Woland is a character in the novel "The Master and Margarita", who leads the world of otherworldly forces. Woland is the devil, Satan, "the prince of darkness", "the spirit of evil and the lord of shadows" (all these definitions are found in the text of the novel).
Woland is largely focused on Mephistopheles "Faust" (1808-1832) by Johann Wolfgang Goethe (1749-1832), including the opera, from Charles Gounod's (1818-1893) opera "Faust" (1859).
The name Woland itself is taken from a poem by Goethe, where it is mentioned only once and is usually omitted in Russian translations. This is how Mephistopheles calls himself in the scene of Walpurgis Night, demanding from evil spirits to give way: "Nobleman Woland is coming!" In the prose translation of A. Sokolovsky (1902), with the text of which Bulgakov was familiar, this passage is given as follows:
"Mephistopheles. Where have you gone! I see that I must use my master's rights. Hey, you! Place! Mr. Woland is coming!"
In the commentary, the translator explained the German phrase "Junker Voland kommt" as follows: "Junker means a noble person (nobleman), and Woland was one of the names of the devil. The main word "Faland" (which meant a deceiver, crafty) was already used by ancient writers in the sense of a devil ".
Bulgakov also used this last name: after a session of black magic, the employees of the Variety Theater are trying to remember the name of the magician: "- In ... It seems, Woland. Or maybe not Woland? Maybe Faland."
In the edition of 1929-1930. Woland's name was reproduced entirely in Latin on his business card: "D-r Theodor Voland". In the final text, Bulgakov refused the Latin alphabet: Ivan Bezdomny remembers only initial letter surnames - W ("double-ve").
This replacement of the original V ("fau") is not accidental. The German "Voland" is pronounced like Foland, and in Russian the initial "ef" in this combination creates comic effect Yes, and it is difficult to pronounce. The German "Faland" would not fit here either. With the Russian pronunciation - Faland - things were better, but there was an inappropriate association with the word "fal" (it denotes a rope that raises sails and yards on ships) and some of its slang derivatives. In addition, Faland did not meet in Goethe's poem, and Bulgakov wanted to connect his Satan with Faust, even if he was given a name not too well known to the Russian public. Rare name it was necessary so that the ordinary reader, not experienced in Demonology, would not immediately guess who Woland was.
The third wife of the writer E. S. Bulgakov captured in her diary the reading of the initial chapters latest edition"Masters and Margaritas" April 27, 1939: "Yesterday we had Faiko - both (playwright Alexander Mikhailovich Faiko (1893-1978) with his wife), Markov (Head of the Moscow Art Theater) and Vilenkin (Vitaly Yakovlevich Vilenkin (born 1910/11) ), a colleague of Pavel Alexandrovich Markov (1897-1980) in the literary part of the Moscow Art Theater). Misha read "The Master and Margarita" - from the beginning. The impression is enormous. They immediately insistently asked to set a day for the continuation. Misha asked after reading - who is Woland? Vilenkin said he guessed, but he would never tell. I suggested that he write, I will write too, and we will exchange notes. We did. He wrote: Satan, I am the devil. After that, Fyko also wanted to play. And he wrote on his note: I don't know. But I fell for the bait and wrote to him - Satan."
Bulgakov, no doubt, was quite satisfied with the experiment. Even such a qualified listener as A. M. Faiko Woland did not immediately guess. Therefore, the riddle that appeared on Patriarch's Ponds a foreign professor will be kept in suspense from the very beginning by most readers of The Master and Margarita. In early editions, Bulgakov tried the names Azazello and Belial for the future Woland.
The literary genealogy of Woland, used by Bulgakov, is extremely multifaceted. The devil in The Master and Margarita has an obvious portrait resemblance to Eduard Eduardovich von Mandro, the infernal character in A. Bely's novel The Moscow Eccentric (1925), presented to Bulgakov by the author. According to the definition given by A. Bely in the preface to the novel "Masks" (1933) from the same epic "Moscow" as "The Moscow Eccentric", Mandro is a combination of "a kind of Marquis de Sade and Cagliostro of the 20th century." In the preface to The Moscow Eccentric, the author argued that "in the face of Mandro, the theme is becoming obsolete" iron heel" (famous novel Jack London (John Griffith) (1876-1916), who appeared in 1908) (enslavers of mankind)". Bely masks the infernality of his character in every possible way, leaving the reader in the dark whether Mandro is Satan.
