‘ The Master and Margarita ‘ satire?

Bulgakov utilizes humor in the story of ‘ The Master and Margarita ‘ to criticize the Soviet Union’s leadership as well as the social and cultural conventions of the day. Bulgakov satirizes the coercive nature of the Soviet state and the suppression of artistic expression through the portrayal of figures like the devil, who reveals the moral degeneration of those around him, and the Master, whose work is banned by the authorities.

About Charles Asoluka

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Book Reviews/The Master and Margarita

1 Master And Margarita
2 Character Descriptions
3 Major Themes
4 Composition History
5 Publication History
6 Literary Significance
7 Adaptations
8 Study Questions
9 References

Master And Margarita [ edit | edit source ]

Mikhail Bulgakov's Master and Margarita .....

Character Descriptions [ edit | edit source ]

Woland (Satan)

Members of Woland's Entourage

Ivan Nikolayevich Ponyryov (Bezdomny)

Major Themes [ edit | edit source ]

Spiritual vs. Material Worlds - Man, in society, prefers to rely on himself and thinks he can ignore spiritual issues. "But what troubles me is this," Woland says to Ivan Homeless, "if there is no God, then, you might ask, who governs the life of men and, generally, the entire situation here on earth?" "Man himself governs it," Homeless replies. Bulgakov's novel, however, is his argument against Homeless's claim. It is an attempt to demonstrate that man does not govern the world as he believes. Woland and Yeshua represent the spiritual in the two parallel plots. Pilate tells Yeshua that his life hangs by a hair that he can cut, but Yeshua responds, "There, too, are you mistaken... You must agree that the hair can surely be cut only by him who had hung it?"

The novel makes it clear that earthly power is fleeting and one can die, like Berlioz, at any moment.

Characters who ignore the spiritual are confronted with it in an uncomfortable way.

According to A. Colin Wright, "In the end, it is the spiritual that triumphs, out of necessity, for it is eternal." Woland, the manifestation of the spiritual within the novel, is the ultimate arbitrator of justice. He ensures that the Master and Margarita fulfill their deepest desire, to share in each other's fate. Ultimately, this leaves the reader with a fundamental optimism "Everything will turn out right. That's what the world is built on," Woland tells Margarita.

The State - Through the parallel plot structure, Bulgakov constantly reinforces the harmful and damaging power retained by "The State." In the biblical story, Pilate represents the state. He imposes.... In modern Russia the state fosters a specific attitude in citizens. Foreigners are treated with suspicion, busybodies are rewarded.... Evil is inherent in dictatorial power and that citizens intimidated by this power will go against their moral principles. "In both Moscow and Jerusalem," says critic Ellendea Proffer, "tyranny is maintained through spies, denunciations, and simple fear. As for Pilate himself, he is the precursor of the judges of the Stalin years who presided over the great show trials."
Truth - The theme of Yeshua's way, the way of truth and justice, is presented in The Master and Margarita as a lost secret which must be "rediscovered." The main seeker of truth in the novel is The Master. He succeeds in discovering the true story of Pontius Pilate however the greater desire for truth in the midst of soviet Russia remains after the novel's conclusion.
Literature and Writers

Allusions to Faust MASSOLIT

Composition History [ edit | edit source ]

Trained at the University of Bulgakov spent some of his formative years practicing medicine in provincial villages. These experiences inspired him to begin writing one of his earliest works, Notes of a Young Country Doctor . In 1918 Bulgakov returned to Kiev and then enlisted in the White Army in the Russian Civil War as a field doctor. At the beginning of 1920, however, he abandoned his career as a doctor to devote himself to writing. In 1921 Bulgakov moved to Moscow. He worked as a journalist writing humorous sketches and short novels. His novel The White Guard (1924) was one of the first serious works to describe the Civil War and one of the only works published under the Soviet regime which sympathetically portrayed the White cause and its supporters. Bulgakov also wrote a play, Days of the Turbins based on White Guard which premiered in Moscow in 1926. As the Soviet Union became more ideologically rigid in the late 1920s, Bulgakov's works came under attack and in 1929 all his plays were banned.

Sometime towards the end of his life, Bulgakov mentioned to a friend that he was working on "just a little trivial thing." This "little thing" became the apex of his literary career, sealing him into the cannon of great Russian authors.

