Each reader has his own “bible”. M. A. Bulgakov presented people with several works that can lay claim to such a high title. First of all, the reader comes to mind the novel “The Master and Margarita”.

Loneliness is like the air that heroes breathe

Loneliness is the primary reality of human existence. People are born alone, death is also a lonely matter. And to be completely honest, a person cannot truly share his life with anyone. You can get married successfully, give birth to a bunch of children, but deep down remain completely alone.

It seems that this is exactly what M. A. Bulgakov expressed in his imperishable novel. Most of his main characters are invariably lonely: Woland, Pilate, Yeshua, Ivan Bezdomny, the Master, Margarita. Loneliness is so natural for them that they don’t even notice it.

To illustrate how the novel “The Master and Margarita” is revealed, we will move in our analysis from one hero to another.

Woland

Can Satan have companions or partners? Or maybe friends? Of course not. He is doomed to be alone. At the very beginning of the novel, M.A. Berlioz asks the “Consultant”: “Professor, did you come to us alone or with your wife?” To which Woland replies: “Alone, alone, I’m always alone.” And at the same time, the “professor of black magic” is perhaps the least lonely compared to other heroes, of course, because of his retinue. This strange company does not give off a painful feeling of hopelessness, probably because it arrived in Moscow not for fun, but in order to save the Master and give the “Hundred Kings” ball.

We have to insist on this particular order, since the annual holiday could have taken place in any city in the world, but Moscow in the 1930s was not chosen by chance, namely because the Master and his novel about Pontius Pilate were there. This is the portrait of Woland in the context of the topic “The problem of loneliness in the novel “The Master and Margarita”.”

Pontius Pilate

With Pilate, too, in this sense, everything becomes clear from the very beginning; he hates Yershalaim. He's lonely. The only creature he is attached to is his dog Bunga. The procurator wants to die because of an unbearable headache. He should rest, but no, he has to interrogate some tramp. According to rumors, he persuaded the people to destroy the temple.

Then this tramp miraculously heals the procurator and speaks to him in a way that few people allow themselves. Despite this, the hegemon is ready to let the “philosopher” go, but then it turns out that Yeshua is also guilty of. According to the law, the procurator must crucify his deliverer, because there is nothing more terrible than a crime against Caesar.

Pilate does everything possible to prevent the tragedy, but, unfortunately, his efforts are in vain. During the course of the story, a spiritual transformation happens to him. He changes beyond recognition and discovers that in fact the tramp, whom the Sanhedrin did not want to pardon, turns out to be as close to him as Bunga, although there are no reasonable reasons for this. The problem of loneliness in the novel “The Master and Margarita” by Bulgakov is unthinkable without the image of Pontius Pilate.

He is perhaps the loneliest and most tragic figure in the novel. And without her, the work would have had a completely different face and different depth. All subsequent torment: Moonlight, insomnia, immortality - nothing compared to the moment when Pilate lost his only friend - Yeshua.

So far, the theme “The Problem of Loneliness in the Novel “The Master and Margarita”” is maintained in a sad tone. Unfortunately, nothing changes when it comes to the fate of Ivan Bezdomny

Ivan Bezdomny

With the characters representing the Soviet reality of the novel, everything is more complicated. Their loneliness becomes obvious only in borderline situations - points of human existence where life approaches its limits (death or madness).

This happened with the poet I. Bezdomny, who only realized in a mental hospital how wrong life he led before. True, the figure of Ivan Bezdomny is, one way or another, tragic - life revealed to him the truth about his homelessness, but gave nothing in return. Ivan has no hope of finding salvation.

Main characters

The Master and Margarita are the only pair of characters whose story ends well, but not in this reality, but only in the “other world.” If we free this story from the romantic flair, it turns out that it was loneliness that pushed them into each other’s arms.

Margarita’s husband is not in the novel (he is present only in her words), but the reader understands that, most likely, her husband is boring, practical to the point of vulgarity and smart only in domestic or commercial matters, which is why the woman wanted to fly.

