Prologue-1

I think it is going to be really interesting to see what sorts of messages Bulgakov sends with this book, seeing as he worked on it for almost the entirety of his life (and never even finished it). From what the introduction says of Bulgakov, it seems that he dealt more directly with the Russian government than any of the other Russian authors we have read so far (though they were all political satires). Because he has such insight, I am excited to see what Bulgakov has to say (although I think it’s safe to say it won’t be too positive), and how his opinions compare to those of the other political satirists...(read more)
-Cracked Wristwatch

There is something intrinsically malicious to the “foreigner” who appears to confront Berlioz and the Helpless about their atheistic conversation. The palpable tension of this chapter reaches a climax when this stranger reveals to Berlioz that he will die by decapitation. The surrealism of this stranger, a professor of black magic, makes it seem as if he is not only a foreigner of this country, but a foreigner of this earth. This is evident in his existential declaration that because some woman named Annushka has spilled sunflower oil, Berlioz will not be at his company’s meeting. The frequent repetition of “the devil” throughout this conversation propagates the possibily that this stranger might be the devil. One must note that he mentions having breakfast with Kant, who has been locked up in some remote location for 100 years, with no possibility of escape.
-Runaway Knight

The two things that stood out to me in the first chapter of The Master and Margarita, although perhaps not the most important aspects of the section, were Berlioz’s overexpenditure of energy in trying to make himself seem of superior intelligence, and the similarities of Bulgakov and Tolstoy’s views on death.
The self-consciousness of Berlioz’s character first became apparent to me in his references to people who “had [n]ever mentioned the existence of Jesus” in an argument about Jesus and other matters of similarly astonishing irrelevance.
Secondly, similar to the message expressed in Tolstoy’s “The Death of Ivan Illych”, Bulgakov acknowledges that Death is inevitable and may strike at any moment, causing one “who had but recently believed that he was managing something . . . [to] lie stretched motionless in a wooden box”. However, unlike the characters of Tolstoy’s short story, Bulgakov’s characters accept this fact: “man is mortal, no one questions that.”
-Primus Stove


The context in which I read the first chapter was kind of perfect: right before I picked up the book, I had been discussing the implications of religion and the potential flaws in Christianity with a friend of mine. He spoke from the perspective of a Christian, and I from the perspective of an Atheist. ...(read more)
-Black Poodle

The intro is quite a story in itself, in that it contains the necessary elements of absurdity and suffering for a Russian novel. Bulgakov remains unpublished and suffers terribly in frustration and loss of hope, and then he writes to Stalin, who writes back and says he loves one of his satirical plays?! I suppose absurdity must be very much a common element of Russian life. The first chapter was also excellent. I like the way it started with very few people on a hot summer's day, discussing the existence of Jesus. Then...(read more)
-Powdered Whiskers

I'm interested to see how the story will reflect upon the context of censoring and Bulgakov's frustration with getting his work published. Bulgakov’s The Purple Island was a satire on censorship, but was banned from being published. So, perhaps Bulgakov will slip in a few satirical remarks about censorship in The Master and Margarita, but very subtly in order for it to have been published. Why "Homeless" as Ivan's pen name? Even if it is just a name that he signs his work by, the narrator refer to him as Homeless. Perhaps there is a "home" not like the one you live in but maybe a domain or a safe haven that he lacks. I quite like the argument that the stranger makes about God governing the world not humans. He makes the world sound much more in order, that it has a plan, which man cannot govern because he cannot plan for a long span of time. "It is necessary to have a definite plan" he remarks (11). He may suggest that our lives are predestined, "for at least a fairly decent period of time" (11)...(read more)
-Apricot Soda

I am intrigued by this “foreign” character. Knowing what I do from reading the back cover of the novel I’ve considered the possibility that this foreigner is the tom cat, the devil, Jesus, Pontius Pilate, and God himself—not all together of course. On page 11, the foreigner is described to speak of cancer with relish and close his eyes “like a tom cat.” This character’s eyes don’t match, which draws my attention to eyes and makes me think of a cat’s eyes, but cat’s eyes are very distinctive and are not generally green and black in separate eyes. I would love love love for this character to be Satan. Because he is not blatantly evil it would give an interesting dimension to one’s understanding of differences between good and evil. He is intent on posing questions like “if there is no God…who governs the life of men and, generally, the entire situation here on earth?” (11). This foreigner, I believe, is even more foreign than Berlioz and the poet initially believe. ...(read more)
-Golden Horseshoe

The new Bulgakov novel is quite cryptic but very absorbing. From the introduction of the translator, I learned that this novel was consists of God and devil along with secular humans, so I am assuming the stranger in the first chapter is the devil. The author notes that various official reports regarding the strangers all contradicted one another, possibly meaning the stranger is capable of changing shapes, in other words, not human. He subtly approaches the Berlioz and the poet and shows great interest in their conversation of God. He is greatly delighted at the fact that those two and most of the Moscow population are atheists. Small descriptions such as "like a thief" or "furtive glance" emphasize his wiliness. I laughed at the part where the stranger smiles at the thought of cancer and then immediately ...(read more)
-Spanish Boot