A red-haired and green-eyed girl named Gella is an ordinary witch from those who arrive at the Sabbath on a broomstick. Her name is mentioned in some legends in connection with Mount Broken, which was considered the habitat of witches. Bulgakov himself kindly reminds of this through Woland: ... I strongly suspect that this pain in the knee was left to me as a keepsake by a charming witch, whom I became intimately acquainted with in 1571 in the Broken Mountains, on the Devil's Chair ... Probably, to continue Woland's words and telling about our meetings with him would be the height of indiscretion, but I'll tell you something. After all, you can trust and hope that my stories will not reach the brightest ears of Messire ???:-) The Brocken mountains ... Goethe wrote a lot about them. This is a wonderful place: the air is filled with a variety of aromas, it is light and fresh, you want to completely dissolve in it. No human foot has stepped on these slopes. Broken can be offensive and harsh, but for the welcome visitors, it suddenly becomes affectionate and inviting into its sinful alcove. Nowhere is there softer and silkier grass and shady, cozy corners in which even the Lord himself cannot see anything. Here the very atmosphere calls to sin, and no sin can be as sweet as adultery with Satan himself.
The image of Woland in the novel "The Master and Margarita" is one of the most interesting archetypes not only of Russian, but also foreign literature. Curiously, the name of the character was borrowed from Goethe's Faust. Mephistopheles calls himself Lord Woland, making his way through the crowd. The epigraph to the novel is also taken from Faust: “I am part of that force that always wants evil, but does good.”
Goethe's Mephistopheles is not evil, as it is commonly believed, and Bulgakov's Woland is similar to him, but a logical question arises: what similarities and differences from the archetypal image of the devil in culture does Satan from Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita have?
It is worth noting that Woland is not the evil in The Master and Margarita, because initially he arrives in Moscow to see how much humanity has changed over the centuries. He doesn't harm anyone. Of course, someone may disagree with me, because at the very beginning of the novel, after a conversation with the "Prince of Darkness", Berlioz dies under the wheels of a tram. However, if you look more closely at the meaning of this passage, you can understand that Woland does not provoke the death of the writer, but only in a veiled form warns him that it is worth changing his ideas about the prevailing reality, otherwise the sad ending cannot be avoided. Such kindness to human nature occurs in other passages of the novel - after the ball, after the reunion of Margarita with her lover. Of course, Woland himself speaks of mercy like this: “Sometimes, completely unexpectedly and insidiously, it (note - mercy) penetrates into the narrowest cracks. So I’m talking about rags, ”but, nevertheless, it still helps people.
Now consider Woland's resemblance to the classical lord of hell. The main "devilish" quality of Satan in the novel "The Master and Margarita" is his connection with dark forces and with the dead. Let us recall, for example, the passage “Satan’s Ball” - a wide variety of sinners appear on it - murderers, suicides, tyrants, etc., but they are all naked, which indicates that their souls are not hidden by a mask and all of their the essence can be seen only by honoring with a glance. Woland is also given great power give magical abilities those who liked him. After all, it was at his command that, some time before the ball, Azazello hands Margarita a magical ointment, which on a moonlit night (which is important, because the moon is also a symbol of the forces of darkness) turns a woman into a witch.
In conclusion, I would like to say one thing simple thing Everything in this world is relative. Sometimes what appears to be black is actually white or grey. In his novel, Bulgakov very clearly showed that evil is not really what it seems, and even it is not known what evil is in fact. Satan in The Master and Margarita, although he is the Prince of Darkness, does not appear to us as the classical archetype that is accepted in culture. That is why Woland's characterization to this day makes attentive readers solve its riddle.
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Woland did not appear alone in Bulgakov's novel. He was accompanied by characters who played mainly the role of jesters. Woland's retinue put on a variety of shows that were disgusting. They were hated by the indignant Moscow population. After all, the whole environment of the "messier" turned inside out human weaknesses and vices. In addition, their task was to perform all the "dirty" work at the behest of the master, serving him. Everyone who was part of Woland's retinue had to prepare Margarita for Satan's ball and send her with the Master to the world of peace.
The servants of the prince of darkness were three jesters - Azazello, Fagot (aka Koroviev), a cat named Behemoth and Gella - a female vampire. Woland's retinue was. Each character is described separately below. each reader of the famous novel has a question about the origin of the images presented and their names.
Behemoth cat
Describing the image of Woland and his retinue, the first thing I want to do is describe the cat. Basically, the Behemoth is a werewolf animal. Most likely, Bulgakov took the character from the apocryphal book - the "Old Testament" of Enoch. Also, the author could get information about the Behemoth in the book “The History of Intercourse between Man and the Devil”, written by I. Ya. Porfiriev. In the literature mentioned, this character is sea monster, a demon in the form of a creature with the head of an elephant, having fangs and a trunk. The hands of the demon were human. The monster also had a huge belly, an almost imperceptible tail small size and very thick hind limbs, similar to those of hippopotamuses. This similarity explains his name.
