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How to Read Bulgakov's 'The Master and Margarita' (Introductory Lecture) (Patreon)

Published:
2024-02-25 21:32:35
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2026-06
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Content

It’s time to begin our journey through Mikhail Bulgakov's masterpiece of Russian literature: The Master and Margarita.

Our reading will teach us about good and evil, authentic art vs propaganda, satire, allegory, defamiliarisation, socialist realism, life in the Soviet Union, the reign of Stalin, magical realism, courage vs cowardice, religion, hope, love, and the human condition. We will meet some incredible characters and, in doing so, ultimately meet ourselves.

Today we’re discussing how best to break into this breathtaking novel and bring ourselves fully to this profound, beautiful, and endlessly thought-provoking masterpiece.

Video Timestamps:

  • 0:00 how to read The Master and Margarita
  • 1:52 secret writing, censorship & publication
  • 4:17 ‘manuscripts don’t burn’
  • 5:16 why tyrannical regimes ban books
  • 5:55 Bulgakov burns his first draft
  • 7:00 the power of allegorical literature
  • 8:20 how to appreciate great satire
  • 9:00 Russian vs Western readers
  • 10:00 the writer’s life in the Soviet Union
  • 13:00 Bulgakov’s struggle with addiction
  • 14:00 atheism & visions of the devil
  • 15:00 ‘A Country Doctor’s Notebook’
  • 15:30 Bulgakov’s favourite writers
  • 16:55 opening of The Master and Margarita
  • 18:20 Berlioz, Homeless & Massolit
  • 18:50 on the Soviet literary scene
  • 20:00 understanding socialist realism
  • 20:50 the battle of art vs propaganda
  • 22:00 terror in the Soviet Union
  • 23:20 Solzhenitsyn’s Gulag Archipelago
  • 24:50 why writers would disappear
  • 26:00 most dangerous writer in Moscow
  • 27:20 interrogated by the secret police
  • 29:15 Stalin loves Bulgakov’s play
  • 30:00 banned, censored & abused
  • 30:50 the writer’s wish to leave the USSR
  • 31:30 Bulgakov falls in love with Elena
  • 33:00 Bulgakov burns his manuscript
  • 34:30 Stalin’s phonecall with Bulgakov
  • 37:00 on tyrannical control of art
  • 39:40 Bulgakov’s visions of the devil
  • 40:30 relationship between good & evil
  • 41:20 epigraph for The Master and Margarita
  • 41:50 in the influence of Goethe’s Faust
  • 43:00 making a deal with the devil
  • 43:55 the character of Professor Woland
  • 44:45 debating the historicity of Jesus
  • 45:55 the devil’s fantastical retinue
  • 46:55 Bulgakov’s three narrative strands
  • 49:45 the novel’s different aesthetic styles
  • 51:00 Jesus/Yeshua & Pontius Pilate
  • 52:30 Bulgakov’s defamiliarisation
  • 54:00 which translation should you read?
  • 58:25 recommended pace for Bulgakov
  • 1:02:15 exciting book club discussions
  • 1:04:00 your experience with Bulgakov?

Resources:

As we journey through The Master and Margarita together, we will have recommendations for rich side avenues and optional extracurriculars. You may wish to pursue some of these in order to deepen your appreciation of this masterpiece.

  • Translation: I will be working from the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation available in Penguin paperback. But you may like to sample the opening of a few other translations to see which you prefer. The Burgin and O'Connor is also an excellent choice. The Glenny and Ginsburg are both popular too, and translate Bulgakov very well, but bear in mind they are based on the censored/cut version, rather than the full version.
  • Historical Context: If you would like to get a good sense of what the climate was like in the Soviet Union under Joseph Stalin, then I highly recommend watching this documentary. If you find this interesting, there is a whole series, covering history's most notorious despots, to explore: 'The Evolution of Evil.' 
  • Goethe's Faust: It's a great idea to familiarise oneself with the first part of Goethe's sublime drama going into Bulgakov's novel. If you don't want to read Faust, you could always listen to our lecture instead. And for readers who have enjoyed Goethe's play already, you could take your appreciation further by treating yourself to Berlioz's opera, 'The Damnation of Faust'.
  • Scripture: You may find it rewarding to read the Gospel accounts of Jesus' execution in order to see why Bulgakov's defamiliarisation is so profound. Here is: Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John in the King James Version. On the topic of the Bible, I recently discovered an astonishing dramatisation that uses hundreds of superb voice actors and incredible effects here. 
  • Television: There's a wonderful television series starring Daniel Radcliffe and Jon Hamm, which is based on Bulgakov's collection of stories, 'A Country Doctor's Notebook', inspired by his time as a doctor. You might also find it interesting to note that a new film adaptation, which I'm desperate to see, is playing in Russian theatres. 
  • Note on Spoilers: I will personally refrain from giving spoilers throughout our read-through so first-time readers can enjoy the experience of Bulgakov's narrative unfolding before them. If this is a reread for you, or you excitedly read ahead, I ask that we keep discussion to the assigned chapters (or put a spoiler warning) so that we can preserve the magic for new readers.

