Customer Reviews

Master and Margarita (Penguin Modern Classics)

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Take these as essential ingredients: Satan, Jesus, Stalin, Pontius Pilate and Caesar's Empire, assorted literary critics, a great Artist and the woman who loves him, life in 1930s Moscow, a poet on the bitter road to truth, and various demonic henchmen including a big black cat. They add up to one of the greatest novels of the 20th Century, and one of the handful of most moving books I've ever encountered.

The fundamental purpose of Bulgakov's magnum opus is to hold up the harsh light of truth to the sins and hypocrisies of Stalinist Russia. There are three storylines here: one of them concerns the misadventures of Satan's retinue as they wreak havoc on Muscovite literary society, and presents some of the most penetrating satirical writing you'll ever come across; the second storyline centers around the fifth procurator of Judea, the equestrian Pontius Pilate, and his fateful encounter with Jesus leading to the latter's crucifixion; the final story presents the fates of a great writer (the master), and his lover (Margarita). Bulgakov brings the three stories together in a demonstration of narrative genius, to bury the oppressive fallacy of Soviet society and ideals beneath the combined forces of good and evil, of love, of freedom, and of magic and mysticism.

One brief note about available translations: after sampling most of the available English translations, I am firmly convinced that the Pevear/Volkhonsky version is far and away the best. The notes are excellent, and the introduction by Richard Pevear gives invaluable insight into the history of the novel and its ideas. But most of all, they give the narrative much greater vividness and depth, especially in the wonderfully lyrical Pilate chapters. This translation of Bulgakov's most remarkable novel is enthusiastically recommended!

Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky are very special translators of this highly complex work. Before you buy any other edition, check out the footnotes here which help to explain the more arcane elements of '30's Soviet culture and the context for much of the parallel story based on the Gospels. I read the first two pages of every edition in print and this had the best narrative flow and a richer texture. But, what else would you expect from the PEN translation award winners for "The Brothers Karamozov"?

This translation of Bulgakov's classic is unbeatable, and its endnotes are very helpful. In terms of accuracy and faithfulness to the original Russian text, Pevear and Volokhonsky's work here is unmatched, and it puts the Glenny translation to shame. With that said, I would recommend this edition particularly to those interested in understanding the novel's remarkable Soviet context. The Glenny translation will leave the average reader blind to much of Bulgakov's satire, but it offers perhaps a smoother overall read, often because of the liberties that Glenny takes in his translation.

When finally published in 1967, "The Master and Margarita" made a huge impact on the young Russian generation. It came at the end of the "Russian Spring." The years of Stalinism had partially thawed, and the Soviet Union saw a period of relaxation of many of the austere measures that had been levied on its citizens. Bulgakov had written the book at the height of Stalinist repression. A devil mercilessly playing with the indoctrinated minds of the proletarians and intellectuals alike. One has to understand that Bulgakov was a deeply religious man. He used satire as a means of renouncing the god-less Soviet state. Bulgakov can be viewed in the same literary vein as Gogol and Dostoevsky. He also delighted in word plays, hidden meanings and multiple layers of storytelling, making this a book you can return to again and again.

There are two essential stories in this novel. The first is that of the Master and Margarita, a doomed pair of lovers who find themselves fatalistically intertwined with the devil and his henchman. The other is that of Christ and Pontius Pilate. Bulgakov moves effortlessly back and forth in time through the voice of the devil, Woland, who overhears two Russian literati discussing the veracity of the death and resurrection of Christ. The fun and games follow in rapid succession, as the devil turns Petersburg on its ear, confounding a sedated city with his miraculous tricks.

Pevear and Volokhonsky have done a fine translation. It is a bit too literal for my tastes. They didn't need to translate the names into English. Footnotes would have sufficed. But, then Bulgakov often employed blunt language. He was a playwright by profession, and in many ways this book is a theatre of the absurd.

"The Master and Margarita" is one of the worlds greatest books and certatinly one of the 20th.century's masterpieces. It has been reviewed by the greatest scholars. I spent a number of years learning Russian and over a half year reading the book in the original. The beauty and clarity of the original language and the telling of the story in Russian was well worth my effort. This is one of these novels where every chapter can stand alone as a complete beautiful story.. It's a work of art made of many works of art bound in one. Any loss because of translatiion is inevitable, however, Russian experts agree that Pevear and Volokonsky's translation is probably most acurate and loyal. It makes a fine gift and I hope to someday find a leather bound high quality printing edition.

I think it is safe to assume that the main attraction that this book now holds for people is not the satire of doctrinally correct literati leading lives of hypocritical privilege - and indeed how could that possibly have any application in the age of Pinter, Rushdie, et al?

