The Master and Margarita

Interesting Facts

• The novel combines several genres: satire, mysticism, philosophy, and a love story.
• One of the key characters is Woland, who represents the devil arriving in Moscow.
• The story of Pontius Pilate and Yeshua Ha-Notsri is an important parallel line in the novel.
• Behemoth the cat, one of Woland's companions, is a huge black cat that can talk and walk on two legs.
• The novel was banned from publication in the USSR and was first fully published only in 1966-1967.
• Bulgakov worked on the novel for over ten years and continued to make changes until his death.
• Margarita, the Master's beloved, becomes a witch to save her love.
• The novel contains numerous allusions to biblical stories and historical events.
• Many characters in the novel have real-life prototypes from Bulgakov's circle.