The Devil has come to town. But don’t worry – all he wants to do is stage a magic show.
Kunlarning birida shaharda Shaytoni-La'in paydo bo'ldi. Ammo xavotirga hojat yo'q: u bor-yo'g'i teatrda qora jodu tomoshasini qo'ymoqchi.
This absurd premise forms the central plot of Mikhail Bulgakov’s masterpiece, "The Master and Margarita." Written in Moscow during the 1930s, this surreal blend of political satire, historical fiction, and occult mysticism has earned a legacy as one of the 20th century’s greatest novels– and one of its strangest.
Mana shu qiziqarli muqaddima Mixail Bulgakovning shoh asari – "Usta va Margarita" ning asosiy syujet chizig'ini shakllantiradi. XX asrning 30-yillarida Moskvada yozilgan bu asarda siyosiy satira, tarixiy proza va okkultizmga yo'girilgan mistika o'zaro uyg'unlashgan bo’lib, 20-asrning eng buyuk, shu bilan birga, eng g'ayrioddiy romanlaridan biri sifatida e'tirof etiladi.
The story begins when a meeting between two members of Moscow’s literary elite is interrupted by a strange gentleman named Woland, who presents himself as a foreign scholar invited to give a presentation on black magic. As the stranger engages the two companions in a philosophical debate and makes ominous predictions about their fates, the reader is suddenly transported to 1st century Jerusalem. There a tormented Pontius Pilate reluctantly sentences Jesus of Nazareth to death. With the narrative shifting between the two settings, Woland and his entourage– Azazello, Koroviev, Hella, and a giant cat named Behemoth– are seen to have uncanny magical powers, which they use to stage their performance while leaving a trail of havoc and confusion in their wake.
Hikoya boshida Moskva adabiy uyushmasining ikki a'zosi o'rtasidagi suhbat o'zini qora jodu seansini o'tkazishga taklif qilingan chet ellik olim sifatida tanishtirgan Voland ismli g'oyat g'alati kimsaning tashrifi bilan bo'linadi. Notanish kishi bu ikki hamrohni falsafiy munozaraga jalb qilib, ularning taqdirlari haqida dahshatli bashoratlar qilayotgan bir paytda, kitobxon e'tibori to'satdan milodiy I asrda Quddusda bo'layotgan voqealarga ko'chiriladi. Rim prokuratori Pontiy Pilat Iso Masihni istar-istamas o'limga hukm qiladi. Asar syujeti ikkita badiiy olamda parallel ravishda yuz beradi – Voland va uning sheriklari: Azazello, Korovyov, Gella va Begemot ismli bahaybat mushuk aql bovar qilmaydigan sehr-jodu kuchi yordamida haqiqiy tomosha ko'rsatib, olamonni katta to'palon va sarosima ichida qoldiradilar.
Much of the novel’s dark humor comes not only from this demonic mischief, but also the backdrop against which it occurs. Bulgakov’s story takes place in the same setting where it was written– the USSR at the height of the Stalinist period. There, artists and authors worked under strict censorship, subject to imprisonment, exile, or execution if they were seen as undermining state ideology. Even when approved, their work– along with housing, travel, and everything else– was governed by a convoluted bureaucracy. In the novel, Woland manipulates this system along with the fabric of reality, to hilarious results. As heads are separated from bodies and money rains from the sky, the citizens of Moscow react with petty-self interest, illustrating how Soviet society bred greed and cynicism despite its ideals. And the matter-of-fact narration deliberately blends the strangeness of the supernatural events with the everyday absurdity of Soviet life.