Reading Assignment:

Our next discussion will cover up to and including chapter 12, which takes us through the first 132 pages in the Penguin Modern Classics paperback edition.

So start making your way into the work, meeting the characters, and noting down any themes, ideas, or passages that personally resonate with you.

Questions for You:

1) What is your current relationship with Bulgakov? Is this your first reading or a rereading of this masterpiece?

2) What are you hoping to get out of your deep reading of The Master and Margarita?

3) What themes from your wider reading would you like to pull into Bulgakov?

Happy reading, everybody!

Files

Previews only

How to Read 'The Master and Margarita' by Mikhail Bulgakov

📚 Read the Great Books with Hardcore Literature: https://www.patreon.com/hardcoreliterature/about ———————————— 🎙️ https://open.spotify.com/show/70IZA24... (Subscribe to the Hardcore Literature Podcast on iTunes & Spotify) 🏫 https://hardcore-university.teachable... (Hardcore University, Exam Preparation Courses) ✍🏼 https://benjaminmcevoy.com My Personal Website ———————————— Hardcore Literature Lecture Series ———————————— 📔Contents Page: https://cutt.ly/CmNhRY3 🎖️ War and Peace: https://cutt.ly/U3nzGma 🎭 Shakespeare Project: https://cutt.ly/B3nxHH7 🐳 Moby Dick: https://cutt.ly/K3nzVKf ☄️ Blood Meridian: https://cutt.ly/P3nz6Qp 🍂 Wuthering Heights: https://cutt.ly/N3nxxYt 🇮🇪 Ulysses: https://cutt.ly/x3nxQmN 🚂 Anna Karenina: https://cutt.ly/vmNhAWv 💀 Crime and Punishment: https://cutt.ly/rmNhFt5 ⚓ Persuasion: https://cutt.ly/amNhX7b ☕ In Search of Lost Time: https://cutt.ly/5mNh8oD ⚔️ The Hero’s Journey: https://cutt.ly/UmNjrE3 🌸 Siddharta: https://cutt.ly/YmNjuzi 🎠 Don Quixote: https://cutt.ly/cmNjoK4 ❤️Shakespeare’s Sonnets: https://cutt.ly/nmNlW7V 🇫🇷 Les Misérables: https://cutt.ly/J3YixoA 🕯️ The Turn of the Screw: https://cutt.ly/nToAQQ3 🖋️ Dickens Seasonal Read: https://cutt.ly/9ToAybt 📖 Middlemarch Serial Reading: https://tinyurl.com/45rv965c ———————————— 0:00 how to read The Master and Margarita 1:52 secret writing, censorship & publication 4:17 ‘manuscripts don’t burn’ 5:16 why tyrannical regimes ban books 5:55 Bulgakov burns his first draft 7:00 the power of allegorical literature 8:20 how to appreciate great satire 9:00 Russian vs Western readers 10:00 the writer’s life in the Soviet Union 13:00 Bulgakov’s struggle with addiction 14:00 atheism & visions of the devil 15:00 ‘A Country Doctor’s Notebook’ 15:30 Bulgakov’s favourite writers 16:55 opening of The Master and Margarita 18:20 Berlioz, Homeless & Massolit 18:50 on the Soviet literary scene 20:00 understanding socialist realism 20:50 the battle of art vs propaganda 22:00 terror in the Soviet Union 23:20 Solzhenitsyn’s Gulag Archipelago 24:50 why writers would disappear 26:00 most dangerous writer in Moscow 27:20 interrogated by the secret police 29:15 Stalin loves Bulgakov’s play 30:00 banned, censored & abused 30:50 the writer’s wish to leave the USSR 31:30 Bulgakov falls in love with Elena 33:00 Bulgakov burns his manuscript 34:30 Stalin’s phone call with Bulgakov 37:00 on tyrannical control of art 39:40 Bulgakov’s visions of the devil 40:30 relationship between good & evil 41:20 epigraph for The Master and Margarita 41:50 in the influence of Goethe’s Faust 43:00 making a deal with the devil 43:55 the character of Professor Woland 44:45 debating the historicity of Jesus 45:55 the devil’s fantastical retinue 46:55 Bulgakov’s three narrative strands 49:45 the novel’s different aesthetic styles 51:00 Jesus/Yeshua & Pontius Pilate 52:30 Bulgakov’s defamiliarisation 54:00 which translation should you read? 58:25 recommended pace for Bulgakov 1:02:15 exciting book club discussions 1:03:20 your experience with Bulgakov?

Comments

Jeanya

This is a difficult book just to put down & pick up without getting a bit lost. My tip is to re-read the Ch before again when you pick it up. Just finishing Stalin by Sebag Montefiore a really good listen on Audible.