The Master too He has nothing but a basement and a novel about Pontius Pilate, and he, like no one else, needs the love of a pretty woman. True, due to the fact that the couple has no money at all, only strong love keeps them together, or maybe the fear of returning to their total and complete loneliness. In general, it is difficult to say for sure whether there was love between them. If she was, she was probably sick and lame, but there was definitely a fear of being left alone. It turns out that the problem of loneliness in Bulgakov’s novel “The Master and Margarita” is hidden even where, at first glance, love lives.

The master's mind changed precisely because he could not cope with the burden of unfulfilled hopes and aspirations. He really counted on the novel, on its publication, and the essay was met with criticism, which closed his way into the world.

The master could no longer torment Margarita. “The boat of love crashed into everyday life.” Or rather, the Master simply had a conscience, but then Woland came and fixed everything. True, even his power was not enough to give the couple salvation in this life and not in another.

The novel by M. A. Bulgakov is a multi-layered work

Accordingly, the problems of the novel “The Master and Margarita” are not limited to the theme of loneliness. The writer’s talent lies in the fact that the reader cannot say with certainty what the main theme of this mysterious novel is: is it “The Gospel of Mikhail Bulgakov” (the title of the book by Alexander Zerkalov), which means that religious issues occupy the main place in it. Or maybe the main thing is satire directed against Soviet reality?

The novel is about everything at once, and in order not to violate its integrity it is better not to split it into molecules and components. This is probably the most general answer to the question of what problems exist in the novel “The Master and Margarita”.

Philosophy as a sign of high classics

It is generally accepted that philosophy is something boring and lives somewhere within the walls of academies. All this is definitely inaccessible to a mere mortal. This is the popular and fundamentally incorrect idea of ​​the “love of wisdom.” In fact, in the life of every person (and even more so an artist) there comes a time when he thinks about God, fate, and human loneliness. Usually such works are difficult to write, they are difficult to read, but they give an unusually much to a person. There are a great many such creations both in Russian and in world classics, so hypothetically the topic of the article could sound like this: “The problem of loneliness in...”. The Master and Margarita were not chosen by chance, because these characters and the book about them are incredibly popular among modern Russians.

Kurt Vonnegut and Mikhail Bulgakov: two views on the problem of loneliness

Just like our classic, he has been “sick” with the problem of loneliness all his life and tried to solve it in his own way. For example, in the novel “Balagan, or the End of Loneliness,” he proposed that all people unite into families so that not a single lonely person remains in the world (the reader can refer to the original source for details). In some of his journalistic books, the American classic wrote something like the following: human life is a constant struggle against loneliness.

It seems that Bulgakov would completely agree with this, but they would disagree on the issue of overcoming loneliness. According to our novel, loneliness (this is clearly visible in The Master and Margarita) is insurmountable, tragic and inevitable for a person. K. Vonnegut looks at man and his prospects more optimistically, which cannot but rejoice. If suddenly people overcome their own selfishness and understand that “we are all brothers,” then there is hope for victory over loneliness. True, to be honest, it looks like a miracle.

M. Bulgakov’s novel “The Master and Margarita” is a complex, multifaceted work. The author touches upon the fundamental problems of human existence: good and evil, life and death. In addition, the writer could not ignore the problems of his time, when human nature itself was breaking down. The problem of human cowardice was pressing. The author considers cowardice one of the biggest sins in life. This position

expressed through the image of Pontius Pilate. The procurator controlled the destinies of many people. Yeshua Ha-Nozri touched the procurator with his sincerity and kindness. However, Pilate did not listen to the voice of conscience, but followed the lead of the crowd and executed Yeshua. The procurator chickened out and was punished for it. He had no peace day or night. This is what Woland said about Pilate: “He says,” Woland’s voice was heard, “the same thing, he says that even under the moon he has no peace and that he has a bad position. This is what he always says when he is not sleeping, and when he sleeps, he sees the same thing - the lunar road and wants to go along it and talk with the prisoner Ga-Notsri, because, as he claims, he did not say something back then, a long time ago , the fourteenth of the spring month of Nisan. But, alas, for some reason he fails to take this road and no one comes to him. Then, what can you do, he has to talk to himself. However, some variety is needed, and to his speech about the moon he often adds that most of all in the world he hates his immortality and unheard-of glory.” And Pontius Pilate suffers for twelve thousand moons for one moon, for that moment when he became cowardly. And only after much torment and suffering Pilate finally receives forgiveness.