In the novel The Master and Margarita, Bulgakov introduced the Behemoth to readers in the form of a huge cat, the prototype of which was the author's pet Flyushka. Although fluffy pet Bulgakov had a gray color, in the novel the animal is black, since his image is the personification of evil spirits.
Behemoth Transformation
At the time when Woland and his retinue made the final flight in the novel, Behemoth turned into a frail young page. Next to him was a knight purple. It was the transformed Fagot (Koroviev). In this episode, Bulgakov, apparently, reflected a comic legend from S. S. Zayaitsky's story "The Biography of Stepan Alexandrovich Lososinov." In her in question about a cruel knight, with whom his page constantly appears. Main character legend had a passion for tearing off the heads of animals. This cruelty is transferred by Bulgakov to Behemoth, who, unlike a knight, tears off the head of a man - Georges of Bengal.
Tomfoolery and gluttony Behemoth
Behemoth is a demon of carnal desires, especially gluttony. Hence, the cat in the novel had an unprecedented gluttony in Torgsin (currency store). Thus, the author shows irony towards the visitors of this all-Union institution, including himself. At a time when people live from hand to mouth outside the capitals, people in big cities enslaved by the demon Behemoth.
The cat in the novel most often plays pranks, clowns, lets go different jokes, laughs. This feature Behemoth's character reflects the sparkling sense of humor of Bulgakov himself. This behavior of the cat and his unusual view became a way of causing fear and confusion in people in the novel.
Demon Bassoon - Koroviev
What else is Woland and his retinue remembered by the readers of the novel? Of course, a bright character is the representative of demons subordinate to the devil, Fagot, aka Koroviev. This is Woland's first assistant, a knight and a devil rolled into one. Koroviev appears to the residents as an employee of a foreign professor, and a former director of the church choir.
There are several versions of the origin of the surname and nickname of this character. It is also associated with some images of the works of F. M. Dostoevsky. So, in the epilogue of the novel The Master and Margarita, four Korovkins are mentioned among the people detained by the police because of the similarity of their surnames with Kroviev. Here, apparently, the author wanted to point out a character from Dostoevsky's story called "The Village of Stepanchikovo and Its Inhabitants."
Also, the prototypes of Fagot are a number of knights, who are the heroes of some works of different times. It is also possible that the image of Koroviev arose thanks to one of Bulgakov's acquaintances. The prototype of the demon could be a real man, plumber Ageich, who was a rare drunkard and dirty trick. He repeatedly mentioned in conversations with the author of the novel that in youth was one of the choir directors in the church. This, apparently, was reflected by Bulgakov in the incarnation of Koroviev.
The similarity of the bassoon with a musical instrument
The bassoon was a musical instrument invented by the Italian monk Afranio.
degli Albonesi. In the novel, the connection (functional) of Koroviev with this canon from Ferrara is sharply indicated. Three worlds are clearly defined in the novel, representatives of each of which form certain triads according to similar qualities. The demon Fagot belongs to one of them, which also includes: Stravinsky's assistant Fyodor Vasilyevich and Aphranius, " right hand» Pontius Pilate. Koroviev, however, made Woland his main associate, and his retinue did not contradict this.
The bassoon is even outwardly similar to the long and thin instrument of the same name, folded in three. Koroviev is tall and thin. And in his imaginary subservience, he is ready to triple in front of the interlocutor, but only in order to later unhinderedly harm him.
Koroviev's transformation
At the moment when Woland and his retinue were making their last flight in the novel, the author presents the reader with Fagot in the form of a dark purple knight, who has a gloomy, incapable of smiling face. He was thinking about something of his own, resting his chin on his chest and not looking at the moon. When Margarita asked Woland why Koroviev had changed so much, Messire replied that once this knight joked badly, and his mocking pun about light and darkness was inappropriate. His punishment for this was jester's manners, gayer look and circus tattered clothes for a long time.
Azazello
What other representatives of the forces of evil did Woland's retinue consist of? The Master and Margarita has another bright character- Azazello. Bulgakov created his name by converting one of the Old Testament ones. The book of Enoch mentions fallen Angel Azazel. It was he, according to the Apocrypha, who taught people to create weapons, swords, shields, mirrors and various decorations from precious stones and not only. In general, Azazel managed to corrupt. He also taught males to fight and women to lie, turned them into godlessness.
Azazzello in Bulgakov's novel gives Margarita a magic cream that magically changes her appearance. Probably, the author was attracted by the idea of combining in one character the ability to kill and seduce. Margarita sees the demon in the Alexander Garden just like that. She perceives him as a seducer and murderer.