No, it is the fascination of the devil in his most seductive guise - the `Old European' Devil that inspired Jagger ('If you meet me have some sympathy, have some courtesy and some taste') Bulgakov does him to perfection here and his coterie is unimproveable: chequered Koroviev with the cracked pince-nez, squat red-headed uber-gangster Azazello, the wanton and permanently nude demon-whore and (my personal favourite) the hind leg walking, caviar eating, eternally mischievous giant black cat Behemoth.

In fact, despite knowing that it was written in the Stalin era, it is surprising how much of the Old Europe appears to have survived in Bulgakov's Moscow - good restaurants, ladies wearing the latest fashions, theatre managers in evening dress - and despite the officially approved atheism spouted by the literati, when under stress, ordinary people still mutter prayers under their breath and cross themselves.

`Satan's Ball at midnight' is a stunning set piece and could stand up on it's own. Reading it, one hears in one's head those weird, sinister Russian waltzes composed by the likes of Khatchaturian, Prokofiev and Shostakovich.

My own, very personal, feeling about it is that Bulgakov himself got taken in by the old rogue at the end. If the Devil exists, then, despite whatever gentlemanly facade he may care to assume, he really does not give a damn about the welfare of any human being and he will not keep his promises - so read with care, and watch out for being seduced yourself!

I read this book in a matter of a week, a record for me with a Russian novel. It is easier to swallow than Dostoevsky, that is for sure. The book starts out with a literary magazine editor (Berlioz) and a poet (Ivan Homeless) discussing their disbelief of God in park. The devil swings by, posing as a foreigner--a proffesor of black magic--and predicts that Berlioz will be beheaded by a woman before a meeting he is due to have later with other literary persons. This prediction becomes true and the devil and his comrades, which includes a man with a pince-nez and a checkered suit, a witch with a grotesque scar on her neck, a talking cat, and a demonesque red haired man then wreak havoc on the bureaucratic literary world of Moscow.
I think one of most interesting aspects of the book is the devil, or Woland. I do not see his character as necessarily evil. Certainly, he is the devil, but he is a very important aspect of the world. There is even a point where it seems that the devil is working for Jesus. There is black and white and also grey, and the devil, at some point, seems to cover all of these areas.
And then there is, of course, the master. The writer of the unpublished book about the Pontius Pilate, the man who sentenced Jesus to death. The master is tormented because his work was roundly rejected by the club house that was literary Moscow, and is seemed that not even Margarita's deep love for his could save him. The literary and governmental harassment the master endures because of a work about guilt and forgiveness probably mirror the situation Bulgakov found himself in at the time the book was written.
It is a strong work that had me glued. The translation is magnificent as well, though I always love a Pevear/Volokhonsky translation. Their edition of The Brothers Karamozov is magnificent. Finally, there were parts of this book that were so biting and funny. I highly recommend it.

I can only hope that when Mikhail Bulgakov wrote this statement that he sincerely believed in it. After finishing this book (and then afterwards reading the introduction by one of the translators- Richard Pevear), I cannot help but to feel that Bulgakov really struck on something.

Before covering that, let me begin by saying that this novel is working throughout on many different levels and on many different subjects. There is the story of Pontius Pilate, told in four chapters spread across the whole book, which deals with his condemnation of the man known as Yeshua. There is the love story of the Master and Margarita, told in a classically idyllic sort of way- just make sure when you read it that you have access to yellow flowers for someone special. There is the story of the magician Woland, who comes to town and performs extraordinary feats within the first few pages of the story, just enough to get you hooked.

All those stories spread through the book in different ways, evoking different feelings in the reader, as well as different tones. Richard Pevear and Larissa Volokhonsky do a terrific job (as always) of translating from the Russian, giving the text a fluidity that seems like it belongs in the English language; this fluidity helps the reader to find the meaning that Bulgakov had when writing the original- when there is a dark portion in the book, the translation captures that; when there is a tender moment, that is captured well too. Too often translators overlook these things when doing their task.

In the various incarnations of the story there are two underlying currents which stick out- one is the frightening tone of the interrogators who come to find those that they deem 'of interest'; though they often go without name, all in the novel know who they are and what they stand for...this is only an acknowledgement of what every Russian from that period knew, something that Westerners can only experience second-hand (as from this book).

The other current which is worth noting is the one that centers on the magician Woland and the 'Seventh Proof' of Gods existence. This argument says that if there is a devil then there must be a God. Many of the other stories stem from this, including the ones that deal with the Master and Margarita, the one that deals with Pontius Pilate, and the ones that center around the characters from Griboedovs (Berlioz in particular).

