Birds of the Devil IB English Essay
Word Count:1,256
Birds of the Devil
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov starts with a visit from the devil to Moscow. The devil takes many forms in the story and is known as the foreigner, the professor, Woland and the devil. The novel alternates between two settings; 1930’s Moscow and Jerusalem of Pontius Pilate. The devil and his entourage which consist of; a grotesquely dressed valet Koroviev, a mischievous, fast talking cat Behemoth, the fanged hit man Azazello, the pale-faced Abdonna, and the witch Hella, travel through Moscow causing as much trouble and chaos as possible. The Pontius Pilate story that is followed is that of Yeshua’s execution. The two stories are often interwoven with each other and Pontius Pilate is referenced multiple times during dialogue in the story of the devil in Moscow. The presence of swallows and sparrows in the book are very subtle but the birds are brought into the novel multiple times and are present in both, the story of Pontius Pilate, and the devil in Moscow. The swallow and sparrow symbolize the workings and presence of the devil.
“At that moment a swallow swiftly flitted into the colonnade, described a circle under the golden ceiling, swooped down, almost brushed the face of a bronze statue in a niche with its pointed wing, and disappeared behind the capital of a column. (28)”
This is the first time in The Master and Margarita that Mikhail Bulgakov introduces the readers to a swallow. The swallow happens to appear right before Pontius Pilate makes his decision on whether or not to execute Yeshua.
“The swallows wings whiffled right over the hegemon’s head, the bird darted to the fountain basin and then flew out into freedom. The procurator raised his eyes to the prisoner and saw the dust blaze up in a pillar around him. (28)” While the swallow is flying Pontius Pilate is coming to the decision that Yeshua does not need to be executed. It’s as if the swallow is persuading Pontius Pilate to make a certain
Birds of the Devil
The Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov starts with a visit from the devil to Moscow. The devil takes many forms in the story and is known as the foreigner, the professor, Woland and the devil. The novel alternates between two settings; 1930’s Moscow and Jerusalem of Pontius Pilate. The devil and his entourage which consist of; a grotesquely dressed valet Koroviev, a mischievous, fast talking cat Behemoth, the fanged hit man Azazello, the pale-faced Abdonna, and the witch Hella, travel through Moscow causing as much trouble and chaos as possible. The Pontius Pilate story that is followed is that of Yeshua’s execution. The two stories are often interwoven with each other and Pontius Pilate is referenced multiple times during dialogue in the story of the devil in Moscow. The presence of swallows and sparrows in the book are very subtle but the birds are brought into the novel multiple times and are present in both, the story of Pontius Pilate, and the devil in Moscow. The swallow and sparrow symbolize the workings and presence of the devil.
“At that moment a swallow swiftly flitted into the colonnade, described a circle under the golden ceiling, swooped down, almost brushed the face of a bronze statue in a niche with its pointed wing, and disappeared behind the capital of a column. (28)”
This is the first time in The Master and Margarita that Mikhail Bulgakov introduces the readers to a swallow. The swallow happens to appear right before Pontius Pilate makes his decision on whether or not to execute Yeshua.
“The swallows wings whiffled right over the hegemon’s head, the bird darted to the fountain basin and then flew out into freedom. The procurator raised his eyes to the prisoner and saw the dust blaze up in a pillar around him. (28)” While the swallow is flying Pontius Pilate is coming to the decision that Yeshua does not need to be executed. It’s as if the swallow is persuading Pontius Pilate to make a certain
Cited: Bulgakov, Mikhail. The Master and Margarita. Trans. Pavear, Richard. 1997. New York;Penguin Group.1967, Print.