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# The Master and Margarita

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The Master and Margarita [Bulgakov, Mikhail, Burgin, Diana, O'Connor, Katherine Tiernan, Proffer, Ellendea] on desertcart.com. *FREE* shipping on qualifying offers. The Master and Margarita

Review: The jewel in modern Russia's literary crown. - The problem with modern totalitarian regimes - the most disgusting form of government - is that they produce no art: no music, no literature, no poetry, no architecture, no visual arts. The art that does come out of such states comes from those who hate what they are and oppose them (at least passively). One of the most terrifying possibilities of the 21st Century is that the ultra-conservative/religious right wing of American politics will realize its long-held aim of a totalitarian theocracy. (Another case of the need to be careful what you wish for: the NRA's policy of making sure white supremacists have an adequate supply of Uzis may backfire. If the rightwingers establish their tyranny, one of the first things they'll do is repeal the 2nd Amendment.) The tyrannies of the 1930s and `40s were classics of the form - although reading Orwell's "1984" shows the terrifying possibility that more far-reaching totalitarianism could occur. In prewar Stalinist Russia, the alleged art of the state was "Soviet realism". Even the actual (and therefore anti-Soviet) artists of Russia occasionally felt the brunt of Stalin and his thugs - with results such as Shostakovich's intensely Stalinist (and therefore antimusical) "Hymn of the Forest". The dreary banality of all the arts under such antihuman regimes as Bolshevik Russia and Nazi Germany was almost beyond belief. Even so, flowers bloomed in the virtually sterile artistic soil of Stalin's Russia. Great musical talents such as Prokofiev and Kabalevsky - although no fans of their genocidal dictator - were able produce pretty much what they wanted because their styles tended not to offend Stalin and his cultural goon squad. Literature in the Soviet period suffered even more than music: Russia's greatest writers could publish their works, if at all, abroad. What the government allowed to be published were propagandistic (although not entirely hack) works like Shokolov's "Virgin Soil Upturned". Although the hack writers of the Stalinist period didn't lack talent, the really great writers of the Bolshevik state were obliged to work mostly sub rosa. From the 1920s to the end of his life, Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov lived and worked within the Stalinist tyranny. Denied permission to emigrate and virtually denied permission to create, he lived unhappily until 1940 when he died prematurely of cancer. Paradoxically, Stalin was actually rather fond of Bulgakov, having seen and enjoyed one of his plays. Bulgakov died early enough to avoid Stalin's usual betrayal of nearly everyone he originally befriended (however marginally). The dictator died before he got around to Lavrentiy Beria and some others, but they were certainly on his list by that time. Even at that late date, more than a decade after his death, Bulgakov remained an obscure figure. His greatest work was not published in any form until 1966. This work is "Master and Margarita", one of a small handful of immortal novels produced within (and in defiance of) Soviet Russia - and possibly the greatest of them. The greatness of M&M is advanced by its universality. This is achieved by abstracting it to a large extent from the political reality of 1930s Moscow. While the novel paints a vivid picture of life in the Soviet capital, the Stalinist system is virtually invisible and its founder totally so. M&M could be taking place in the capital of any strongly centrist European state. It should be noted that many editions of M&M exist. The only one you will wish to purchase is this one (translated by Burgin and O'Connor). It is far above the others in the accuracy and felicity of its translation, not to mention its wonderful notes and analytical essay ("Afterword"). The "Master" of the novel's title is in many respects Bulgakov himself: a brilliant writer with little success at being published, whose masterpiece (a novel) seems condemned to nonpublication. The novel in this case is about Pontius Pilatus, the Procurator of Judea until mid-36 CE (the year in which Yeshua bar-Yosif ["Jesus son of Joseph"] was crucified). Some chapters of this novel appear in M&M, allowing the author to tie many elements of M&M together. Bulgakov is well versed in Gospel history, learnedly referring to Yeshua as "ha-Notsri". This term is frequently mistranslated as "the Nazarene" or "of Nazareth" (leading the author of "Matthew" of quote a probably nonexistent older text). It actually means "of the branch", from netser or nezer ("branch") - generally taken to mean a claimed descent from the very early Israeli king David. Bulgakov cleverly gives Pilatus a character that doesn't match what we know of him from Josephus. Similarly he gives us a different Yeshua and Yehudah ("Judas") than we would expect. The "Margarita" of the title, the Master's muse, is in some respects Bulgakov's 3rd wife (and also his muse), Elena Sergeyevna Shilovskaya. In terms of text devoted to her, Margarita is a far more important than the Master. The Master's story line in this work is reality mostly hers. Her name is an important clue to the novel as a whole. Marguerite (Margarita) is one of the names given to Faust's inamorata. In her passionate devotion to the Master, in her uncompromising and uncompomisable innocence, Margarita is a dramatic picture of Marguerite - but more real and compelling than the portraits of Goethe and Gounod. In a literary sense, Margarita as a shadow of Marguerite, just as M&M is a shadow of the Faust legend. It seems equally obvious that the Master must be a shadow of Faust himself. Yet the connection seems improbably remote. The Master appears as anything but Faustian, and rather than immersing himself in the world he has removed himself from it and immured himself in an asylum. Even so, his connection with Faust is palpable and compelling. Faust sought something that was not approved by the mediaeval state: knowledge (particularly of the dark arts). Bulgakov sought something deeply disapproved by the Stalinist state: truth. Indeed, no tyrant or would-be tyrant can tolerate truth. (This, I believe, explains Führer Bush's hatred of the truth and Vice-Führer Cheney's pathological fear of it.) The trinity Faust-Marguerite-Mephisopheles brings us inevitably to the protagonist (dare I say hero?) of M&M, Woland. His name, founded on the German for "where?", raises instant questions about where he is actually from and, consequently, who he actually is. That he is the "devil" of New Testament legend becomes quickly and readily apparent. He begins his visit to Moscow by going after a number of unsavory individuals. That they are of little consequence is a necessary reflection of the fact that going after people of real consequence would have landed Bulgakov in a non-mythical hell thanks to Russia's non-mythical devil (Stalin). That Woland's real mission is salvation - at least of Margarita and the Master - will seem far-fetched to the reader until it actually happens. The question is whether that mission was deliberate - for as Goethe says of his devil, "That Power I serve ... wills forever evil yet does forever good." More accurately in M&M, Woland's mission seems to be insuring that evil begets evil and good begets good. Woland in turn is part of yet another trinity: himself, Behemoth, and Korovyov. Behemoth ("the Beast", one might say) appears mostly in the form of a 6-foot upright cat. Korovyov is more human in form but just as obviously a demon. This trinity turns parts of Moscow upside-down through the use of particularly bizarre pranks. (It might be observed that the prominent presence in their company of an owl and a mirror suggests "[Till] Eulenspiegel", another famous prankster.) The merriment begins almost at once with the death of the unpleasant Rimsky, run over by a streetcar. The image of his head, rolling kabumpty-bumpty-bump down the street is hilariously macabre. Much of the novel is full of this trinity's high-jinks. I'd have to reread the novel with a mind to make notes in this regard, but I suspect that other trinities appear with some frequency in M&M. As the pranks in Moscow wind down, the story shifts gears to focus on the adventures of Margarita with Woland and his entourage. There is a grand ball that takes place in an impossibly large space. This is a reflection of Dante Alighieri's "Inferno". There is then a witch's Sabbath in a remote location. This Faustian episode is accompanied by another, a wild ride on black horses, that