Brain Pain discussion

Mikhail Bulgakov’s novel, The Master and Margarita has a complicated publishing history, as shown in this description from Wikipedia:

Bulgakov started writing the novel in 1928. He burnt the first manuscript of the novel in 1930, seeing no future as a writer in the Soviet Union. The work was restarted in 1931. In 1935 Bulgakov went to Spaso House, the residence of U.S. Ambassador to the Soviet Union William Bullitt, which was transformed by Bulgakov into the ball of the novel. The second draft was completed in 1936 by which point all the major plot lines of the final version were in place. The third draft was finished in 1937. Bulgakov continued to publish the work, aided by his wife, but was forced to stop work on the fourth version four weeks before his death in 1940.

A censored version (12% of the text removed and still more changed) of the book was first published in Moscow magazine (no. 11, 1966 and no. 1, 1967). The text of all the omitted and changed parts, with indications of the places of modification, was hand printed and distributed on a reader-to-reader basis (a dissident practice known as samizdat). In 1967, the publisher Posev (Frankfurt) printed a version produced with the aid of these inserts.

In the Soviet Union, the first complete version, prepared by Anna Saakyants, was published by Khudozhestvennaya Literatura in 1973, based on the version of the beginning of 1940 proofread by the publisher. This version remained the canonical edition until 1989, when the last version was prepared by literature expert Lidiya Yanovskaya based on all available manuscripts.

The Master and Margarita is quite a departure to the Faustian stories we’ve read so far. As we read, see what kind of connections you can make, if any, with the original legend.


Wikipedia page for Mikhail Bulgakov:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mikhail_...


Wikipedia page for The Master and Margarita:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Mast...


Feel free to use this thread to ask questions and post links to resources for Mikhail Bulgakov and The Master and Margarita.

Also, if you’ve written a review of the book, please post a link to share with the group.

Can I ask a question about translations? I picked up the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation because I've read and enjoyed several of their other books, but I recognise it is very different to the other works the have translated. I was astonished how many translations were available in the bookshop when I was looking. Are there any translations people recommend? any to avoid?

David wrote: "Can I ask a question about translations? I picked up the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation because I've read and enjoyed several of their other books, but I recognise it is very different to the o..."

Hi David,

I read the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation. I just finished the book a few days ago, and I enjoyed it tremendously. Actually, I think my favorite part of this book was the dialogue, and while reading it I often thought "Wow -- this translation is great!"

I don't read or speak Russian, so I have no idea how close this translation is to Bulgakov's original version. The only thing I can say is that I found it to be entertaining.

Whitney, who is a member of this group, has read this book in the past and seems to be very familiar with it. When Whitney sees your post, David, I'm sure she will be able to help you decide which is the best translation.

David wrote: "Can I ask a question about translations? I picked up the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation because I've read and enjoyed several of their other books, but I recognise it is very different to the o..."

I just stumbled across this thread and knew of this blog that might help: http://orangeraisin.wordpress.com/200...

Hi, Barbara! :-)

Cleo wrote: "David wrote: "Can I ask a question about translations? I picked up the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation because I've read and enjoyed several of their other books, but I recognise it is very diff..."

Hi Cleo!! It's so great to see you here! Are you going to join this discussion on The Master and Margarita? It would be SO WONDERFUL to discuss this book with you!

Thank you for the blog you just shared! :-)

Barbara wrote: "David wrote: "Can I ask a question about translations? I picked up the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation because I've read and enjoyed several of their other books, but I recognise it is very diff..."

Thanks, Barbara! I think you may be giving me a little more credit than deserve though :-) But here's My 2¢ worth:

I read the Ginsburg originally. Thought the translation was okay but a little meh, and per the Wikipedia article it's incomplete. For the reread, I looked at a lot of discussion about the translations, looking for which one had the least clunky sentence structure while not being dismissed by Russian speakers as completely inaccurate. It came down to either the Burgin / O'Connor or the Pevear / Volokhonsky. If you want the more literal translation, the P/V may be the way to go. If you want a more idiomatic translation (my preference), the B/O may be better.

You can find a lot of discussion and side by side comparisons out there, but here's the first sentence from both, which demonstrates the clunkiness I didn't like in the P/V:

P/V: "At the hour of the hot spring sunset two citizens appeared at the Patriarch’s Ponds."

B/O: "One hot spring evening, just as the sun was going down, two men appeared at Patriarch's Pond."

Hope this helped!