The problem of excessive self-confidence and lack of faith also deserves attention in the novel. It was for lack of faith in God that the chairman of the board of the literary association, Mikhail Aleksandrovich Berlioz, was punished. Berlioz does not believe in the power of the Almighty, does not recognize Jesus Christ and tries to force everyone to think the same way as him. Berlioz wanted to prove to Bezdomny that the main thing is not what Jesus was like - bad or good, but that Jesus as a person did not exist in the world before, and all the stories about him are simply fiction. “There is not a single Eastern religion,” said Berlioz, “in which, as a rule, immaculate virgin would not have given birth to God, and the Christians, without inventing anything new, in the same way ripped off their Jesus, who in fact was never alive. This is what we need to focus on.” No one and nothing can convince Berlioz. Woland and Berlioz could not convince him. For this stubbornness, for self-confidence, Berlioz is punished - he dies under the wheels of a tram.

On the pages of the novel, Bulgakov satirically depicted Moscow residents: their way of life and customs, daily life and worries. Woland is interested in what the inhabitants of Moscow have become. To do this, he arranges a black magic session. And he concludes that not only greed and greed are inherent in them, mercy is also alive in them. When the Hippopotamus tears off Georges Bengal's head, the women ask him to return it to the unfortunate man. And Woland concludes: “Well,” he responded thoughtfully, “they are people like people, they love money; but this has always been... humanity loves money, no matter what it is made of, whether leather, paper, bronze or gold. Well, they are frivolous... well, well... and mercy sometimes knocks on their hearts... ordinary people... in general, they resemble the old ones... the housing problem has only spoiled them.”

The novel "The Master and Margarita" - Fr. great love, about loneliness, about the role of the intelligentsia in society, about Moscow and Muscovites. It reveals itself to the reader in an endless variety of topics and problems. And therefore the work will always be modern, interesting, new. It will be read and appreciated in all centuries and times.

A difficult fate befell the works of A. During the author's lifetime, only the first part of his novel was published

“The White Guard”, a book of fantastic and satirical prose, a series of stories “Notes of a Young Enemy” and numerous newspaper feuilletons. Only in the sixties did widespread

what fame and, alas, posthumous glory. Mikhail Afanasyevich was born in Kiev on Vozdvizhenskaya Street in May 1891. His father was a teacher at the Theological Academy, and his mother worked as a teacher in her youth. The house on Andreevsky Spusk, the atmosphere of family warmth, intelligence and education remained forever in the writer’s mind.

After graduating from the First Kyiv Gymnasium, he entered the medical faculty of the university. Like other figures of Russian culture who came from a mixed class environment and received an excellent education, Mikhail had clear ideas about the honor of a Russian intellectual, which he never changed.

We can safely say that the final work, which absorbed all the ideas and thoughts of the writer, sounded in more early works, became the novel “The Master and Margarita?. It is not surprising that this novel is polyphonic, rich in complex philosophical and moral problems, covers a wide range of topics. Many critical articles have been written about The Master and Margarita, the novel has been studied by literary scholars different countries peace. The novel contains several layers of meaning; it is unusually deep and complex.

Let us try to briefly characterize the problems of the work and its connections with the main characters of the novel. The deepest philosophical problem - the problem of the relationship between power and personality, power and the artist - is reflected in several storylines. The novel contains an atmosphere of fear and political persecution of the 1930s, which the author himself faced. Most of all, the theme of oppression, persecution of an extraordinary, talented person by the state is present in the fate of the Master. It is not for nothing that this image is largely autobiographical. However, the theme of power, its deep impact on the psychology and soul of a person, is also manifested in the story of Yeshua and Pilate.