appears again at the end of the novel. Throughout, as earlier, it is Woland who guides and directs the activities. Finally, it is Woland, saying he does so at the request of Yeshua, who arranges the salvation of the Master and Margarita. Bulgakov - who has been standing things on their heads throughout the text - thus ultimately stands Christian mythology on its head. It is one of his greatest achievements that he uses the Master's novel and his own novel's ending to add a deep and refreshing humanity to hoary and less human New Testament myths. M&M has lent several sayings to popular Russian culture. Most important of them is the non sequitur, "manuscripts don't burn". In the novel, the Master burns his novel, just as Bulgakov burned the original ms. of M&M. The phrase comes from Woland, but magically produces the Master's ms. Bulgakov, on the other hand, re-transcribed his work from memory. The problem here is, and Bulgakov certainly knew it, that manuscripts do burn. If that were not so, we should now be able to purchase a CD of Sibelius' 8th Symphony. Still, it's amazing how many musicians and authors have left posthumous instructions that certain mss. should be burned, only to have people with a better grasp of reality refuse to burn them. Bulgakov's incomparable novel ends in a chapter of ravishing prose, of which I would like to quote a small paragraph. "'And there too," said Woland, pointing backward. `What would you do in your little basement?' The fragmented sun dimmed in the glass. `Why go back?' continued Woland in a firm and gentle voice. `O Master, thrice a romantic, wouldn't you like to stroll with your beloved under the blossoming cherry trees by day and then listen to Schubert by night? Wouldn't you like to sit over a retort, like Faust, in the hope of creating a new homunculus? Go there! Go there! There where a house and an old servant already await you, where the candles are already burning, but will soon go out because you are about to meet the dawn. Take that road, Master, that one! Farewell! It is time for me to go.'"
Review: Outstanding edition of important and thrilling novel - This review is for the novel "The Master and Margarita" in the Kindle edition translated by Diana Burgin and Katherine Tiernan O'Connor. I just finished reading this novel for the third time. Ages ago I read it for a college 20th Century Russian Literature class in the Mirra Ginsburg translation, and loved it so much that as soon as I finished it I started over at the beginning without even getting up from my chair to read it a second time. Somehow this edition got lost; probably I loaned it to a friend and never got it back. In subsequent years I tried to read it again, in the P&V translation and in another that is no longer available, but I just couldn't make any headway, and abandoned these after two chapters. I have not sat down to compare line by line this translation with a Russian version, which I also have, but the translation in the version under discussion seems to me to be stellar. It read smoothly and vividly, and captured the movement and extravagant energy of the original. This is a tough novel to translate since the writing style changes drastically in some chapters. Tone and topic are intimately intertwined, and the stylistic virtuosity of Bulgakov is one of the book's primary charms. (Read it and you will find out why.) This edition also has extensive notes at the end, general guidance for making sense of references and allusions, and these are very helpful and beautifully written by Ellendea Proffer. These notes are followed by an outstanding essay on the novel, as well as a brief biographical sketch of the author, and these are likewise very helpful, thoughtful, well-written and not overly long. (These are also by Ellendea Proffer. She really hits a home run with her essay, in my humble opinion.) I am hooked now, and am sure I will be returning to this novel many times. Although I enjoyed immensely my first two readings of this novel, I feel now that three readings is not enough to grasp it. I will have to go back to it, but it's worth it! This is a novel for those who can keep an open mind and who are not bothered by satire or surrealist elements, and who can accept puzzling ambiguities and deep philosophical and moral questions for which there are no easy answers. I am so glad I decided to take a chance on this wonderful translation.

