Preview

Blending Good and Evil in the Master and Margarita

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
786 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Blending Good and Evil in the Master and Margarita
In Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita, Woland has created some kind of partnership with Yeshua Ha-Nozri. He explains to Matthu Levi, a mere mortal, that he is misunderstood by fools. Woland is simply an alternate interpretation of the Devil. During his short conversation with Matthu Levi he asks him what good deeds are they able to do if there is no evil to right. "You spoke the words as though you did not recognize the existence of either shadows or evil. But would you be kind enough to give some thought to this: what would your good be doing if there were no evil, and what would the earth look like if shadows disappeared from it? Even after Woland has burned down a fair portion of Moscow as well as created commotion among the lives of several characters peace returns to the city and justice is delivered to those who deserve it.
Woland is potentially an agent of good. It has been long debated among theologians why God would allow Satan's mischief to go on unpunished. He is the being who delivers the sentence to guilty criminals. The balance between good and evil is maintained by the end of The Master and Margarita. Everything eventually turns out right.
In The Master and Margarita, the lines of good and evil are intermixed. It is apparent that Woland is confident that everything that is meant to happen will happen. When Woland, the Master, and Margarita are standing on the hilltop where Pontius Pilate is slumbering Woland says, "Everything will turn out right. That's what the world is built on." Pontius Pilate was tormented for 2000 years on top of Bald Mountain. Woland is the one who has the power to control this. It is unclear what his motivations are for freeing Pilate. Yeshua was the person who ultimately decided the fate of the Master as well as Margarita and therefore forgiven Pilate. Woland was able to produce the Master's novel from its ashes. He was the one who was able to save the manuscript and give it to Yeshua to read. Without Woland, the master

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Romance narrative stories are compiled of a number of different key elements that create a unique and dynamic plot for readers to enjoy. These elements include; the childhood, initiation, threshold, temptation, underworld, and good vs. evil. Included in the romance narrative circle, the use of good vs. evil is a fundamental element to why the story of Beetlejuice has been defined as a brilliant alternative classic. The gothic tale is one of the most acknowledged romance narrative movies because of its unique method of defining the roles of good and evil, and switching the roles as the story changes shape.…

    • 783 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson depicts that wherever there is good, there is evil as well. The note included by Larson, ¨Evils Imminent¨ depicts this: ¨Beneath the gore and smoke and loam, this book is about the evanescence of life, and why some men choose to fill their brief allotment of time engaging the impossible, others in the manufacture of sorrow¨ (pg. xi). Larso shows this conflict of good and evil by comparing the two main characters, Daniel Burnham and Henry H. Holmes. Burnham is the head architect for the World Fair Exposition in Chicago circa 1893, taking on a daunting challenge. In contrast, Holmes is a sly psychopathic physician, who opens a hobbled together building to serve as a hotel for the fair that is equipped with gas chambers and kilns which are responsible for the deaths of many young women. Erik Larson's main purpose in The Devil in the White City is to reveal the conflict between good and evil through the comparison of Daniel Burnham, a lofty successful architect, and Henry H. Holmes, a greedy scheming murderer.…

    • 793 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    The outer world from the different towns in "Beowulf" is proven to be evil ruthless places. John Halverson say "The world out there-cold, dark, and cheerless-is dominated by the image of fens and moors haunted by the two monsters, solitary creatures who cannot participate in the joy of the community and who savagely hate its…

    • 446 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    which he treats his slaves because now, Auld believes he can and will be forgiven for all his…

    • 533 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth Tragic Flaw essay

    • 1489 Words
    • 6 Pages

    His hesitancy over committing regicide, “We will proceed no further in this business…”(I.vii) is also evidence of the fact that he is not an innately ‘evil’ person.…

    • 1489 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Good Vs Evil

    • 491 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Good vs. evil is a classic theme often found in literature. In “A Good Man is Hard to Find” by O’Connor and “Young Goodman Brown” by Hawthorne, the authors focus on this theme to unravel their plots. O’Connor uses the grandmother and a thief, The Misfit, to compare and contrast the good and evil in people. On the other hand, Hawthorne’s, “Young Goodman Brown,” uses the main character, Young Goodman Brown, and his journey from being a respected man to being summoned by the devil. Both authors use their main characters as a comparison of what being good means, however the evil of the story is presented differently.…

    • 491 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    how macbeth changes