Bulgakov began working on the novel that became Master and Margarita in the winter of 1928-29. Through the examination of Bulgakov’s correspondences, it seems as though the original inspiration for ‘’’Master and Margarita’’’ was the concept of the gospel according to the devil. The first version of the novel was finished in 1929 under the title The Consultant with a Hoof . This manuscript made no mention of neither The Master nor Margarita as characters. Bulgakov destroyed this first draft in 1930 when he became convinced of the hopelessness of a literary career in Soviet Russia. A year later he re-started work on the novel. The 1931 version contained development of the magical aspects present in the finished work and the character of Margarita was briefly mentioned. A third version from 1932 was the first complete work but still was distinctly different from Bulgakov’s final product. Bulgakov continued to rewrite sections of the third version from 1934-36 until the start of 1937 whereupon he wrote approximately 60 pages of a fourth version before abandoning that as well. In the fall of 1937 he started yet another version, now titled The Prince of Darkness which he also left unfinished. Finally, also in autumn of ‘37 he started again from the beginning on a sixth version entitled, The Master and Margarita .

Publication History [ edit | edit source ]

A substantially censored version of Master and Margarita was published for the first time in the Russian journal “Moskva” in two installments: first in November of 1966 and then in January of 1967. The most heavily edited portions were Bulgakov’s discussion of the secret police in both Jerusalem and Moscow which was seen as subversive. After underground circulation, the complete, uncensored text was published in Paris in 1967. Two years later, in 1969, a German publisher put out an edition that italicized text that had been edited by soviet censors. The first unedited edition of the novel was published in Moscow in 1973 which became the official standard.

English Translations:

Mirra Ginsburg (Grove Press, 1967) Ginsburg's original translation was made from the 1967 Soviet text and therefore mirrors the censorship present in that version. It has since been updated, most recently in 1994.

Michael Glenny (Harper & Row, 1967)

Diana Burgin & Katherine Tiernan O'Connor (Ardis, 1995)

Richard Pevear (Penguin, 1997)

Michael Karpelson (Wordsworth, 2011)

Literary Significance [ edit | edit source ]

Critic A. Collin Wright puts it best when he says " The Master and Margarita is not a tidy work, nor does it present a logically structured argument: like many a great book, ultimitely its greatness lies in its power to evoke responses intuitively from the reader."

Adaptations [ edit | edit source ]

"Pilatus und Andere"(germ.)/"Pilot and Others"(eng.) A film from year 1972 by Andrzej Wajda, Polish director.

Study Questions [ edit | edit source ]

What function does the novel's epigraph, an excerpt from Goethe's Faust, serve? How does it relate to the overall themes in Master and Margarita ?
Satan in this work is not a "fire and brimstone" devil, but rather an erudite intellectual with a rag-tag group of followers whose antics reveal human vice and hypocrisy at every turn. Why do you think Bulgakov portrays divine evil this manner?
What role does madness play in The Master and Margarita? Are those conscripted to the mad house insane, or is society? How does this reflect the Soviet practice of institutionalizing dissidents?
Early in the novel we begin to see the conflict between Christianity, mythology, and atheism. How do these clashes perhaps lay the framework, or at least provide a resonating theme, for the rest of the novel?
Why do you think Bulgakov waited so long to introduce the eponymous characters? Do you think that the Master and Margarita are the novel's heroes?
How do we understand the character of Pontius Pilate?
What is the connection between the parallel plots in Master and Margarita ? What do you think Bulgakov is trying to say in juxtaposing the Christ story and (then) contemporary Soviet society under Stalin?
What function does Bulgakov's inclusion of fantastic elements serve? In other words, why are there elements of fantasy in the novel and do they help us understand a deeper meaning?
What is the role of humor in the novel?

References [ edit | edit source ]

Barratt, Andrew. Between Two Worlds: A Critical Introduction to 'The Master and Margarita'. Oxford: Oxford UP, 1987. Print.

Gillespie, David Charles. The Twentieth Century Russian Novel: An Introduction. Oxford: Berg, 1996. Print.

Hoisington, Sona Stephan. A Plot of Her Own: The Female Protagonist in Russian Literature. Evanston, IL: Northwestern UP, 1995. Print.

Milne, Lesley. Mikhail Bulgakov: A Critical Biography. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1990. Print.

Pittman, Riitta H. The Writer's Divided Self in Bulgakov's 'The Master and Margarita'. New York: St. Martin's, 1991. Print.

Proffer, Ellendea. Bulgakov: Life and Work. Ann Arbor: Ardis, 1984. Print.

Wright, A. Collin. Mikhail Bulgakov: Life and Interpretations. Toronto: U of Toronto P, 1978. Print.

A website about Mikhail Bulgakov's novel The Master and Margarita, created by Jan Vanhellemont.
THE MASTER AND MARGARITA PROJECT
A web-based multimedia annotation to Bulgakov's Master and Margarita, created by Kevin Moss, Middlebury College.
Website on the Russian TV series of "Master and Margarita" (In Russian)

Journal Articles

Bolen, Val. "Theme and Coherence in Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita." Slavic and East European Journal 16.4 (1972): 427-437. JSTOR. Web. 13 May 2012. < http://www.jstor.org/stable/305931 >.