Romandagi qora yumor ko'pincha nafaqat shaytoniy shumliklarda, balki asarning tarixiy kontekstida ham o'z aksini topadi. Bulgakov asari voqealari u yaratilgan siyosiy muhit – Stalinizm avj olgan SSSR da sodir bo'ladi. O'sha paytda yozuvchi va san'atkorlar kuchli senzura bosimi ostida ishlaganlar, asarlari davlat mafkurasiga zid bo'lgan taqdirda, qamoqqa olinishlari, quvg'in qilinishlari va hatto qatl etilishlari mumkin edi. Ishlari ma'qullangan taqdirda ham, ularning faoliyati, shuningdek, uy-joyi, safar-sayohatlari, butun turmush tarzi qat'iy byurokratiya nazoratiga olingan. Romanda Voland mazkur tizimni ustalik bilan manipulyatsiya qiladi, voqelikni aqlni shoshirar darajada o'zgartirib yuboradi. Qahramonlardan birini tramvay urib boshi uziladi, shiftdan pul yomg'ir bo'lib yog'iladi – moskvaliklar bularning barchasiga o'ziga xos manfaatparastlik bilan munosabat bildiradi. Bu Sovet jamiyatida o'zining yuqori ideallariga qaramay ochko'zlik va xudbinlik hukm surayotganini ko'rsatadi. Quruq hikoya uslubi sekin-asta g'ayrioddiy hodisalarni sovet tuzumidagi kundalik hayotning bema'niligi bilan qorishtirib yuboradi.
So how did Bulgakov manage to publish such a subversive novel under an oppressive regime? Well… he didn’t. He worked on "The Master and Margarita" for over ten years. But while Stalin’s personal favor may have kept Bulgakov safe from severe persecution, many of his plays and writings were kept from production, leaving him safe but effectively silenced. Upon the author’s death in 1940, the manuscript remained unpublished. A censored version was eventually printed in the 1960s, while copies of the unabridged manuscript continued to circulate among underground literary circles. The full text was only published in 1973, over 30 years after its completion.
Ammo qanday qilib Bulgakov avtoritarizm davrida bunday isyonkor romanni nashr etishga muvaffaq bo'ldi? Afsuski, u buni uddalay olmadi... U "Usta va Margarita" ustida o'n yildan ortiq ishladi. Stalinning shaxsiy iltifoti Bulgakovni og'ir jazodan saqlab qolgan bo'lishi mumkin, ammo ko'plab pyesalarning sahnalashtirilishi va asarlarining chop etilishi taqiqlandi, tirik qoldirishsa-da, ijodiy faoliyati cheklandi. 1940-yil muallif vafot etgach, qo'lyozma chop etilmay qoldi. 1960-yillarga kelibgina senzura qilingan nusxasi bosilib chiqdi, qo'lyozmaning asl nusxalari esa yashirin doiralarda tarqalishda davom etdi. Kitobning to'liq matni u yozib tugatilganiga 30 yildan oshgach, 1973-yildagina nashr etildi.
Bulgakov’s experiences with censorship and artistic frustration lend an autobiographical air to the second part of the novel, when we are finally introduced to its namesake. "The Master" is a nameless author who’s worked for years on a novel but burned the manuscript after it was rejected by publishers– just as Bulgakov had done with his own work. Yet the true protagonist is the Master’s mistress Margarita.
Bulgakovning senzura bilan murosasiz kurashi va ijodiy inqiroz davri romanning ikkinchi qismiga avtobiografik ruh bag'ishlaydi, unda biz asar nomidagi qahramon bilan tanishamiz. "Usta" noma'lum yozuvchi bo'lib, uzoq yil roman ustida ishlaydi, ammo nashriyotlar rad etgach, xuddi Bulgakov kitobning birinchi nusxasini yoqib yuborgani singari u ham qo'lyozmasini yondirib yuboradi. Biroq bosh qahramon Ustaning sevgilisi Margaritadir.
Her devotion to her lover’s abandoned dream bears a strange connection to the diabolical company’s escapades– and carries the story to its surreal climax.
Sevgilisining sarobga aylangan orzusiga sadoqati tufayli u iblis to'dasining nayrangbozliklarida ishtirok etadi va roman syujeti kulminatsiya nuqtasiga yetadi.
Despite its dark humor and complex structure, "The Master and Margarita" is, at its heart, a meditation on art, love, and redemption, that never loses itself in cynicism. And the book’s long overdue publication and survival against the odds is a testament to what Woland tells the Master: “Manuscripts don’t burn.”
O'zining qora yumori va murakkab tuzilishiga qaramay, "Usta va Margarita" aslida san'at, sevgi va poklanish to'g'risida mulohaza yuritadi, chunki aynan ular umidsizlik va xudbinlikka berilishdan saqlaydi. Ko'p yillardan so'ng, barcha qiyinchiliklarga qaramay kitobning nashr etilishi Voland Ustaga aytgan so'zlarning o'ziga xos tasdig'idir: "Qo'lyozmalar yonmaydi".