Laurie Anderson

The Master and Margarita I read The Master and Margarita in early January, using an Ebook version, knowing that it was one of the HCLC books. For me, it was confusing as a first read. I find it hard to understand the way Russian names and nicknames interchange. I know there is a rhyme and reason to it but I haven’t researched that yet. I have the Penguin P&V for my second and deeper read and, along with Ben’s excellent lecture, it is making much more sense. Also, this P&V version has notes in the back of the book that explain words and places that are generally unfamiliar to us Westerners. Ben’s explanation of defamiliarization was very helpful. As a Christian who has studied and taught from the Bible for years, I was dismayed with Bulgakov’s interpretation of a major Biblical event. Now I understand his motive. Just some personal observations: I am impressed with Bulgakov’s detailed descriptions of his characters. I want to sketch them out as I read them. The first page starts out describing a “scorching Moscow” day, apropos for the introduction of the devil. The “foreigner” carries “a stick with a black knob shaped like a poodle’s head”. A nod to Faust. In Chapter 2, we feel another scorching day in another time and place—a time when the devil would be behind the events. During Pilate’s interrogation of Jesus a swallow flies in and around—a creature that seems to have more freedom than the human beings that are below it, for Pilate is as much as a captive as Jesus is. During Pilate’s discussion with Kaifa, Pilate has an elusive thought and an “incomprehensible anguish” strikes him. “There was something he had not finished saying to the condemned man, and perhaps something he had not finished hearing.” But. “Pilate drove this thought away, and it flew off as instantly as it had come flying.” Like the swallow? Also, in Chapter 2, Pilate has a vision or hallucination of Jesus’ “head floating off somewhere”. People seem to have trouble keeping their heads in this book—figuratively and literally. The moon is mentioned often throughout the book. Chapter 5 describes the evening of the same day when the heat is still unbearable. The restaurant is complete chaos. “In short, hell.” Hellish descriptions abound in The Master and Margarita—ironic for a people who insist that they don’t believe in God, Jesus or the devil, but invoke the devil’s name casually and often. Chapter 8 describes the clinic where Ivan is housed. This, too, is ironic, because it has modern comforts that the public doesn’t enjoy and are not allowed to have. Forgive my long post. I so wanted to join in to the East of Eden discussion but was ill and brain fogged most of February. I look forward to hearing other members’ observations.

Diane

So excited for the M&M lecture this weekend! Don't know about you all but I have started a list of the characters to date in my journal. It is really helpful to refer to with so many concurrent storylines and thinking about a character for awhile with one name, and then suddenly being referred to with 2 of his other names. Having a list of full names is helping me keep them all straight. I still have to remember where we last left that character several chapters back when we suddenly return to him again! It's a wild ride but I am loving it every step of the journey!

Diane
>>131797362

I agree, I add notes to the names as I go thru the story. I wish I could attach a pic of my journal to show you what I have so far. I left room on that page so I can keep adding to it.

Donna F.

I’m on chapter 18 of MM…so confused! I think I’ll stop for awhile and go to a favorite read. I’m not a fan of magical realism. I have to admit that since chapter 16 my eyes just want to glaze over. Later I’ll listen to the lecture again. Later…ok, listened to lecture again. I want to like reading this book, but so far, I don’t. Ok, I will try to get back on track, going back to chapter 16. I do like the surreal aspect of this book. I’m having a health insurance problem where I’m being denied care, so I feel that the surreal aspect of my insurance struggle is mirrored in the surrealistic struggles in the novel

CherylS

What a crazy story, I'm loving it. Not like another Russian author I have read. I'm definitely writing notes in the book and like Diane keeping a list a characters and who they are and what other names they use. I watched the Stalin video, very helpful, now need to read Faust and try to correlate with M&M. Just finished chapter 12!

Liz

Just listened to the starting lecture and I must admit I’m a bit intimidated! I’ll give it a go I think but I suspect this is a challenging book for my 2024 “finally read a Russian” goal!

Jamie Otelsberg

I'm enjoying this so much! It's my first reading, and my first intro to Bulgalkov. There are some terrifying moments and a few laugh out loud moments. What a ride! I'm also writing the characters names down on a card as I go along with the page numbers where they are first referenced. Definitely having a conversation in the margins with this book!

Hilary King

I’m late to the party and excited to re-read The Master and Margarita. I read it years ago when I was much more naive about the world. I expect to get a lot more out of it this time around. There are scenes that have stayed with me - vividly and meaningfully - through the years. Loved it!

Tamera Cameron

I have read The Gulag Archipelago, The Life of Ivan Denisovich, Crime and Punishment, and The Brothers Karamazov. I'm hoping that these works well help me get more out of this book. I seem to be developing a penchant for Russian literature. I think it's the dark humor that attracts me and I'm interested to see what I make of Bulgakov's style.

Margaret

Chapter 2 opens with Pontius Pilate bemoaning the smell of rose oil “More than anything in the world the procurator hated the smell of rose oil.” On and on he talks about “the same thick rosy scent” and calls out to the gods for punishing him. I couldn’t help but remember one of the names to describe Jesus is the Rose of Sharon.