Cretu, Andrei. "“Memento Mori”: A Hypothesis On The Genesis Of Bulgakov's The Master And Margarita." Slavic And East European Journal 54.3 (2010): 434-452. Art Full Text (H.W. Wilson). Web. 13 May 2012.

Book Reviews
Russian literature
Pages using infobox templates with ignored data cells

THE MASTER AND MARGARITA

by N. Mikhail Bulgakov ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 16, 1967

The battle of competing translations, a new publishing phenomenon which began with One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, now offers two rival American editions of Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita. Mirra Ginsburg's (Grove Press) version is pointedly grotesque: she delights in the sharp, spinning, impressionistic phrase. Her Bulgakov reminds one of the virtuoso effects encountered in Zamyatin and Babel, as yell as the early Pasternak's bizarre tale of Heine in Italy. Translator Michael Glenny, on the other hand, almost suggests Tolstoy. His (Harper & Row) version is simpler, softer, and more humane. The Bulgakov fantasy is less striking here, but less strident, too. Glenny: ""There was an oddness about that terrible day...It was the hour of the day when people feel too exhausted to breathe, when Moscow glows in a dry haze..."" Ginsburg: ""Oh, yes, we must take note of the first strange thing...At that hour, when it no longer seemed possible to breathe, when the sun was tumbling in a dry haze..."" In any case, The Master and Margarita, a product of intense labor from 1928 till Bulgakov's death in 1940, is a distinctive and fascinating work, undoubtedly a stylistic landmark in Soviet literature, both for its aesthetic subversion of ""socialist realism"" (like Zamyatin, Bulgakov apparently believed that true literature is created by visionaries and skeptics and madmen), and for the purity of its imagination. Essentially the anti-scientific, vaguely anti-Stalinist tale presents a resurrected Christ figure, a demonic, tricksy foreign professor, and a Party poet, the bewildered Ivan Homeless, plus a bevy of odd or romantic types, all engaged in socio-political exposures, historical debates, and supernatural turnabouts. A humorous, astonishing parable on power, duplicity, freedom, and love.

Pub Date: Oct. 16, 1967

ISBN: 0802130119

Page Count: -

Publisher: Grove; Harper & Row

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1967

Categories: FICTION

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The Master and Margarita - review

I t is not quite true to say that Mikhail Bulgakov's novel, written between 1928 and 1940, is unadaptable. I saw a famous production by Yuri Lyubimov in Moscow in 1983, and Edward Kemp successfully adapted the book for Steven Pimlott's 2004 Chichester production.

Kemp is also co-author, with Simon McBurney, of this new version of The Master and Margarita, produced with the theatre company Complicite. McBurney's production has moments of characteristic visual brilliance, but it also batters the senses in a way that leaves you faintly exhausted.

Why is the book so difficult to do? Partly because of its mixture of styles, partly because of its multiple narratives. Bulgakov starts with the satirical idea of Satan, in the shape of the black-clad Woland, turning up in Stalin's Moscow. He then switches to historic realism for a confrontation of Pontius Pilate and Yeshua (Jesus Christ) in Jerusalem.

To that he adds a Faustian romantic drama in which an anguished novelist, the Master, is redeemed by the love of the faithful Margarita. And finally Bulgakov takes off into the supernatural with the story's flight into Woland's realm.

Given such a rich mix, the novel can acquire different meanings. In the case of Lyubimov's version, which had hundreds of people thronging Taganka Square for a ticket, it was Bulgakov's assault on state power that was clearly the draw.

For McBurney the focus seems to lie on the redemptive power of love and the shifting nature of human consciousness. Both Margarita and Christ demonstrate the durability of virtue. McBurney also goes out of his way to emphasise that we can never be certain about what we are seeing: thus the same actor, Paul Rhys, plays both the Bulgakov-like Master and the satanic Woland, either of whom might be telling the story.

All this is fine in theory but it creates a production that becomes an insatiably restless kaleidoscope in which stillness is never achieved for more than a few seconds. Some of the effects pulled off by the designer, Es Devlin, and by Luke Halls's 3D animation are superb. I loved the Lepage-like idea of a brightly-lit refreshment kiosk turning into a speeding Moscow tram. And there is one dazzling moment, to rival anything in War Horse, when a group of chairs dragged along the ground in synchronicity is projected on to the back wall and becomes a galloping steed.

