ABOUT THE USTA AND MARGARITA

ABOUT THE MASTER AND MARGARITA

“The Master and Margarita,” one of the important works of Russian literature, is a true masterpiece in which truth and superstition, imagination and reality become intertwined. In the novel, the devil and his retinue, who have come to Moscow disguised as a professor of magic, the trial of Jesus, and the love story of the Master and Margarita unfold simultaneously. The transitions between the scenes are presented masterfully and connected to one another with an excellent style. The text contains very powerful philosophical and religious inquiries. For example, the very first chapter begins with the devil proving the existence of God through a Socratic method. The figure of the devil attempting to prove God is actually also an indication of the profound duality within this text. Everything is possible through its opposite…

In his work, Bulgakov once again presents, through the devil’s voice, a critique of humanity, society, and the system. This critique, based on humanity’s relationship with money and social greed, reveals the unchanging nature of human beings. In addition, an extraordinary depiction of Jesus immediately appears in the work. One of the striking details is the style used by Jesus. Like the devil’s, it contains a powerful dialectic. There is, however, a difference between them: while the devil is capable of everything, Jesus has nothing.

The detailed descriptions of the characters and events in the work are so powerful that the reader may suddenly shudder before the detailed depiction of the devil, almost as if they had actually seen him, and may even nearly sense the smell of the setting. Alongside the description, creativity is also at its height. In a ballroom scene, for instance, the exceptionally well-designed characters are so original and fantastical that they seem to have come out of a Japanese manga.

The work is also remarkably rich in the different perspectives it offers the reader. The remorse suffered by Governor Pontius Pilate because of the person he sent to the cross is handled in a striking way. In some places, the author almost speaks to the reader from the position of the governor’s conscience. On the other hand, the inescapability of fate is thrust into the reader’s face with harsh realism throughout the work. The same fate and destiny also appear in the love of the Master and Margarita, prompting the question: “What is the most a person can do for the one they love most?” Could they, for example, sell their soul to the devil to save the person they love? And does a soul sold to the devil contain mercy, and will the devil deliver what was paid for?

In short, those weary of life’s ordinariness can lose themselves in dreams, if only for a while, in this story as magical as medieval tales yet as real as life itself, and may find themselves while engaging in questions they have never asked before.

İslam Armağan Çakır

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https://www.istanbulkitapcisi.com/usta-ile-margarita