## Technical Specifications

| Specification | Value |
|---------------|-------|
| Best Sellers Rank | #18,514 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #154 in Fiction Satire #606 in Classic Literature & Fiction #1,582 in Literary Fiction (Books) |
| Customer Reviews | 4.5 out of 5 stars 1,328 Reviews |

## Images

![The Master and Margarita - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/81-91lo3rzL.jpg)

## Customer Reviews

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ The jewel in modern Russia's literary crown.
*by R***R on June 29, 2007*

The problem with modern totalitarian regimes - the most disgusting form of government - is that they produce no art: no music, no literature, no poetry, no architecture, no visual arts. The art that does come out of such states comes from those who hate what they are and oppose them (at least passively). One of the most terrifying possibilities of the 21st Century is that the ultra-conservative/religious right wing of American politics will realize its long-held aim of a totalitarian theocracy. (Another case of the need to be careful what you wish for: the NRA's policy of making sure white supremacists have an adequate supply of Uzis may backfire. If the rightwingers establish their tyranny, one of the first things they'll do is repeal the 2nd Amendment.) The tyrannies of the 1930s and `40s were classics of the form - although reading Orwell's "1984" shows the terrifying possibility that more far-reaching totalitarianism could occur. In prewar Stalinist Russia, the alleged art of the state was "Soviet realism". Even the actual (and therefore anti-Soviet) artists of Russia occasionally felt the brunt of Stalin and his thugs - with results such as Shostakovich's intensely Stalinist (and therefore antimusical) "Hymn of the Forest". The dreary banality of all the arts under such antihuman regimes as Bolshevik Russia and Nazi Germany was almost beyond belief. Even so, flowers bloomed in the virtually sterile artistic soil of Stalin's Russia. Great musical talents such as Prokofiev and Kabalevsky - although no fans of their genocidal dictator - were able produce pretty much what they wanted because their styles tended not to offend Stalin and his cultural goon squad. Literature in the Soviet period suffered even more than music: Russia's greatest writers could publish their works, if at all, abroad. What the government allowed to be published were propagandistic (although not entirely hack) works like Shokolov's "Virgin Soil Upturned". Although the hack writers of the Stalinist period didn't lack talent, the really great writers of the Bolshevik state were obliged to work mostly sub rosa. From the 1920s to the end of his life, Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov lived and worked within the Stalinist tyranny. Denied permission to emigrate and virtually denied permission to create, he lived unhappily until 1940 when he died prematurely of cancer. Paradoxically, Stalin was actually rather fond of Bulgakov, having seen and enjoyed one of his plays. Bulgakov died early enough to avoid Stalin's usual betrayal of nearly everyone he originally befriended (however marginally). The dictator died before he got around to Lavrentiy Beria and some others, but they were certainly on his list by that time. Even at that late date, more than a decade after his death, Bulgakov remained an obscure figure. His greatest work was not published in any form until 1966. This work is "Master and Margarita", one of a small handful of immortal novels produced within (and in defiance of) Soviet Russia - and possibly the greatest of them. The greatness of M&M is advanced by its universality. This is achieved by abstracting it to a large extent from the political reality of 1930s Moscow. While the novel paints a vivid picture of life in the Soviet capital, the Stalinist system is virtually invisible and its founder totally so. M&M could be taking place in the capital of any strongly centrist European state. It should be noted that many editions of M&M exist. The only one you will wish to purchase is this one (translated by Burgin and O'Connor). It is far above the others in the accuracy and felicity of its translation, not to mention its wonderful notes and analytical essay ("Afterword"). The "Master" of the novel's title is in many respects Bulgakov himself: a brilliant writer with little success at being published, whose masterpiece (a novel) seems condemned to nonpublication. The novel in this case is about Pontius Pilatus, the Procurator of Judea until mid-36 CE (the year in which Yeshua bar-Yosif ["Jesus son of Joseph"] was crucified). Some chapters of this novel appear in M&M, allowing the author to tie many elements of M&M together. Bulgakov is well versed in Gospel history, learnedly referring to Yeshua as "ha-Notsri". This term is frequently mistranslated as "the Nazarene" or "of Nazareth" (leading the author of "Matthew" of quote a probably nonexistent older text). It actually means "of the branch", from netser or nezer ("branch") - generally taken to mean a claimed descent from the very early Israeli king David. Bulgakov cleverly gives Pilatus a character that doesn't match what we know of him from Josephus. Similarly he gives us a different Yeshua and Yehudah ("Judas") than we would expect. The "Margarita" of the title, the Master's muse, is in some respects Bulgakov's 3rd wife (and also his muse), Elena Sergeyevna Shilovskaya. In terms of text devoted to her, Margarita is a far more important than the Master. The