The point in going through these things in this review is this: this novel covers a lot of ground and is clearly intended to be an acknowledgement of Russian life during that period, a condemnation of some parts of that society (though in the light-hearted terms of two mischievous demons), and a study of faith among those in that society. It succeeds on all those levels, teaching those who know nothing of the time while also entertaining them, something that is a rarity in literature.

This brings me back to the first point- manuscripts don't burn...Mikhail Bulgakov was a brave man to have penned this novel for the world during the period that he did so. Had it been known that he had set to paper this grand novel, he certainly would have met with an unknown, yet untimely, fate (those secretive inquisitors would know). He knew this too- the introduction tells how at one point he had feared being found out, so he burned everything that he had written...an act of sheer desperation. Yet, though the physical copy was gone, the memory of those pages remained in his head. So too does this three-word phrase sublimely catch the tone of society at that time: though some may disappear, they are still remembered in the minds of those around them...

Bottom line: this is a terrific read, one that will open your eyes to the way in which a system of culture and society had gone awry. Too often it is seen as belonging solely to those with either a philosophical bent or a leaning towards Russian lit; to that I say 'pshaw!'. This book belongs to the masses and should be appreciated as such, on whatever level you, the potential reader, might wish to appreciate it. I say: get it, read it, thank Bulgakov (in your mind) for writing it...

-LP

Out of my favorite books of all time I have had to kick one out and replace it with this.

My main reason for wanting to read The Master and Margarita was the comment that it was reminiscent of Faust, another favorite of mine. However, this book goes much farther than retelling Goethe's classic play of temptation and the devil. Within this complexely written novel are three different stories, three different tones, and a whole lot of satirical/dark humor. Satan's entorage is completely in the fantastic world, and acts completely opposite to the very rational and no-nonsense realm of Moscow, which is treated as a playground for the three odd characters in Satan's company. Then there's an equally intriguing interpretation of Jesus' crucifixion and the characters surrounding that historic event (Pilate, Judas, Matthew,etc.)Punctuating the random violence and humor are scenes of serious contemplation and complexities of human nature, and the whole story is very well concluded (which is something I can rarely say these days).

I could not recommend this book enough to *anyone*, and especially those who do not realize the imagination that went into making such an involved story. However, it would help to know a bit more about Russian/Soviet history, as I found that there were things that were clearer with a bit of historical insight. But it is equally as enjoyable without that knowledge!!

I was somewhat intimidated before reading "The Master And Margarita" because I haven't had much luck with finishing long Russian novels. "Master", however, is extremely readable and surprisingly contemporary. It feels like it could have been written in the 1960's, when it was actually published, instead of the 1930's when it was written at the height of Stalin's Great Terror. It brilliantly anticipates the black comedy of the 60's like Catch-22; the characters Koroniev and Behemoth could be a couple of Kesey's Merry Pranksters in The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test. There is the widely known connection with the Rolling Stones' song "Sympathy For The Devil", which was supposedly based on this book. It will astonish some to learn that apparently Bulgakov was a Christian, but of an idiosyncratic type. And it shows in this, his masterpiece.

"Master" works on several levels. It is a devastating satire of Stalin's purges and show trials in pre-World War II Russia. There is a famous scene where a theatrical performance turns surrealistically into a trial complete with forced confessions. And people seem to disappear all of a sudden, just like so many did into the Gulag. There is a chilling scene between Pontius Pilate and one of his minions in which they conspire in double talk to commit a murder in which they deny all responsibility--just as Stalin and Hitler planned their murders in euphemisms.

"Master" is also a contemplation of the role of evil in human history. Satan and his demons visit Moscow and cause havoc in order to convince the world's first officially atheist society that there really is a devil (and thus by implication, God). The first half of the book has a tone of hallucinatory horror and comedy that reminded me of Shirley Jackson's stories (We Have Always Lived in the Castle (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition), for example.) The parallel stories of Woland (the devil's name this time around) and of Jesus and Pontius Pilate function as the acid test for how evil is in the end forced to do good's work. As Woland says good could not exist without evil--it would be like a world without shadows. But Woland only fitfully comprehends that he is just a tool in the hands of a Greater Power.

Finally, "Master" is a love story between the two title characters. Margarita becomes a witch in order to save her lover, and descends to the depths of hell. And then she acts as a savior of sorts, not only to the Master but to many others as well. (The novel could be considered a witty examination of just how much a superior woman will sacrifice for a weaker man who she loves nevertheless.) On this level it is tremendously moving, and I suspect this is the aspect of the book which has given it its lasting appeal and popularity. I will confess I had tears in my eyes for the last couple of chapters. Woland says that the world is based on the principle that "everything turns out right in the end." For him, that means that many more evil souls to reap. But for the good--well, you will just have to read this great novel and find out for yourself.