    • 1226 Words
    • 4 Pages

    After the witches ignite his ruthlessness using the prophecies, we see how his evil side develops, eventually conquering his conscience. He changes from being a virtuous and noble hero to an arrogant maniac.…

    • 1226 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Kyle Heslin-Rees

    • 707 Words
    • 3 Pages

    This story represents a concept in Victorian culture, that of the inner conflict of humanity's sense of good and evil.[10] In particular the novella has been interpreted as an examination of the duality of human nature (that good and evil exists in all), and that the failure to accept this tension (to accept the evil or shadow side) results in the evil being projected onto others.[11] Paradoxically in this argument, evil is actually committed in an effort to extinguish the perceived evil that has been projected onto the innocent victims. In Freudian Theory the thoughts and desires banished to the unconscious mind motivate the behavior of the conscious mind. If someone banishes all evil to the unconscious mind in an attempt to be wholly and completely good, it can result in the development of a Mr Hyde-type aspect to that person's character.[11] This failure to accept the tension of duality is related to Christian theology, where Satan's fall from Heaven is due to his refusal to accept that he is a created being (that he has a dual nature) and is not God.[11] This is why in Christianity, pride (to consider oneself as without sin or without evil) is the greatest sin, as it is the precursor to evil itself; it also explains the Christian concept of evil hiding in the light.[11]…

    • 707 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Perelandra is not a horror novel. It is not a science fiction novel, either, despite what you might at first assume. Perelandra is best described as Religious Fiction. The book includes a brilliant, challenging discussion on the question of good and evil set in on a most original background, presented as a direct contest between the Beast and hero, Dr. Ransom.…

    • 498 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Cardinal Wolsey

    • 396 Words
    • 2 Pages

    The tone displayed in the speech fulfills a dramatically desolate tone which aids the crowd in realizing the feelings that are being expressed by Wolsey. Since he has just been the victim of a unforeseen event he feels alone and sees no hope in his life. During his speech he makes a remark to try to illustrate the experience he states: “and when he falls, he falls like Lucifer, never to hope again.” The reference to Lucifer, or Satan, gives off the feeling of death which works well to make his point of which he feels that there is no point to life anymore. Satan is known for his affiliation with evil. The fact that Wolsey associates his reign as advisor with an evil character such as Lucifer portrays that he doesn’t see life in the same way he did before. He feels as though his downfall was not an act of justice.…

    • 396 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Throughout history, numerous acts of evil have occurred. The Holodomor is an act of evil that affected many people in a pessimistic manner. Holodomor is the Ukrainian word for “killing by hunger.” Josef Stalin, communist leader of the Soviet Union, initiated this act of evil. Josef Stalin forced an extermination of the Ukrainian race by starving the citizens in the years 1932 to 1933. The Holodomor killed approximately 5.5 million people. Stalin had a goal of eliminating the Ukrainian race and their independence. Evil also exists in multiple works of literature. In William Shakespeare’s Othello, the Moor of Venice, acts of evil take place, which result in a horrific downfall.…

    • 520 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Good and Evil in High Noon

    • 1373 Words
    • 4 Pages

    An Analysis of Good and Evil in the Movie High Noon and Application of the Ethical Theories of Kant and Mill…

    • 1373 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    In most modern day novels there is a hero and a bad guy. Some books are not so clear cut on who is solely bad or good. This is present in the epistolary Frankenstein written by Mary Shelley. The main character, Victor Frankenstein shows questionable traits on weather he is truly evil person or not. In this novel Victors does not initially set out to be evil, but his selfishness and neglect for the monster that he created ultimately make him manifest into an evil character.…

    • 586 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Everybody has evil in them. No matter how nice, pleasant, or sweet that person is; everyone carries evil inside. Whether they show it or psychology know they are evil, is up to them. In the “possibility of Evil” by Shirley Jackson, Miss Strangeworth has that evil in her and it is expressed through her age, education, and personal ambition.…

    • 518 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Amidst the eternal battle between good and evil, stand two main forces: God, the good and Satan, the evil. However, if the concept of good and evil were to be removed, each of them would be considered champions of their respective parties. Consequently, each side fights for what they believe and as displayed in history, the victor determines which side was right. Paradise Lost is a poem written by John Milton that discloses the fall of man from paradise through the intervention of Satan; yet, through the Son of God, they are saved and are allowed back in to paradise. This tale that conveys the victory of the ultimate good, also displays the heroism of Satan although he faces defeat.…

    • 739 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays