Annotations

Introduction

The most important characters and locations from the book are extensively presented and situated in other sections on this website. And so are the political, economical, social and cultural contexts in which the novel was developed. You can surf to these sections using the menu on the top left.

But Bulgakov's satire is more than just criticism to real people or the creaion of absurd situations by mixing reality and fiction. It's hidden everywhere throughout the story in small details which, at first sight, seem to be trivial, but which are significant for those who know why they are mentioned. It is, for instance, not a coincidence that the woman tramdriver was wearing a crimson armband, or that the master says that he was «in the same coat but with the buttons torn off».

In this section of the website you can find, ordered by chapter, all possible explanations of names, situations, quotations or other elements which can be helpful to better understand the book. The terms are mentioned in the order of their first appearance in the novel. Use the menu on the top right to start your journey. With the arrows at the bottom of each page, you can go to the next chapter, or return to the previous one.

English subtitles

All films based on The Master and Margarita have been subtitled by your webmaster in English, French, Dutch, German, Spanish and Italian. Click on the link belw to find them.