Written between 1928 and 1940 but unpublished in his lifetime (for fear of offending the Soviet authorities), Mikhail Bulgakov’s multilayered, genre-defying novel The Master and Margarita appeared finally, in censored form, in 1966—and became an instant international sensation. A landmark of Magical Realism, and a stinging satire of Soviet bureaucracy, the novel depicts the Devil, disguised as Professor Woland, as he challenges the official atheism of Soviet society through magic and prophecy. When Ivan Bezdomny, a fledgling communist poet, reports the supernatural feats of Woland and his gang to the authorities, he is placed in a psychiatric asylum, where he meets the mysterious Master, forcibly separated from his beloved Margarita. As Woland wreaks havoc outside the asylum walls, the Master relates his tale of faith and the struggle between good and evil. Bulgakov, himself a dissident author, asks his readers: How can an artist speak truth to power in a society constructed around lies? Is love greater than truth? And can one be honest in dishonest times?
In this course, we will address these questions by reading the entirety of The Master and Margarita (Pevear and Volkhonsky translation). Together, we will consider how Bulgakov uses allegory, fantasy, and satire to challenge official narratives and expose the tensions between the individual’s conscience and faith, socially-constructed truth, and state power. Throughout the course, we will attend the cultural and historical context of the Soviet Union under Stalin, state atheism, the dissident samizdat press as we explore questions about censorship and creativity, representations of good and evil, the roles of memory and history, and the transformative powers of love and art: Do right and wrong exist? Can a faith lost be regained? What are the psychological consequences for an individual who seeks a path against the expectations of the status quo?