Azazello's main responsibilities
The main duties of Azazello are certainly connected with violence. Explaining his functions to Margarita, he admits that his direct specialty is to punch the administrator in the face, shoot someone or put him out of the house, and other “trifles” of this kind. Azazello transfers Likhodeev to Yalta from Moscow, expels Poplavsky (Uncle Berlioz) from the apartment, deprives Baron Meigel of life with the help of a revolver. The demon-killer invents a magic cream that he gives to Margarita, giving her the opportunity to acquire witch beauty and some demonic powers. From this cosmetic product, the heroine of the novel gains the ability to fly and become invisible at her request.
Gella
Only one woman was allowed into their entourage by Woland and his retinue. Characteristics of Gella: the youngest member of the diabolical union in the novel, a vampire. Bulgakov took the name of this heroine from an article entitled "Sorcery", published in encyclopedic dictionary Brockhaus and Efron. It noted that such a name was given to the dead girls, who later became vampires, on the island of Lesbos.
The only character from Woland's retinue who is missing from the description of the final flight is Hella. One of Bulgakov's wives counted given fact the result of the fact that the work on the novel was not fully completed. But it may also be that the author deliberately excluded Hella from the important scene, as an insignificant member of the devil's retinue, performing only auxiliary functions in the apartment, variety show and at the ball. In addition, Woland and his retinue could not equally perceive a representative of the lower rank next to them in such a situation. In addition, Gella had no one to turn into, because she had her original appearance from the moment of transformation into a vampire.
Woland and his retinue: characteristics of the devilish forces
In the novel "The Master and Margarita" the author defines the forces of evil with unusual roles for them. After all, the victims of Woland and his retinue are not righteous, not decent and good people, whom the devil must lead astray, and those who have already taken place
sinners. It is their sir and his assistants who denounce and punish, choosing peculiar measures for this.
So, the director of the variety show has to go to Yalta in an unusual way. He is simply mystically thrown there from Moscow. But, escaping with a terrible fright, he safely returns home. But Likhodeev has a lot of sins - he gets drunk, makes numerous connections with women, using his position, does nothing at work. As Koroviev says in the novel about the director of the variety show, he Lately terribly swine.
In fact, neither Woland himself nor the devil's assistants in any way influence the events taking place in Moscow during their visit to it. The non-traditional representation of Satan in Bulgakov's way is manifested in the fact that the leader of otherworldly impure forces is endowed with some clearly expressed attributes of God.
1. Bulgakov's image Woland and his place in literature.
2. The life of Moscow in the 30s, the townsfolk in the novel.
3. The ideological and artistic role of the forces of evil in the novel "The Master and Margarita".
He almost drove me crazy, proving to me that I'm gone! But do you believe it's really me?
M. A. Bulgakov
Woland is the most enigmatic figure in The Master and Margarita. Let us recall his description at the time of his first appearance at the Patriarch's Ponds - "... more than forty years old, crooked mouth, brunette, black right eye, for some reason green left, black eyebrows, but one higher than the other." The author mentions that, despite this description, later witnesses described Woland in different ways. Who is Woland? Why, before his appearance, Berlioz is seized with such fear and horror that he wants to run away from the Patriarchs without looking back? The answer can be given to us by a cane with a black knob in the form of a poodle's head under his arm and an epigraph taken by M. Bulgakov to the whole work: "I am part of that force that always wants evil and always does good." This reference to Mephistopheles by I. W. Goethe directly indicates that Satan appeared before Bezdomny and Berlioz. Arguing about the meaning of the epigraph, we can conclude that the author's goal is to show the unity of good and evil. Let us recall that Mephistopheles, wishing evil to Faust, involuntarily does good for him, forcing him to go through the path of knowledge. Bulgakov also emphasizes Woland's relationship with Mephistopheles when Woland calls himself a German. Just like Mephistopheles, Woland acquires human features. In the "foreigner" it is impossible to suspect the devil.
Everything in the world has changed progress.
How to be? The devil also changes.
Arctic phantom is out of fashion
You will not find claws in the factory,
The horns are gone, the tail is gone.
(J. W. Goethe "Faust")
The name of Woland, upon careful reading, we also find in Goethe. Bulgakov had the opportunity to get acquainted with the translation of A. L. Sokolovsky, where in the scene of Walpurgis Night Mephistopheles calls himself "Mr. Woland". Usually this place was omitted in Russian translations. In the old German literature there is another name for the devil - Faland. So that the clue to the hero is not immediately revealed to the reader, Bulgakov takes a rarely used name for him, outwardly humanizing the devil so that he does not attract undue attention to himself.