Master's story line in this work is reality mostly hers. Her name is an important clue to the novel as a whole. Marguerite (Margarita) is one of the names given to Faust's inamorata. In her passionate devotion to the Master, in her uncompromising and uncompomisable innocence, Margarita is a dramatic picture of Marguerite - but more real and compelling than the portraits of Goethe and Gounod. In a literary sense, Margarita as a shadow of Marguerite, just as M&M is a shadow of the Faust legend. It seems equally obvious that the Master must be a shadow of Faust himself. Yet the connection seems improbably remote. The Master appears as anything but Faustian, and rather than immersing himself in the world he has removed himself from it and immured himself in an asylum. Even so, his connection with Faust is palpable and compelling. Faust sought something that was not approved by the mediaeval state: knowledge (particularly of the dark arts). Bulgakov sought something deeply disapproved by the Stalinist state: truth. Indeed, no tyrant or would-be tyrant can tolerate truth. (This, I believe, explains Führer Bush's hatred of the truth and Vice-Führer Cheney's pathological fear of it.) The trinity Faust-Marguerite-Mephisopheles brings us inevitably to the protagonist (dare I say hero?) of M&M, Woland. His name, founded on the German for "where?", raises instant questions about where he is actually from and, consequently, who he actually is. That he is the "devil" of New Testament legend becomes quickly and readily apparent. He begins his visit to Moscow by going after a number of unsavory individuals. That they are of little consequence is a necessary reflection of the fact that going after people of real consequence would have landed Bulgakov in a non-mythical hell thanks to Russia's non-mythical devil (Stalin). That Woland's real mission is salvation - at least of Margarita and the Master - will seem far-fetched to the reader until it actually happens. The question is whether that mission was deliberate - for as Goethe says of his devil, "That Power I serve ... wills forever evil yet does forever good." More accurately in M&M, Woland's mission seems to be insuring that evil begets evil and good begets good. Woland in turn is part of yet another trinity: himself, Behemoth, and Korovyov. Behemoth ("the Beast", one might say) appears mostly in the form of a 6-foot upright cat. Korovyov is more human in form but just as obviously a demon. This trinity turns parts of Moscow upside-down through the use of particularly bizarre pranks. (It might be observed that the prominent presence in their company of an owl and a mirror suggests "[Till] Eulenspiegel", another famous prankster.) The merriment begins almost at once with the death of the unpleasant Rimsky, run over by a streetcar. The image of his head, rolling kabumpty-bumpty-bump down the street is hilariously macabre. Much of the novel is full of this trinity's high-jinks. I'd have to reread the novel with a mind to make notes in this regard, but I suspect that other trinities appear with some frequency in M&M. As the pranks in Moscow wind down, the story shifts gears to focus on the adventures of Margarita with Woland and his entourage. There is a grand ball that takes place in an impossibly large space. This is a reflection of Dante Alighieri's "Inferno". There is then a witch's Sabbath in a remote location. This Faustian episode is accompanied by another, a wild ride on black horses, that appears again at the end of the novel. Throughout, as earlier, it is Woland who guides and directs the activities. Finally, it is Woland, saying he does so at the request of Yeshua, who arranges the salvation of the Master and Margarita. Bulgakov - who has been standing things on their heads throughout the text - thus ultimately stands Christian mythology on its head. It is one of his greatest achievements that he uses the Master's novel and his own novel's ending to add a deep and refreshing humanity to hoary and less human New Testament myths. M&M has lent several sayings to popular Russian culture. Most important of them is the non sequitur, "manuscripts don't burn". In the novel, the Master burns his novel, just as Bulgakov burned the original ms. of M&M. The phrase comes from Woland, but magically produces the Master's ms. Bulgakov, on the other hand, re-transcribed his work from memory. The problem here is, and Bulgakov certainly knew it, that manuscripts do burn. If that were not so, we should now be able to purchase a CD of Sibelius' 8th Symphony. Still, it's amazing how many musicians and authors have left posthumous instructions that certain mss. should be burned, only to have people with a better grasp of reality refuse to burn them. Bulgakov's incomparable novel ends in a chapter of ravishing prose, of which I would like to quote a small paragraph. "'And there too," said Woland, pointing backward. `What would you do in your little basement?' The fragmented sun dimmed in the glass. `Why go back?' continued Woland in a firm and gentle voice. `O Master, thrice a romantic, wouldn't you like to stroll with your beloved under the blossoming cherry trees by day and then listen to Schubert by night? Wouldn't you like to sit over a retort, like Faust, in the hope of creating a new homunculus? Go there! Go there! There where a house and an old servant already await you, where the candles are already burning, but will soon go out because you are about to meet the dawn. Take that road, Master, that one! Farewell! It is time for me to go.'"