Barbara wrote: "Hi Cleo!! It's so great to see you here! Are you going to join this discussion on The Master and Margarita? It would be SO WONDERFUL to discuss this book with you!.."

I would so like to join but I'm a little overloaded with books at the moment. I'm still slogging through The Divine Comedy so perhaps if I get that off my list I may get a little breathing room. This book isn't scheduled to start until the 11th (is that right?) so there is a slight chance it might work. It would be fun to have discussions with you again, especially since the author is Russian and our last book read together was Anna Karenina.

Oh, and you're welcome!

David wrote: "Can I ask a question about translations? I picked up the Pevear and Volokhonsky translation because I've read and enjoyed several of their other books, but I recognise it is very different to the o..."

I recently read the P/V Anna Karenina and enjoyed their translation, so I'm sure you'll be okay with their version of The Master and Margarita. I have the Burgin/O'Connor, which I selected without regard to the translation and I'm enjoying it.

Thanks for all these replies. I think I'll get on fine with P/V, having enjoyed their Dead Souls and The Idiot and also some Tolstoy short stories. I might also see if I can find a library copy Burgin/O'Connor for comparisons sake.

I guess it is unusual for a book published less than 50 years ago to have so many translations into English. But that should make our discussions here all the more interesting.

I just finished struggling with this book (which in the end I loved) last summer & I'm not quite ready for a re-read but I look forward to following the discussion & testing my memory. There is also a graphic novel of this book & a helpful companion The Master and Margarita: A Critical Companion.

I read the blog & found it fascinating. I read the Kindle edition, not the best I think. But I don't really know.

I'm going with the Mirra Ginsburg translation, partly because of the comments on various online resources, such as the fascinating discussion on The Valve (linked to at the end of the blog posted above by Cleo) It seems that while the translation is "incomplete" most seem to feel it's not a loss heavily felt, and that the superior transmission of the author's idiom, combined with the not solitary claims of "criminal" mis-translation in the P/V version are alarming, coming as they do from nearly every Russian speaker I've yet found online.

Ellie wrote: "There is ........ a helpful companion The Master and Margarita: A Critical Companion...."

Ellie, after your struggles getting through TM&M would you recommend the companion as prudent purchase?

Will wrote: "I'm going with the Mirra Ginsburg translation, partly because of the comments on various online resources, such as the fascinating discussion on The Valve (linked to at the end of the blog posted a..."

First time I've heard of a "criminal mis-translation". Although volume 2 of the Penguin Proust was pretty much universally miterated upon. The B/O version I'm reading seems like fairly straightforward narration after the first 6 chapters, without much complex language or poetry. Post a link or two for the P/V hate when you have a moment.

Cleo wrote: "Ellie wrote: "There is ........ a helpful companion The Master and Margarita: A Critical Companion...."

Ellie, after your struggles getting through TM&M would you recommend the companion as pruden..."

Yes, although I still found M&M formidable. I needed all the help I could get! But I found the companion interesting in its own right. If I can find it amid the boxes I'll be glad to share it.

Ellie wrote: "If I can find it amid the boxes I'll be glad to share it. ..."

Ah, you have books in boxes too! That would be lovely, Ellie. I have a feeling I'm going to need all the help I can get.

I think my books beget more books. The more I unpack, the more there seem to be.

This book is definitely worth the work.

Ellie wrote: "I think my books beget more books. The more I unpack, the more there seem to be.

This book is definitely worth the work."

The Laura Weeks Critical Companion book looks pretty good, so I'm going to order it. I'm doing okay with the book, but I'm sure there's biblical stuff I'm missing and probably most the Soviet stuff too - double-stuff. Even unstuffed, however, the book is fun and a good read!

Jim wrote: "Even unstuffed, however, the book is fun and a good read!"

That's good to know. I suspect that books that are only good reading once you've understood every last subtext and nuance aren't really worth reading at all.

Ellie wrote: "Cleo wrote: "Ellie wrote: "There is ........ a helpful companion The Master and Margarita: A Critical Companion...."

Ellie, after your struggles getting through TM&M would you recommend the compan..."

Cleo & Ellie, The Pevear translation has explanatory notes, which are numbered in the text (which makes it easier.)

Since I've already finished TM&M, I will probably pick up a copy of the companion book at some point, when I'm ready to reread The Master & Margarita. (This is definitely a book I would like to reread, although I imagine it will be quite a while before I do so.)

