As the reader, I found it rather easy to side with the trio as it became apparent that one aspect of Bulgakov's story is one of backlash against the conformity of people to the bondage of government and societal powers. Even though Margarita and the Master are also victims of the trio, in a way they become the enlightened or awaken ones as they too reject and rebel against some of the ways of their world. In a way, I think Mikhail Bulgakov tried to make fun of the victims of Stalin's rule by imposing ridiculous and sadanistic acts on them through the trio of Wolland, Behemoth, and Fagot (Korokyev), the main characters of this novel. The important thing I think is to stick to the storyline and the adventures of these lunatic devils as they harass and manipulate the many victims along their journey. I enjoyed the interconnectness between the stories and characters, however, at times I found it difficult to remember some of the characters as there are so many that come and go through out the story. Finally, the third storyline that brings all of them together is the story which the novel written by the Master is based on, that of the crucifixion of Yeshua Ha-Notsri, or Jesus Christ, by Pontius Pilate. Another important storyline in this novel, is Margarita's love for a writer who ends up in a mental hospital after his dream to have his novel notably published is destroyed. This book is so multifaceted, on the one hand, it covers black magic and how it was used by the devil and it's bandits to manipulate the citizens of Moscow which parallels the author's views and retaliation against the abuse of Stalin's soviet union.
It is a fantasy story about the devil showing up in Moscow with his band of accomplices and creating havoc. This book is an absolute epic of a novel. I couldn't find Morphine so I went with the latter and I'm glad I did! In the end, she recommended "Morphine" and "The Master and Margarita" by Mikhail Bulgakov, I recommended "The Savage Detectives" by Roberto Bolano and we went our separate ways. It was nice to have a pleasent and intelligent conversation in the least of expected places with this stranger. Naturally, I started a conversation with one of them on Russian literature. After bar hoppin with an associate we finally ended up at a place where there where some Russian girls he knew by the bar. Of all places, I learned about this book,in a Hip Hop bar in the entertainment district in Seoul.
MASTER AND MARGARITA HOW TO
I hope that someday some brave artist who knows how to fear and how to dream and how to set fire to a page with pictures, as Bulgakov so brilliantly did with words, gives it another go.
But I would not present this to someone unfamiliar with the original it simply doesn't do it justice. It was an enjoyable read insofar as it refreshed my memory of the novel's events.
As it stands, the art is flat and lifeless, literal to an almost offensive degree in light of the source material. These are evocative scenes that could have been perfectly captured by the graphic novel genre, given another artist's imagination. The dark, foreboding atmosphere of a Moscow teetering on the brink of hysteria in a paranoid Stalinist regime the hint of madness in the hot summer air just waiting to drop, personified as a sort of claustrophobic release by Woland and his retinue the dizzying sights and sounds of the devil's ball, as seen through Margaret's eyes, dispirited and ready to bid it all goodbye in a fit of recklessness the blazing headache of the helpless procurator under the cruel Mediterranean sun.
While it was a competent illustration of the general plot of the novel, this graphic version was completely barren of all the magic that imbued Bulgakov's original masterpiece. A disappointing adaptation, all the more unfortunate for the spectacular marriage of literature and imagery it could have been.
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