Speaking of literary prototypes hero, one can also recall Lermontov's Demon, and Eduard Eduardovich von Mandro - the hero of A. Bely's novel "The Moscow Eccentric" (1925), whom the author characterizes as "a kind of Marquis de Sade and Cagliostro of the 20th century." Echoes of E. T. A. Hoffmann's The Golden Pot are also heard in the novel. Often remembering the devil, Muscovites call on him, and he appears. Note that Woland further in the novel does not even try to pretend to be an illusionist: at a session of black magic, he sits aside and watches people, noting to himself that they remained the same, only “ housing problem ruined them."
The townsfolk live only for their petty interests. The inhabitants of Moscow in the 1930s are people who proudly declare that they are atheists, prone to gluttony, who have taken warm places. Berlioz, the first victim in the novel, does not believe in either the existence of God or the existence of the devil, but he thinks about how to quickly write a denunciation of Woland. According to critics, Bulgakov actually equates the concepts of "philistine" and "sinner" in his work. Depicted creative intelligentsia so unattractive that it becomes clear: these people cannot "sow the reasonable, the good, the eternal." Muscovites are greedy for money, outfits, they love to eat delicious food, they are ready to sit down colleagues, they will stop at nothing to achieve their own well-being. The city is in sin. The master in this environment lives a completely different life - he devotes himself not to the pursuit of a warm place, but to writing a novel. The sharp criticism of the novel by the townsfolk, and then the arrest of the master, show that a writer who does not have a certificate that he is a writer has no place among others provided with crusts. He can be destroyed both as a writer and as a person. The Master and Margarita also have human weaknesses, but they cannot be equated with ordinary people. They have Love, for the sake of which Margarita is even able to spend the night with the devil. The master has a talent that cannot be destroyed by fire, imprisonment, or criticism. It is talent that distinguishes the master from the crowd of mediocre townsfolk. This the only heroes in the novel, striving for goodness, beauty. The master is not included in any writing organizations, while they were filled with people with certificates. The master only needs solitude and peace, which is what Woland rewards him at the end of the story. It is worth noting that the master immediately understands who Ivan Bezdomny met at the Patriarchs, while everyone around him continues to look for a rational explanation for what happened, even if it is a mass disappearance of people.
The image of Woland is quite complex and ambiguous. He has such features that allow us to say that he is endowed with obvious attributes not of Satan, but of God. It is this that can also explain the opinion of some critics that, depicting Woland, the writer gives hints of Christ, dressing him in rags, talking about his sword, which casts a shadow in the form of a cross. It is impossible to divide what the devil's retinue does into white and black - the boundaries between good and evil are fuzzy.
Woland's role in the novel is not limited to observing Muscovites. It changes the lives of some of them, leaving a mark on their destinies, or gives them the opportunity to do so. We see the result in the final. Ivan Bezdomny, capable of recognizing the enormity of his own poems in a conversation with the master, after being cured becomes a professor at the Institute of History and Philosophy Ivan Nikolaevich Ponyrev, leaving poetry forever. He “knows that in his youth he became a victim of criminal hypnotists”, but on the night of the full moon he can’t help himself, he worries until the Master appears to him, and Margarita then kisses him on the forehead and says that he will have everything how to. Whoever is even slightly capable of this, embarks on the path of rebirth. Even Varenukha stops lying on the phone.
Woland seeks to give people knowledge about what is good and evil. He comes to restore justice - the Master's novel rises from the ashes, he rewarded with peace and remains with Margarita, Pilate gets the opportunity, at the will of the Master, to talk with Yeshua and make sure that there was no execution. Mission Complete. Each of Woland's retinue also played a role and regained his true face. The retinue carries out Woland's instructions, revealing the shortcomings of the society of the inhabitants, punishing people for sins and purifying everything with fire. Kara catches up with "Griboyedov", MASSOLIT. Thus, people are given a chance to build a new temple of literature and awaken people to creativity.
Where does the Master go after he dies in the hospital? He finds peace - not heaven, not hell, but a place where "the house and the old servant are waiting, the candles are already burning." Bulgakov builds his picture afterlife, which is not limited by the usual framework. The author looks at Woland with his retinue in the same way. What they do is not evil, but just retribution. And to carry it out is by no means the prerogative of the black forces. This means that it is not the black forces of evil that are in charge in Moscow.
The adventures of Woland's retinue, according to researchers, are an important element in describing the historical reality of the 1930s. They do not push people to sin, but remove the veil from their eyes, revealing the pressing problems in a society that has been lying, and allow them to make a choice between good and evil. Therefore, Woland can be called a wise and fair arbiter of justice.