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Outstanding edition of important and thrilling novel
*by B***Y on April 5, 2023*

This review is for the novel "The Master and Margarita" in the Kindle edition translated by Diana Burgin and Katherine Tiernan O'Connor. I just finished reading this novel for the third time. Ages ago I read it for a college 20th Century Russian Literature class in the Mirra Ginsburg translation, and loved it so much that as soon as I finished it I started over at the beginning without even getting up from my chair to read it a second time. Somehow this edition got lost; probably I loaned it to a friend and never got it back. In subsequent years I tried to read it again, in the P&V translation and in another that is no longer available, but I just couldn't make any headway, and abandoned these after two chapters. I have not sat down to compare line by line this translation with a Russian version, which I also have, but the translation in the version under discussion seems to me to be stellar. It read smoothly and vividly, and captured the movement and extravagant energy of the original. This is a tough novel to translate since the writing style changes drastically in some chapters. Tone and topic are intimately intertwined, and the stylistic virtuosity of Bulgakov is one of the book's primary charms. (Read it and you will find out why.) This edition also has extensive notes at the end, general guidance for making sense of references and allusions, and these are very helpful and beautifully written by Ellendea Proffer. These notes are followed by an outstanding essay on the novel, as well as a brief biographical sketch of the author, and these are likewise very helpful, thoughtful, well-written and not overly long. (These are also by Ellendea Proffer. She really hits a home run with her essay, in my humble opinion.) I am hooked now, and am sure I will be returning to this novel many times. Although I enjoyed immensely my first two readings of this novel, I feel now that three readings is not enough to grasp it. I will have to go back to it, but it's worth it! This is a novel for those who can keep an open mind and who are not bothered by satire or surrealist elements, and who can accept puzzling ambiguities and deep philosophical and moral questions for which there are no easy answers. I am so glad I decided to take a chance on this wonderful translation.

### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ THE LATEST MASTERPIECE FROM RUSSIA IN A NEW TRANSLATION
*by C***E on May 10, 2017*