However, there is something odd about a show that puts its faith in the human being in a hi-tech age, yet relies so heavily on sensory bombardment by visual wizardry.

Fortunately the performances are strong enough to withstand the technical bravura. Rhys moves easily between the duality of Woland and the Master, and exposes the plight of the proscribed Soviet writer knowing that, once his work is published, his world "comes to an end". Sinéad Matthews's Margarita, bravely naked for much of the second half, also conveys the inherent goodness of the devoted muse. And Tim McMullan captures the agonised confusion of a Pontius Pilate confronted by the comprehensive charity of César Sarachu's attenuated Christ.

I wouldn't deny the power of a production which suggests Bulgakov's novel is a metaphor for a universe made up of unreliable narrators. It was just that, after three and a quarter hours of visual assault, I longed to lie down in a dark room with a cold towel on my head.

Until 7 April. Box Office: 0845 120 7511.

Stuart's Reviews > The Master and Margarita

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The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov

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The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
This review is dedicated to Mary, the very model of a perfect co-moderator and GR friend. Unlocking the Meaning of The Master and Margarita Mikhail Bulgakov In the decades following the publication of The Master and Margarita, myriad critics have attempted to find a key to unlock the meaning of Bulgakov's unfinished masterwork.Some viewed the novel as a political roman à clef, laboriously ...
The Master and Margarita Review: An exploration of good and evil
The Master and Margarita Review. 'The Master and Margarita' is a satirical and fantastical novel by Mikhail Bulgakov. Set in Stalinist Russia, the novel tells the story of the devil's visit to Moscow and the chaos that ensues. It explores themes of censorship, corruption, and oppression, as well as the nature of love, faith, and redemption.
Review: The Master and Margarita
A unique tale unlike anything I've read before, Mikhail Bulgakov's much-loved book is considered by many critics as one of the best novels of the twentieth century, as well as the foremost of Soviet satires. Fusing fantasy with magical surrealism and political satire, The Master and the Margarita is a pacy read set in 1930s Moscow.
Moscow's Magic Realism
Moscow's Magic Realism. Were it a kinder world, Mikhail Bulgakov's incandescent novel "The Master and Margarita" would be commemorating its 75th rather than 50th anniversary, for the ...
Life Got You Down? Time to Read The Master and Margarita
Most of all, it is the book that saved me when I felt like I had wasted my life. It's a novel that encourages you not to take yourself too seriously, no matter how bad things have got. The Master and Margarita is a reminder that, ultimately, everything is better if you can inject a note of silliness and of the absurd. Not only is this a ...
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
The Master and Margarita is a multi-layered book with many symbolic references. It does help to dig into the history of Russia and Eastern Europe of the 1920s and 1930 to better understand all the symbolism in Bulgakov's masterpiece. ... This blog is dedicated to book reviews, everything related to literature, travel as well as reflections on ...
Review: 'The Master & Margarita'
Review: 'The Master & Margarita'. Adapting Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita for the stage is, by any account, an ambitious undertaking. The novel is notorious for the multiplicity of interpretations it allows, simultaneously presenting satire, socio-political critique, philosophical allegory, and theological musing.
The Master and Margarita
The Master and Margarita is the most mystical and mysterious way of describing the primitive and base sort of simplification of society under the Soviets. Literature and art and society lost its centre because it all became politicised, and the way Bulgakov describes that ugliness is incredible, and hilarious. I think the Jesus story is Bulgakov bringing lost spirituality back into the Soviet ...
"The Master & Margarita" by M. Bulgakov
The Narration. While the narration of "The Master and Margarita" takes place on the 3 rd person, the omniscient objective storyteller uses several narrative threads for telling the story. The anti-communist voice showed an important influence in the readers' experience and helped contouring complexly the setting.
'The Master and Margarita' (1967) BY Mikhail Bulgakov
Nothing in the whole of literature compares with The Master and Margarita. One spring afternoon, the Devil, trailing fire and chaos in his wake, weaves himself out of the shadows and into Moscow. Mikhail Bulgakov's fantastical, funny, and devastating satire of Soviet life combines two distinct yet interwoven parts, one set in contemporary Moscow, the other in…
Book Review: The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
They have all sorts of supernatural powers, which they use to utterly confound, trick, entertain, drive mad, or even kill. Simultaneously, the bizarre love story between the Master and Margarita is punctuated by sections from a novel that Master is writing about Pontius Pilate and the crucifixion of Yeshua Ha-Notsri.
"The Master and Margarita" Book Review: Lunchtime Lit With ...