The dying testament of the Great Master, writer Mikhail Afanasyevich Bulgakov came true: "To know ...", which he said about his novel "The Master and Margarita". The novel came to us, we accepted it, re-read it many times, trying to comprehend the depth of the problems inherent in it.
Domestic and foreign critics rated the writer's book as outstanding work modernity.
During the last ten years of his life, The Master and Margarita was the writer's sincere creation, he returned to it again and again. The novel played the same role in the writer's life as famous painting the great Renaissance artist Leonardo da Vinci "Mona Lisa", known by another name "La Gioconda", with which he did not part for many recent years by adding the smallest touches to it. The mystery of Mona Lisa's smile has not yet been solved, just as when rereading The Master and Margarita, we still cannot comprehend the depth philosophical thought writer, which, like a diamond, appears before us with new sparkling facets.
M. A. Bulgakov was the most enlightened man of his time. His mother is the daughter of a priest, his father is a representative of the higher clergy. The large family was highly cultured and musical. A doctor by education, a writer, however, he devoted his life to literature and theater.
Bulgakov worked on the novel The Master and Margarita for the last ten years of his life, from 1929 to 1940, until his death. The plot of the work changed, at first the writer wanted to make Woland the main character and call the novel "The Magician". IN final version the main roles in the novel, in addition to Woland, were played by the Master and Margarita, Pontius Pilate and Yeshua, as well as the failed poet Ivan Bezdomny, later a professor of history.
As a person who grew up in a deeply religious family, M. Bulgakov knew spiritual literature very well: the New Testament, the Old Testament, the Gospel, the Apocalypse and other works, which was reflected in the novel. These ancient books reveal the essence of good and evil.
The novel of the writer is an open, clear, free and deep philosophical and artistic thought, addressed to the most important and universally significant problems. human life. The theme of the book is the theme of common human responsibility for the fate of goodness, beauty, truth in the world of people. One of the fundamental thoughts of the novel is the idea of justice, which inevitably triumphs in the life of the spirit, although sometimes belatedly, and already beyond the physical death of the creator.
The novel by M. Bulgakov is multifaceted. Its construction, composition strikes with thoughtful complexity. IN " Divine Comedy» the great Italian Dante depicts the three circles of hell, the underworld, where in cosmic chaos, deprived of peace, doomed to eternal turmoil, sinful souls restlessly rush former people. According to M. Bulgakov, the three circles of different worlds depicted by him are very close to Dante's three circles of hell: the oldest - Yershalaim - is represented by the Roman horseman, procurator of Judea, Pontius Pilate and Yeshua, modern, Moscow, 30s of the twentieth century - Master and Margarita, Moscow the townsfolk; the third world - the world of Eternity, unknowable, otherworldly - is represented by Satan Woland and his retinue: the “right hand” of the devil Koroviev-Fagot, the “home, personal” jester - a cat named Behemoth, Azazello and others. These three worlds are united in the novel by Satan Woland: he is a witness to the execution that took place more than two thousand years ago, innocently condemned by a fanatical crowd of Jews, skillfully directed by the highest spiritual dignitary Kaifa, he comes to modern Moscow for trial and reprisal against those who do evil, mired in it and the atrocities they do.
The novel showed the outstanding talent of the writer - the ability to create symbolic figures. The image of Satan and his retinue for the author is only a symbol, a poetic similitude. The figures of the Master, Margarita and others are also symbolic.
The name Woland may have the following origin: taken from Latin, there is latin proverb: “Words fly away (“volant”), the written remains”, where the word “volant” in the meaning of “fly away”, “flying” turned into Woland (spirit). Probably, the Romans (Latins) founded in ancient times high in the mountains of Armenia a fortress called Woland, which characterized it as flying against the background of a high sky. The word "Woland" has a relationship in meaning and similarity with the words "wave", "frill" (frills).
Woland (Satan, devil, devilry, demon) - the devil has a huge pedigree in world literature. At N.V. Gogol (M. Bulgakov was born in Kiev, lived in this city for many years, here he studied and was educated) - Viy, at M. Yu. Lermontov - Demon, then the famous Mephistopheles from the tragedy of I. V. Goethe "Faust"; however, the connection with Faust is most clearly traced through opera of the same name French composer Charles Gounod, beloved by M. Bulgakov. The similarity of Bulgakov's Satan with Mephistopheles is emphasized by the name Woland, which occurs in Goethe's tragedy as one of the names of the devil. The scene of the Spring ball of Satan, given by him and his retinue for Marguerite, where monstrous images of sinners who come from the underworld, hell, pass before their eyes, is undoubtedly inspired by phrases from the famous monologue - the aria of Mephistopheles from the opera by Ch. Gounod: “On earth, the whole race one sacred idol honors the people... that idol is a golden calf... Satan rules the roost there... People die for metal..." Bulgakov's name Margarita is an echo of the name Gretchen (Margarita) from Goethe's Faust.