The originality of the composition of the novel lies in the fact that a story based on the Gospel plot is woven into the plot fabric of the narrative about the fate of the Moscow inhabitants - the story of Yeshua Ha-Nozri and Pontius Pilate. A subtle psychologism is revealed here. Pilate is the bearer of power. This determines the duality of the hero, his spiritual drama. The power vested in the procurator conflicts with the impulse of his soul, which is not devoid of a sense of justice, good and evil. Yeshua, who wholeheartedly believes in the bright beginning in man, cannot understand and accept the actions of the authorities, their blind despotism. Faced with deaf power, the poor philosopher dies. However, Yeshua instilled doubt and repentance into Pilate’s soul, which tormented the procurator for many centuries. Thus, the idea of ​​power is connected in the novel with the problem of mercy and forgiveness.

To understand these issues, the image of Margarita and the posthumous fate of two heroes who love each other are important. For a, mercy is higher than revenge, higher than personal interests. Margarita trashes the apartment of the critic Latunsky, who killed the Master, but rejects the offer to destroy her enemy. After the ball at Satan's

the heroine first of all asks for the suffering Frida, forgetting about her own passionate desire to return the Master,

Shows his heroes the path of spiritual renewal and transformation. The novel, with its mysticism and fantastic episodes, challenges rationalism, philistinism, vulgarity and meanness, as well as pride and spiritual deafness. Thus, Berlioz with his self-satisfied confidence in tomorrow the writer ends up dead under the wheels of a tram. Ivan Bezdomny, on the contrary, turns out to be able to transform himself, abandoning past misconceptions. Here another interesting motive arises - the motive of spiritual awakening, which comes with the loss of what is considered reason in an inert society. Exactly at psychiatric hospital Ivan Bezdomny decides not to write any more of his pitiful poems. condemns militant atheism that has no true moral basis. An important idea of ​​the author, affirmed by his novel, is the idea of ​​​​the immortality of art. “Manuscripts don’t burn,” says Woland. But many bright ideas live among people thanks to students who continue the work of the teacher. This is Levin Matvey. Such is Ivanushka, whom the Master instructs to “write a sequel” to his novel. Thus, the author declares the continuity of ideas, their inheritance. Bulgakov's interpretation of the function " evil forces", the devil. Woland and his retinue, while in Moscow, brought decency and honesty back to life, punished evil and untruth. It is Woland who brings the Master and his girlfriend to their “eternal home”, giving them peace. The motif of peace is also significant in Bulgakovsky novel.

We must not forget about the vivid pictures of Moscow life, remarkable for their expressiveness and satirical sharpness. There is a concept "bul" Gakovskaya Moscow", which appeared thanks to the writer’s talent to notice the details of the surrounding world and recreate them on the pages of his works,

The problems of the novel “The Master and Margarita” are complex and varied; understanding them requires serious research. However, it can be said that each reader penetrates into the depths in his own way. Bulgakovsky ideas, discovering new facets of the writer’s talent. A reader with a sensitive soul and developed mind cannot help but fall in love with this unusual, bright and attractive work. That is why talent has won so many sincere fans all over the world.

M and M (1929-1940) – the peak of Bulgakov’s creativity. Issues: psychological, social, but the main ones: moral and philosophical. Bulgakov's novel is called philosophical, philosophical and moral. This is a deeply philosophical novel, a tragedy novel. The Master's novel world is full of wonders and built on a reliable foundation. Everyone inside is saved (Margarita and cream). The master is not inside, and he cannot be saved. Bulgakov himself turned out to be beyond the control of the miracle he invented for the reader. The highest good for a person is to rely on the one who takes life. The master is the only one really tragic image in the novel. The Master's tragedy is the reflected tragedy of the author.