The Master and Margarita Mysterious Meanings. Although The Master and Margarita is populated by fantastical, other-worldly characters that appear to be hybrids between some warped children's book and a horror movie, I don't think they are intended to be taken literally. Rather, they exist as part of some crazy allegorical artist's rendering of ...
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
Books Related to The Master and Margarita. The Idiot by Fyodor Dostoevsky tells the story of when the Christ-like epileptic Prince Myshkin returns to Russia from a Swiss sanitarium, he finds himself caught in a web of love, torn between two women—the infamous kept woman Nastasya and the pure Aglaia—both of whom are connected in turn with the corrupt, greedy Ganya.
The Master and Margarita
The Master and Margarita, novel by Mikhail Bulgakov, written in 1928-40 and published in a censored form in the Soviet Union in 1966-67. The unexpurgated version was released there in 1973. Witty and ribald, the novel is also a philosophical work that wrestles with profound and eternal problems of good and evil.
The Master and Margarita
The Master and Margarita (Russian: Мастер и Маргарита) is a novel by Soviet writer Mikhail Bulgakov, written in the Soviet Union between 1928 and 1940. A censored version, with several chapters cut by editors, was published in Moscow magazine in 1966-1967, after the writer's death on March 10, 1940, by his widow Elena Bulgakova (Russian: Елена Булгакова).
The Master and Margarita: A Critical Companion
78 ratings11 reviews. This book, part of the acclaimed AATSEEL Critical Companions series, is designed to guide readers through Mikhail Bulgakov's satirical masterpiece. An introduction places The Master and Margarita and Bulgakov within Russian history and literature, and essays by scholars offer opinion and analysis of the novel's structure ...
The Master and Margarita
"One of the truly great Russian novels of [the twentieth] century." —NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW"The book is by turns hilarious, mysterious, contemplative, and poignant . . . A great work."—CHICAGO TRIBUNE"Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita is a soaring, dazzling novel; an extraordinary fusion of wildly disparate elements.
The Master and Margarita Themes and Analysis
The major themes of 'The Master and Margarita' include the conflict between good and evil, the significance of creativity and the arts, and the dangers of authoritarian control. The message of the book is that people may resist persecution and uphold their human ideals by using love, bravery, and the search of the truth. Introduction. Summary.
The Master and Margarita
About The Master and Margarita. A masterful translation of one of the great novels of the 20th century Nothing in the whole of literature compares with The Master and Margarita.. Full of pungency and wit, this luminous work is Bulgakov's crowning achievement, skilfully blending magical and realistic elements, grotesque situations and major ethical concerns.
Book Review: The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov is one of my favourite books I have ever read. This book holds a special place in my heart as it depicts beautifully with all the necessary nuances the ...
Book Reviews/The Master and Margarita
Bulgakov began working on the novel that became Master and Margarita in the winter of 1928-29. Through the examination of Bulgakov's correspondences, it seems as though the original inspiration for '''Master and Margarita''' was the concept of the gospel according to the devil. The first version of the novel was finished in 1929 ...
Book Reviews, Sites, Romance, Fantasy, Fiction
In any case, The Master and Margarita, a product of intense labor from 1928 till Bulgakov's death in 1940, is a distinctive and fascinating work, undoubtedly a stylistic landmark in Soviet literature, both for its aesthetic subversion of ""socialist realism"" (like Zamyatin, Bulgakov apparently believed that true literature is created by ...
When a Reader Located 'The Master and Margarita'
Maybe a month ago, I interviewed Michael Lockshin, a film director, who has adapted Bulgakov's classic novel, The Master and Margarita, for the screen. For the resulting piece — "A Stalin ...
The Master and Margarita
The Master and Margarita - review. I t is not quite true to say that Mikhail Bulgakov's novel, written between 1928 and 1940, is unadaptable. I saw a famous production by Yuri Lyubimov in Moscow ...
Stuart's review of The Master and Margarita
2/5: Not my cup of tea at all. I read it recently - I think I read it 40 years ago, but I didn't remember it - because it had been suggested that it formed an inspiration for another book I recently read (The Warm Hands of Ghosts). My first thought is No, there really is no similarity beyond the Devil appearing in both books, once called Woland, and second called Faland. My second thought is ...
The Master and Margarita (2024 film)
The Master and Margarita (Russian: Мастер и Маргарита), titled Woland during production, is a Russian fantasy-drama film directed by Michael Lockshin and based on Mikhail Bulgakov's novel of the same name. It stars August Diehl as Woland, a diabolical foreigner who visits Moscow, Yevgeny Tsyganov as the eponymous Master, and Yuliya Snigir as Margarita, the Master's lover.

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‘The Master and Margarita’ (1967) BY Mikhail Bulgakov – BOOK REVIEW

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