The majestic image of Satan is created by M.Yu. Lermontov in the poem "Demon":
Sad Demon, spirit of exile,
He flew over the sinful earth ...
He sowed evil without pleasure...
And evil bored him...
The mountain spirit was an exile of paradise, but he remembered the time “when he, a pure cherub, shone in the dwelling of light,” that is, those times of cosmic chaos, when only light reigned and there was no darkness, darkness - the possessions of the Demon in the future. M. Bulgakov’s novel also talks about light and darkness, when Woland and Yeshua’s disciple Levi Matvey discuss how to reward the Master: Light, then his spirit will take Ga-Notsri to him, or darkness, then the Master will be at Woland’s disposal, but the Master is rewarded with peace, without depriving him of the light, although Yeshua does not want to take him into his kingdom, perhaps because he somehow did not like the Master’s novel about Pontius Pilate, perhaps because the Master did not forgive the procurator who doomed Yeshua to death, only in the final chapters of the novel (Yeshua, Woland considered the Master's novel unfinished) Woland arranges a meeting between the Master and his hero Pontius Pilate, sitting in the mountains of Eternity in a stone chair in society faithful dog, which in immortality is obliged to share the fate of the owner. Pontius Pilate suffers, he has no rest, he is tormented by insomnia, especially on bright moonlit nights. He realizes that these sufferings are connected with the fact that he could not find out something with Yeshua, whom he sentenced to death. Now in Eternity, Yeshua has forgiven the executioner: the mountain masses collapsed, the stone chair disappeared, before the former convict, for whom the “principle of the presumption of innocence” was violated, and the arbiter of his fate lay lunar path forward, to which the dog of the procurator ran first, then went Yeshua and Pontius Pilate, peacefully discussing the problem of truth, which each had his own. They will never agree, because the struggle between light and darkness is eternal. Spiritual superiority remains with the bearers of light, truth, goodness and justice, embodied in the image of Yeshua, aka Ha-Nozri. However, Woland, turning to the Master, expressed the hope that the son of the astrologer king, the former cruel fifth procurator of Judea, the equestrian Pontius Pilate, and Yeshua, perhaps, would agree on something.
Satan appears in Moscow in the 30s of the twentieth century, specifically on the Patriarch's Ponds; it was an hour of unusually hot sunset. The demon appeared before Berlioz and Ivan Bezdomny in human form: it was a citizen tall, brunette, his right eye is black, the left one is green for some reason; black eyebrows, one higher than the other, teeth on the left side with platinum crowns, on the right - gold. He is wearing an expensive gray suit, shod in foreign shoes, in the color of the suit. Gray beret famously kinked by the ear. The manner of wearing Woland's beret is reminiscent of Goethe-Gounod's Mephistopheles. Woland looks to be in his forties. M. Bulgakov often draws attention to the eyes of the hero, the left, green, eye of Satan is especially expressive; he lives, sparkles, sparkles, throws thunder and lightning, but the right, black, eye is always extinct, cold, deserted, icy.
This is how Woland appeared before the chairman of Massolit and the mediocre uneducated poet, who again, nineteen centuries later, judge Christ, rejecting his divinity and very existence. Woland is trying to make them believe in the existence of God and the devil. In the 30s of the twentieth century, as well as throughout the existence Soviet power, general denunciation and surveillance reigned and encouraged in the country. Ivan Bezdomny instantly realized that Woland was a suspicious type, perhaps a white emigre, and he should be immediately reported to the police.
Woland is "a part of that force that always wants evil and always does good." The writer created his own Woland-Satan, he differs sharply from the world standard of the devil in the depiction of classical predecessors. His Satan is humane. The task of the prince of darkness is to remove from Moscow Margarita, the genius of the Master, and his novel about Pontius Pilate and Yeshua. For Woland, the master was out of reach, since the blessed and the mentally ill were under the special protection of God. The master, setting fire to his novel (an echo of the influence of the act of N.V. Gogol, who burned the second volume of the book “ Dead Souls”), voluntarily went to the House of Sorrow (Stravinsky’s clinic for the mentally ill). However, when he met Margarita, Woland was imbued with cold respect for her beautiful spiritual qualities(kindness, mercy, fidelity in love, devotion to the chosen one and femininity). Margarita, having temporarily forgotten about the misfortunes of her beloved, seeks Frida's mercy so that they do not give her a handkerchief in hell every day - a reminder of the baby - the son whom she killed with this handkerchief. Woland fulfilled Margarita's wish for Frida. Again, the influence of the tragedy of the great Goethe: his Gretchen also took the life of her son from Faust. Then Margarita releases Pontius Pilate, of course, with the consent of Woland and Yeshua. This release to a man in a white cloak with bloody lining was confirmed by the master, shouting: “Free! Free! He (Yeshua) is waiting for you!”, and Woland summed up what had happened: now the Master can consider his novel finished, because, following religious dogmas, one must forgive, the idea of forgiveness and kindness formed the basis of Yeshua’s truth.
