Tag Archives: Bulgakov
Reading «Мастер и Маргарита»: Chapter 12 Posted by josefina on Aug 24, 2010
Chapter 12 – «Явление героя» [“The Appearance of the Hero”, or an even better English translation might be: ”The Hero Appears”] – is where we, the readers of “Master & Margarita”, finally come to understand what the novel’s title means. In this chapter an enigmatic «гость» [mas. guest] comes into the room of «Иван Бездомный»…
Reading «Мастер и Маргарита»: Chapter 10 + 11 Posted by josefina on Aug 12, 2010
And this week «мы читаем Булгакова у бассейна» [we’re reading Bulgakov by the pool]. «Да, да, знаю, знаю» [yes, yes, I know, I know] – it has been almost two months since we all started reading «Мастер и Маргарита» [“Master & Margarita”] together and we haven’t made it further than chapter ten. «Честно говоря» [honestly…
Reading «Мастер и Маргарита»: Chapter 9 Posted by yelena on Aug 2, 2010
What is «жилплощадь»? Ah, the wonderful or rather wonder-inspiring language of «Совдепия» [Sovietdom]! «Жиплощадь» is short for «жилая площадь», meaning «обитаемая, предназначенная для жилья площадь дома, квартиры» [floor space of a living areas of an apartment or a house]. So why not say «квартира» [apartment] or «комната» [room] when referring to one’s living quarters? Back…
Reading «Мастер и Маргарита»: Chapter 8 Posted by josefina on Jul 26, 2010
«Давайте принесём Булгакова на пляж!» [Let’s bring Bulgakov to the beach!] Russians – like most people that live in geographical regions where the longest season of the year is «зима» [winter] – can’t afford «пренебрегать летом: солнцем и теплом» [impfv. to neglect (also: to scorn; disdain; disregard; ignore) the summer: the sun and the warmth]…
Reading: Master and Margarita – Chapter 5 Posted by yelena on Jul 4, 2010
Don’t know about you, but with all the summer fun and travel I find it hard to find time to sit down and read even a few pages of the Master and Margarita. But a few paragraphs here, a page there and next thing you know you’re in Chapter 5 already. It just so happens…
Reading “The Master & Margarita”: Chapter 4 Posted by josefina on Jun 30, 2010
In chapter 3 of «Мастер и Маргарита» [”The Master & Margarita”] we read about how «Берлиоз» [Berlioz] lost his head and died as a result. Chapter 4 is called «Погоня» [1. pursuit, chase; 2. pursuers] (think of the verb «гонять» which is the imperfective and indeterminate ‘friend’ of the verb «гнать» meaning ‘to drive; to…
Reading: Master and Margarita – Chapter 3 Posted by yelena on Jun 19, 2010
Weekend is a great time for catching up on our big summer reading project – Mikhail Bulgakov’s Master and Margarita. Guess what, we are on Chapter 3 already! But before we dive into the review, let’s do the Readers’ Mail (look at me, I sound like a real National Public Radio show host!). So…