I'm looking forward to the discussion which begins on March 11th. I'm hoping that certain aspects of the story will become more clear when we discuss the book.

Jim wrote: "Ellie wrote: "I think my books beget more books. The more I unpack, the more there seem to be.

This book is definitely worth the work."

The Laura Weeks Critical Companion book looks pretty good, ..."

Jim, I agree that the book is a good and fun read. I enjoyed it tremendously, although there were definitely some biblical and Soviet references that I might have missed out on.

As far as the biblical references, I have a copy of the Bible on my Nook, so I was able to look up some of the references. This is one of the things I love about the Nook -- you can do a search for a word or a name, and get it within seconds.

I learned more about Pilate from reading this book than I had ever known before! Judas too! I don't think religious scholars would be pleased about the fact that I learned some of the Biblical stories from a book about the devil, but literature is literature.

Barbara wrote: "Ellie wrote: "Cleo & Ellie, The Pevear translation has explanatory notes, which are numbered in the text (which makes it easier.)..."

Hmmm ...... I just ordered the Burgin/O'Connor translation after I read the translation review that I linked. I hope mine has some notes as well.

That's wonderful that you've finished already! I notice that you're doing an excellent job of keeping up with your reads, something that I need to aspire to! :-Z

I may not get my book by the 11th but I'll jump in when I can.

Here is another good resource for The Master and Margarita, including relevant biblical passages, maps etc...

Barbara: The Screwtape Letters is BY a demon, and most Christians don't object to
that :-)

Cleo: yes, the Burgin/O'Connor has notes, despair not!

Whitney wrote: "Cleo: yes, the Burgin/O'Connor has notes, despair not!
..."

Ah Whitney, you have saved me some anguish! :-) Many thanks!

Whitney wrote: "Barbara: The Screwtape Letters is BY a demon, and most Christians don't object to
that :-)..."

I loved The Screwtape Letters! A fascinating read.

Whitney wrote: "Here is another good resource for The Master and Margarita, including relevant biblical passages, maps etc..."

Nice resource! I'll be using this, thanks!

Whitney wrote: "Here is another good resource for The Master and Margarita, including relevant biblical passages, maps etc...

Barbara: The Screwtape Letters is BY a demon, and most Christians don't object to
tha..."

Thank you, Whitney. I don't know why I've never read The Screwtape Letters, but I just added it to my "to-read" list.

When you say it's BY a demon, are you referring to CS Lewis or do you mean that the character Screwtape, who writes the letters, is a demon??? (Sorry if this is a crazy question -- I haven't been getting much sleep lately!!)

The character who writes the letters is a demon. Back when my library was bigger I had a copy. Definitely somewhere on my re or finish lists.

Matthew wrote: "The character who writes the letters is a demon. Back when my library was bigger I had a copy. Definitely somewhere on my re or finish lists."

Thank you, Matthew! LOL -- I guess my question was pretty silly. I don't know much about C.S. Lewis -- I just have a vague idea of who he is and I know of some of the novels and non-fiction he's written, but I don't think I've ever read any of his work.

When Whitney said that The Screwtape Letters is written by a demon, I had a feeling she was referring to the character in the book, but I just wanted to make sure.

Thanks for clearing that up!!

Cleo wrote: "Barbara wrote: "Ellie wrote: "Cleo & Ellie, The Pevear translation has explanatory notes, which are numbered in the text (which makes it easier.)..."

Hmmm ...... I just ordered the Burgin/O'Connor..."

Hi Cleo,

I'm so glad you ordered the book! I loved our discussion on Anna Karenina, and even though The Master and Margarita is also written by a Russian author the two books are SO different in terms of style, characters, everything. I think you're really going to enjoy The Master and Margarita.

Thanks for noticing that I've been reading more quickly. When Jim first posted the lists of all the 2013 books in this group, I decided to get an early start because there are so many books in all three categories (Spine, Magical Realism, and Faust) that I've been wanting to read, but I really would prefer to only read one book at a time. (Although it's looking as though I may have a few overlaps here and there.)

BUT, I've also been more focused lately (for some reason) which has been making it easier for me to read, become absorbed in the world of the story, and finish it. Now it's just a matter of seeing how long this new "focus" will last!! LOL!!!!

Barbara wrote: "Cleo wrote: "Barbara wrote: "Ellie wrote: "Cleo & Ellie, The Pevear translation has explanatory notes, which are numbered in the text (which makes it easier.)..."

Hmmm ...... I just ordered the Bu..."