Since Woland ended up in Moscow in the 30s of the 20th century, he decided to get acquainted with the inhabitants of Moscow and their life. Muscovites before Easter, when the church approves fasting and forbids all kinds of entertainment, are happy to have fun in the variety show. "We must punish them for this!" - decide Woland and his retinue. They amuse the audience with tricks with playing cards dressing ladies in fashionable outfits And so on. Woland and his henchmen pursue the goal: to punish evil, but it turns out that this is not necessary, since people are greedy (shouting, quarreling, catching gold coins falling on them), envious (with pleasure they take off their smart clothes: after all, in a variety show they came wearing all the best), husbands cheat on their wives, deceiving them by being “busy” until four in the morning at work with ongoing office meetings, while they themselves have fun with their girlfriends; among the men there are malicious non-payers of alimony, they were bombarded with subpoenas in this regard. In fact, the audience deceived themselves for their vile qualities: fashion clothes disappeared from the ladies, and they turned out to be naked, gold coins turned into plain paper. Woland conducted two cruel experiments: the audience in the variety show agreed, for the sake of entertainment, to “punish” the talker - the entertainer, who had bothered her with antics and vulgar jokes, cut off his head, which Woland's retinue did. But the ladies were horrified and demanded to return the head to its original place. Bengali regained his head. Woland noted to himself that people, as always and everywhere, are frivolous, cruel, but at the same time they are compassionate. Things turned out differently with Berlioz's head, which was cut off by a tram. Woland punished him without subsequent forgiveness for militant atheism. At the ball in the hands of Woland was the head of the head. Massolita, which then turned into a cup for drinking a satanic potion, and Woland cruelly tells the head that now Berlioz will go into oblivion, and he, Woland, from his head, which will become a cup, will enthusiastically drink to being.
Margarita saves the Master, although for this she must become a witch. The master understood and approved her act: “When people are completely robbed, like you and me, they seek salvation from the otherworldly force!”
Woland, when meeting with the Master, asks him why Margarita has such a high opinion of him. Having learned from the Master that she was in awe of his novel about Pontius Pilate, Woland wished to see and read the work of Margarita's chosen one. The master regretfully informs that he burned it, Woland reassured him, saying the famous: “Manuscripts do not burn!”
Woland's special disposition towards Margarita is manifested in giving her a gold horseshoe strewn with diamonds at the Spring Ball for good luck.
The role of Woland in M. Bulgakov's novel "The Master and Margarita" is great. He connects the three circles of time reflected in the novel, helped the Master in completing the novel about Pontius Pilate, played a role in the final fate of the procurator, appeared good angel, and not the devil in establishing the truth in the fate of the Master and Margarita, through his perception we received information about the life of Moscow inhabitants in the 30s of the XX century, entangled in all the sins inherent in the underworld.
The scenes on the Sparrow Hills, on the stony-granite mountains and the peaks of Eternity are given fantastically superbly. The picture of the departure of the transformed Woland and his retinue is impressive, when their black horses disappear, and they silently fall into the abyss.
At the end of the novel, Satan and his henchmen plunge into the world night, here the opposition is given: darkness, darkness, night - and light, peace - to which the heroes are doomed: Woland, Pilate, Yeshua, Master and Margarita and others.
The real appearance of Woland and his servants: "Moon chains", "blocks of darkness" and "white spots of stars". They were swallowed up by the boundless Universe, cosmic Chaos until a new resurrection in the next literary masterpiece.
The novel by M. Bulgakov "The Master and Margarita" was filmed. A series based on the plot of the novel was shown on television. The role of Woland was played famous actor Oleg Basilashvili. He is in this role and his interpretation literary hero I didn’t like it: it’s the same everywhere, boring and gray.
The novel by M. Bulgakov "The Master and Margarita" is an outstanding work of our time. It is intended for the serious, thoughtful reader. Russian writers at all times were characterized by the ability to pose and solve universal problems: the struggle between good and evil, the purpose of human life and its purpose on earth.