As the content of the novel is revealed, a third, deeper layer emerges - where Yeshua operates. This layer is fundamental.

main topic – power and time. Power is presented in concentrated form, in the form of dictatorship. Under such conditions, can a dictator and an artist not come into conflict? This theme determined the duality of the novel.

Kara overtakes everyone, even beyond the boundaries of human physical existence.

The moral and philosophical meaning of the novel lies in the categorical rejection of any form of life that suppresses the spiritual principle in a person and reduces a person to the level of a biological being. This " doomsday"over the administrative system and its creators. A novel about the Master and a novel about Pontius Pilate are not one, but two novels.

Theme of good and evil is one of the most important in the novel. Bulgakov believes that evil always balances good. The spreaders of evil on earth are people who are driven by the thirst for power, wealth, envy, cowardice and fear. These feelings are conductors of evil.

The main test of evil in the novel is Woland and his retinue (Korovyov, Behemoth, Azazello). Woland is the prince of darkness, Satan, but for Muscovites he is a foreigner, professor black magic. Testing people in the conditions of the new Soviet reality, Woland comes to the conclusion that people, as before, are greedy and envious (this is evidenced by a trick performed by Woland’s retinue in a variety show, when money rained down on the stage, everyone rushed after it, and after a while they turned into transparent pieces of paper). The bearer of evil is needed in order to reveal the vices of humanity.

So, can evil be useful? This is a difficult philosophical question that many philosophers have tried to answer. Woland is closest to Mephistopheles from Goethe's Faust. You can notice their external similarity: “...The right (eye) with a golden spark at the bottom, drilling anyone to the bottom of the soul, and the left - empty black, kind of like a narrow eye of a needle, like an exit to a bottomless well of all darkness and shadows. Woland’s face was slanted to the side, the right corner of his mouth was pulled down, and on his high, balding forehead there were deep wrinkles parallel to his sharp eyebrows...”

“I am part of that force that always wants evil and always does good” - Bulgakov took this self-characteristic of Goethe’s hero as an epigraph to the novel.

Having retained Woland's external resemblance to Mephistopheles, Bulgakov endows him with opposite functions, entrusting him with the mission of fair retribution to a person after his death, that is, trial and sentencing.

But Woland should not be made a fighter for justice. People, first of all, carry their own punishment within themselves (So Pontius Pilate suffers, is tormented by remorse - this is his punishment. He atones for his crime and therefore he gets “light”). Yes, Woland does everything that befits Satan. But he is not omnipotent, so he does not touch those people who have a clear conscience and who carry goodness within themselves. Good is beyond his control. This is one of the main ideas of the novel.

Yeshua in the novel is the bearer of “light”. In the novel he is associated with Christ. And indeed, they have a lot in common: faith in the all-conquering power of good, in the fact that the time will come when humanity will move into the kingdom of truth and justice. But Bulgakov deliberately departs from both the historical and the gospel versions. For him, Yeshua is not a god, but first of all a man who has not caused harm to anyone either in thought or deed. He sees the best that is sometimes hidden in a person, he believes in the power of good and the good nature of man. The image of Yeshua embodies the traditional Christian idea of ​​mercy. In the face of death, Yeshua remained true to his convictions, he chooses death, and ultimately deserves “light.”

So, in the novel Woland and Yeshua appear before us. How do they relate to human spiritual capabilities? Woland believes that the whole story humanity - history crimes. For Yeshua, man is by nature good (“ evil people not in the world”), only social conditions disfigure people.

Both evil and good, Bulgakov argues, exist equally in the world, but they are generated primarily by people themselves. Bulgakov believes that every person should be free in his choice.

Speaking about good and evil, one cannot help but remember the Master. The master is immersed in creativity and does not think about self-interest at all; he writes a novel rather even for himself. But, faced with the world of writers, which is busy with everything but creativity, he could not stand the persecution and hated his novel. This erased the master from life; he stopped fighting for his novel. Giving up creativity turned out to be disastrous for him. His refuge has become a clinic for the mentally ill - only there can he find the peace that “good people” deprived him of. The master strives for light, strives for good. But he refused to fight for his novel, showed cowardice, and therefore he was denied “light.” The meeting of the Master with Woland occurs only thanks to Margarita, and deliverance from suffering is due to the intercession of Yeshua. Without the request of the “light,” the lovers who had found each other would have been left on earth, in their secret refuge. It is unknown what their fate would have been. The heroes deserve peace.