This book is a satire of the Soviet Union during Stalin‘s regime. Written between 1928 and 1940, not surprisingly, it remained unpublished until 1967. Later, following the collapse of communism in December 1991, not only did the book start to sell, the title was added to the list of the essential classics of modern Russian literature. Presently, "The Master and Margarita" by Russian author Mikhail Bulgakov is regarded as one of the best novels of the 20th century and remains popular among readers the world over. The novel has had more than enthusiastic readers. Contemporary composer Stephen Johnson enjoyed the book so much that he wrote the music for a ballet celebrating one of the main characters. Titled “Behemoth Dances“, the work centers on the very large by now famous black cat which, in addition to talking, walking on two legs and drinking vodka, now dances as well. The ballet premiered in Moscow on April 23 2016. After that, additional performances took place during the 2016 summer season in various English concert halls - among them, Cadogan Hall in London (May 12) and Symphony Hall in Birmingham (May 14). I have read a good portion of The Master and Margarita and found it to be a strange book, a book that - like many literary works during the twentieth century - is complex and difficult to read. Some of the Amazon.com reviewers believe that the complexity is related, at least in part, to the translation which they consider poor. It is true, the translation can be poor at times, but I do not believe that it contributes to the confusion, certainly not to any extent: translators Diana Burgin and Katherine O’Connor assure us that they made a very special effort to keep the English words and concepts as close in meaning as possible to the original Russian. There are more important factors that make the book confusing. First, there are too many characters, 63 altogether, 22 of them main characters. That is a lot more than those in most novels. Because they are Russian, these characters have usually three names. It is difficult to remember who is who and playing what part, when introduced to that many foreign people - at least it is difficult for some of us. Then there is the plot. The focus is on Satan and his retinue that includes the above mentioned very unusual black cat. There is also a beautiful naked witch named Hella; and a few other peculiar characters, who run around Moscow interfering with the lives of many members of the literary Russian elite. Also included are the stories of the remaining main characters and their friends, relatives, assistants and others. There are two important settings for the plot, as the reader is taken back and forth from: (1) 1930’s Moscow during Holy Week, from Wednesday night to the following Saturday night to be exact; (2) Jerusalem of Pontius Pilate's world - appearing in the pages of the Master's novel, during the same time of the year, but about 2,000 years earlier. The story begins with the appearance of Satan at the Patriarch Ponds in Moscow, disguised as Professor Woland, a mysterious gentleman magician of uncertain origin. Prof. Woland meets in such a location Mikhail Alexandrovich Berlioz, the editor of an anti-religious journal, and Ivan Nikolaevich Ponyrev, a poet employed by Berlioz. He challenges their atheism with a story, during which we are introduced to the second setting, Jerusalem of Pontius Pilate's world. This part of the novel concerns Pilate's trial of Yeshua Ha-Notsri (presumably Jesus) and his reluctant but resigned submission to the unfortunate man’s execution. Berlioz dies early on during the story after being run over by a street car. The poet Ivan Nikolaevich continues on, trying to understand the death of his friend and employer. Interestingly enough, we do not meet the two title characters, the Master and Margarita, until we are well into the story. We meet the Master first, while still in part one, but in one of the later chapters. We are introduced to him - who incidentally does not appear to have a name (thank God!!!) - at the mental hospital where he has been a patient for four months. The Master is a writer by profession, having written, among other narratives, about Pontius Pilate and the story related to the second setting. Unfortunately, he is ridiculed by his Russian peers for daring to write about religious subjects. As for Margarita, we meet her in part two of the novel, although we are introduced to her first through the Master’s description of his relationship with her. The two were lovers, but the Master would rather set her free to avoid the suffering that their relationship would cause her. She has other plans. We learn that the woman is so much in love with the Master, that she is willing to visit Hell for him. By Good Friday, Satan is having his Great Spring Ball as Prof. Woland, at his earthly residence. At such time, he offers Margarita the opportunity to become a witch with supernatural powers. A spring full moon illuminates the Moscow skyline. The same full moon also lights the night sky when Yeshua’s fate is sealed by Pontius Pilate in Jerusalem. This provides a link between the two settings. Capable of flying, due to her new powers as a witch, Margarita soars over the forests and rivers of the USSR, then returns to Moscow to co-host Satan's Ball. Standing by his side, she welcomes the dark celebrities of human history as they arrive from Hell. In recognition for her assistance, Satan grants Margarita her wish to liberate the Master even though she must live in poverty with him. Eventually, the Master and Margarita leave civilization and fly with the Devil, as Moscow's cupolas and windows burn in the setting Easter sun. They are granted "peace" for not having lost their faith in humanity, but are denied "light", consequently they will spend eternity together in a shadowy, although pleasant, region similar to Dante's Limbo. At the same time as the Master and Margarita are set free, Pontius Pilate is released from his eternal punishment, and walks the moonbeam path to Yeshua, where another eternity awaits. That is the story, which I tried to relate in as clear a manner as I could. If you are not confused, and if you have the patience to read the entire book, slowly, while trying to make some sense out of the many characters and events, you will probably come to the conclusion that it was worth the effort.

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*Product available on Desertcart Singapore*
*Store origin: SG*
*Last updated: 2026-01-24*