Jan Vanhellemont

The Master and Margarita. Annotations per chapter Jan Vanhellemont

Mikhail Bulgakov's novel The Master and Margarita is, among other things, a satire. The author criticises real people in the Soviet Union of the 30s and creates absurd situations by mixing reality and fiction. That mix is hidden everywhere throughout the novel in small details which, at first sight, seem to be trivial, but which are significant for those who know why they are mentioned. In this book you can find annotations, ordered by chapter, explaining the names, locations, situations, quotations and other elements which Mikhail Bulgakov used to illustrate his view of Soviet society, with the aim of better understanding the novel. The terms are mentioned in the order of their first appearance in the novel. On various places in this book you will find Quick Reference (QR) codes which you can scan to gain immediate access to more detailed information on the Master and Margarita website.