Barbara, I just got the book and have read a couple of chapters. How bizarre it is! I'm really enjoying it! You're right, Bulgakov's style is completely ....... well, almost un-Russian. I haven't quite encountered such unique Russian humour before!

I'm actually a little sad that you have completed the book because I so enjoy your "stream of consciousness" posts. Your guesses as to what is going to happen in a book are very interesting. So I'm going to miss them.

I wasn't able to join any of the Faust reads ----- last year I had read about 140 pages of Goethe's Faust and could only scratch my head in puzzlement, so I was hoping to read it with you but time and other books didn't permit it. I'm going to feel at a disadvantage with TM&M because I'm going to miss all the Faustian allusions ........ :-( Sigh!

I'll try to post some thoughts tomorrow but if I don't have time, it won't be until next week. I'm taking a little mini=vacation and will be sans-internet until I'm back on Sunday. I'll be interested to hear your (and everyone's) comments!

Cleo wrote: "Barbara wrote: "Cleo wrote: "Barbara wrote: "Ellie wrote: "Cleo & Ellie, The Pevear translation has explanatory notes, which are numbered in the text (which makes it easier.)..."

Hmmm ...... I jus..."

Thanks, Cleo! I haven't joined in on the discussion of The Master and Margarita yet, but I'm going to head over there now.

Thank you for reminding me of my "stream of consciousness" posting!! haha!! I'm not sure if the rest of this group will appreciate my "predictions of what will happen next" -- for Anna Karenina, because it was so long and the tension kept building, it was easy to do that.

I thought The Master and Margarita was hilarious. I'm looking forward to reading your comments!!

I've been watching the 2005 miniseries of TM&M and enjoying it quite a bit. Very literal adaptation so I don't know that it's adding all that much thematically, but it's a good production and I'm enjoying seeing the Moscow locations. Behemoth is a small person in a cat suit, it's actually pretty funny. (I saw an excellent theatrical version several years ago where it was an actor with an elastic cat nose :-)

It's on YouTube in 10 parts, about 50 minutes each. Excellent video quality w. English subtitles. Here's a link to the first episode. The Master and Margarita.

Whitney wrote: "I've been watching the 2005 miniseries of TM&M and enjoying it quite a bit. Very literal adaptation so I don't know that it's adding all that much thematically, but it's a good production and I'm e..."

Looks like a great production... There goes my week, LOL! Thanks for posting

Another Faust connection - the French composer, Hector Berlioz, wrote an opera "La Damnation de Faust" after reading Gerard de Nerval's translation of Goethe's Faust Part One in 1828. Here is a full version performed by the Chicago Symphony:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lsOcC...

Thank god...on this one, I'm only two months behind. I just found this Brain Pain group this week. I read the Burgin/O'Connor translation, last Christmas? I also have a copy of what I think is the miniseries Whitney linked above which unfortunately no longer works. I agree, Whitney, it is awesome, and I understand it was extremely popular in Russia when it came out.

I bought my copy on Amazon--from Central Partnership, LCC, if that helps. I felt it was pretty faithful to the book, as a movie can be, that is. Stars Anna Kovalchuk as Margarita, Oleg Basilashvli as Master, and Vladislav Galkin as Woland, if that helps to identify the version.

I had the extremely fortunate circumstance of having this book recommended to me by one of my bilingual Russian students who loved the miniseries and book, and helped me through it.

I also have been trying, rather hopelessly, to teach myself Russian, but although I could in no way read it in Russian, I do have a sort of tip-of-the- iceberg notion of the language that might be a very very very (ocheen in Russian!) small advantage?? Love this book, BTW.

Also, if you do see the mini-series, keep a special eye out for the actor who plays Jesus in the Pontius Pilate sequence.. honestly the best piece of acting I've ever seen--ever.

Tracy wrote: "Thank god...on this one, I'm only two months behind. I just found this Brain Pain group this week. I read the Burgin/O'Connor translation, last Christmas? I also have a copy of what I think is t..."

Feel free to revivify the M&M discussions. We'd love to hear what details you've picked up from your Russian students.

Whitney wrote: "Here is another good resource for The Master and Margarita, including relevant biblical passages, maps etc...

Barbara: The Screwtape Letters is BY a demon, and most Christians don't object to
tha..."

Whitney..this link is so great! My Russian student takes regular pilgrimages to Bulgakov's "evil apartment", so it was very nice to see pictures! Once again it all makes me want to visit Moscow...