Therefore, intervention higher powers does not lead to a change in life itself, it only accelerates the course of events.

Goodness educates and exalts a person, evil and indifference spoil him. You need to believe in people, in your own strength, in the power of good, then the truth will be revealed.

The dialectic of good and evil. The course of history is the eternal confrontation between good and evil, light and darkness.

Freedom is not freedom. Pontius Pilate is not free, he is a man totalitarian state. Yeshua has inner freedom, it is this that gives him strength. Pontius is cowardice, it destroys a person. But he was given forgiveness - he was able to take the blame upon himself. B shows that guilt must be expiated not with blood, but with repentance. Only conscience and repentance can cleanse and resurrect.

According to Bulgakov, light is a paradise where those who bring good to people go. Peace is independence, solitude, it is a condition for creativity. The one who has lived his life honestly, who is not burdened by the pangs of conscience, who does not punish himself for betrayal and cowardice, deserves peace. B emphasizes that the Master is an artist, not a fighter. He remained true to himself, did not change his ideas about the mission of the artist - this is the victory of the master over power and over time.

The novel "The Master and Margarita" is one of the most interesting works which I have read. And the author of this work, Mikhail Bulgakov, certainly raises very important and relevant topics that are and will be encountered to this day in our world. The work shows two sides of the coin of our life, it exposes the evil that is hidden behind sycophancy, brings out clean water all liars, and shows us that evil is not something abstract and something that cannot be seen, but evil is done and it is hidden in people.

“The Master and Margarita” is not just a work about evil spirits, but a story of love, creativity, and the eternal struggle between good and evil. Every person on our planet is aware of this eternal war of two opposing forces. Just as the thinkers of previous generations realized it. Bulgakov is convinced that everything begins with faith. God is good, and the devil is evil. Which side a person will suddenly find himself on is decided by someone other than himself. These decisions are observed by Woland, one of the main characters of the novel. He punishes everything that has deviated from goodness with the help of his retinue. I think that punishment for the evil of people was carried out only for the sake of justice. Is Woland to blame, for example, for the death of Berlioz or for the fact that Ivan Bezdomny went crazy? It seems to me that people themselves are to blame for their failures. And the author warns the reader and leads him to Right way. The hell we created, in our hearts, in our souls, and in our homes. This is what contributes to the madness in our world. Nothing goes unpunished - the author proves to the reader. Woland, in a conversation with Levi Matvey, says interesting thing: "...what would do your good, if evil did not exist, and what would the earth look like if shadows disappeared from it? By this, Bulgakov makes it clear that without darkness there will be no light - this is necessary for a full life. And, undoubtedly, these two forces must be in balance. Also, this work talks about such an eternal and probably immortal theme as: love. The Master's love for Margarita (and vice versa) makes me believe that it is real and true love will be able to survive all the terrible moments that come their way together. Also, I am (more likely proud than condemned) surprised by Margarita’s determination that she was able to leave her luxurious life, in money and endless wealth, to live with the Master - supporting him in all her endeavors, seeing talent in him and not giving in what Woland's tricks? I really liked her words when she told her husband that she was leaving him:

Forgive me for disturbing you, but I have to tell you terrible news... No, I don’t dare... My gloves whistled in the cafe today. So funny! I put them on the table and... I fell in love with someone else.

In his brilliant novel M.A. Bulgakov touched on a huge number of eternal topics and questions. The novel “The Master and Margarita” is a work that, from the very first pages, amazes the reader with its unusualness and depth. His work teaches not only that one should not succumb to all evil tricks, but also to love, create, dream, fight to be right and, most importantly, to believe that good can always defeat evil, but for this, each person must not let go hands.