One of the most mysterious and mystical works of worldwide popularity, Mikhail Bulgakov's novel The Master and Margarita is the brightest masterpiece and the most mysterious novel in the entire history of Russian literature of the 20th century. The book, which became popular at one point, has excited the minds of researchers for 75 years, who are looking for clues to its interpretation. It can be read and re-read dozens of times, and each time to comprehend something new, and yet, not get the feeling of complete understanding. Given the mysteriousness of the circumstances under which the novel was released at all, perhaps we will never know the secret of The Master and Margarita. Here are seven keys to existing clues. Try re-reading the book again.
1. Literary hoax
Scientists know for certain that Bulgakov enthusiastically studied German mysticism of the 19th century. It was after getting acquainted with the treatises about God, the demonologies of the Christian and Jewish faith, the legends of the devil, the writer decided to create a book and all this is mentioned in the work. The writer changed his novel several times.
The book was first written in 1928-1929. This novel was coined with several titles "Juggler with a hoof", "Black magician" and no Master with Margarita. The central hero of the first edition of the novel was the Devil and, in fact, the book strongly resembled "Faust", only written by a Russian author. But his book did not see the light of day, and very little is known about it, since, having received a ban on a play called "Cabal of the holy man," Bulgakov decided to burn the manuscript. The writer informed the government about his new novel about the Devil who died in flames.
The second novel was titled Satan, or the Great Chancellor. The main character of the work is the fallen angel. In this version, Bulgakov had already invented the Master with Margarita, there was a place for Woland and his retinue, but she also did not see the light of day.
The writer chose the title "The Master and Margarita" for the third manuscript, which was published by the publishers, unfortunately, Bulgakov did not manage to finish the work.
Promotional video:
2. The many-faced Woland
If you read the novel without thinking too much, you get the impression that Woland is a positive character who has become a patron for creativity and love, a hero who tries to fight against the vices inherent in people. But Woland is the Tempter, and upon careful reading his many-sidedness becomes noticeable. In reality, Woland represents Satan, the reinterpreted Christ, the new Messiah, the kind of hero that Bulgakov described him in his first unpublished manuscripts.
Woland's multifaceted nature can be understood only with a careful reading of The Master and Margarita. Only then can one notice the similarity of the hero with the Scandinavian Odin, turned into a devil by Christian traditions, or with the god Wotan, who was worshiped by the ancient Germanic pagan tribes. Woland has a portrait resemblance to the Freemason and the great magician Count Cagliostro, who knew how to predict the future and remembered the events of a thousand years ago.
Attentive readers will surely remember the moment when employees remember the name of the magician and put forward the assumption that his name is Faland. Indeed, it is consonant with Woland, but not only interesting. Few people know that the devil is called Faland in Germany.
3. Satan's retinue
Begemot, Azazello and Karoviev-Fagot became the bright heroes with an ambiguous past in The Master and Margarita. The writer presented them as instruments of justice used by the devil.
The writer took the image of Azazello, the killer demon and the demon of the waterless desert from the Old Testament. This name in these books was called the fallen angel, who taught people to create jewelry and weapons. And he also taught women to paint their faces, which according to the biblical books is ranked as a lascivious art, and therefore it was this hero of Bulgakov who pushed Margarita onto the dark path, giving her cream. Azazello is an absolute evil that poisons lovers and kills Meigel.
Every reader of the novel will remember the Behemoth for life. This is a werewolf cat, which for Woland is a favorite jester. The prototype of this character was the mythological beast described in the Old Testament, the devil of gluttony from mystical legends. When drawing up the image of the Hippo cat, the writer used the information he learned while studying the history of Anna Dezange. She lived in the 17th century and was possessed by seven devils at once. One of them was a demon from the rank of Thrones, named Behemoth. They portrayed him as a monster with an elephant's head and terrible fangs. The demon resembled a hippopotamus with a short tail, a huge belly and thick hind legs, but his hands were human.
The only person in Woland's devilish retinue was Koroviev-Fagot. Researchers cannot establish exactly who the prototype of this Bulgakov character is, but they assume that his roots go back to the god Witsliputsli. This assumption is built on the basis of a conversation between Homeless and Berlioz, in which the name of this Aztec god of war, to whom he made sacrifices, is mentioned. If you believe the legends about Faust, then Witsliputsli is a difficult spirit of hell, but the first assistant of Satan.
4. Queen Margot
This heroine is very similar to Bulgakov's last wife. The writer also emphasized in the book "The Master and Margarita" the special connection of this heroine with the French queen Margot, who was the wife of Henry IV. On the way to Satan's ball, the fat man recognizes Margarita and calls her the bright queen, then he mentions the wedding in Paris, which as a result became the bloody night of St. Bartholomew. Bulgakov also writes about the Parisian publisher Gessar, who in the novel "The Master and Margarita" takes part in St. Bartholomew's Night. The historical Queen Margarita was a patron saint for poets and writers, Bulgakov in his book spoke about Margarita's love for the genius writer Master.
5. Moscow - Yershalaim
There are many mysteries in the novel, and one of them is the time in which the events of The Master and Margarita unfold. It is impossible to find a single date from which it was possible to keep a report in the future. The actions are attributed to May 1-7, 1929, which fell on Holy Week. At the same time, in the "Pilate Chapters" the actions develop during the 29th or 30th week in Yershalaim, where Holy Week is also described. In the first part of the novel, the actions in these stories develop in parallel, in the second part, they begin to intertwine and then merge into a single story. At this time, history acquires integrity, passes into the other world. Yershalaim is now moving to Moscow.
6. Kabbalistic roots
When studying the novel, experts came to the conclusion that when writing this work Bulgakov was fond of not only Kabbalistic teachings. In the mouths of Woland, one can sometimes hear the concepts of Jewish mysticism.
There is a moment in the book when Woland says that you should never ask for anything, especially from the strong. In his opinion, people will give and offer themselves. These kabbalistic teachings forbid taking anything unless the creator gives it. The Christian faith, on the other hand, permits asking for alms. Hasidim believe that people are created in the likeness of God and therefore they are supposed to constantly work.
The concept of "light" is also traced in the work. He accompanies Woland throughout the book. The moonlight disappears only after Satan and his retinue disappear. Light can be interpreted in different ways, for example, teachings about it are found in the Sermon on the Mount. If you look at everything a little differently, it becomes clear that this concept also coincides with the main idea of the Kabbalistic teachings, according to which the Torah is light. The idea of Kabbalah says that the achievement of the "light of life" depends only on the desires of a person, and this completely coincides with the main idea of the novel about the independent choice of a person.
7. The last manuscript
Bulgakov began writing the last edition of the book, which was eventually published by publishers in 1937. Until his death, the writer worked on the creation of this work. It took 12 years to create the novel, and yet it was unfinished. Scientists cannot figure out the reason. They suggest that the author himself felt little knowledgeable in the early Christian texts and Jewish demonology, an amateur in some matters. Bulgakov devoted his last vitality to his last novel. The last change in the novel was the introduction of Margarita's phrase about the writers following the coffin. It was on February 13, 1940, and a month later Mikhail Afanasyevich passed away. His last words to the novel were the phrase "To know, to know …".