Superstition

The Master and Margarita

Emily Rose, Mariah, Victoria

Introduction
Important vocabulary
What are superstitious and supernatural
elements
Russian Superstitions
Why Superstitious Elements
Supernatural Elements
Thesis
Superstition is used in The Master and Margarita to
reinforce the supernatural effect the novel conveys.
Key words
Superstition: excessively credulous belief in and reverence for
supernatural beings and a widely held but unjustified belief in
supernatural causation leading to certain consequences of an
action or event, or a practice based on such a belief.
Supernatural: manifestations or events considered to be of
supernatural origin, such as ghosts
Omen: an event regarded as a portent of good or evil, as well as
of prophetic significance
 What is Superstition
Superstitions were originally used to give reason to things
humans had no control over - to make them feel more in
control
They survive today even with scientific reason because
they have been passed down through the generations
Many superstitions have origins in ancient times
The same superstition may vary from place to place
What is Supernaturalism
Supernaturalism has much the same origins, it was
created to explain the world and often depicts some sort of
higher power

In Latin means supra=above, natura=nature

Supernatural elements are often on a bigger scale than

superstitions
What are some superstitious
omens you
noticed in the novel?
Russian Superstitions Found in the Novel
Putting money in someones hand
Believed to carry energy
while with his right hand he put into the chairmans
other hand a thick, crackling wad. p.100
Carrying an empty bucket
Omen of a bad day
Annushka carries around a can and is known as the
Plague
Russian Superstitions cont
Thresholds to homes
Demons dwell here
Stepped in, yes, but halted in amazement in the
doorway p. 96
Returning shortly to the house
Bad luck
Barman returned to apartment to get his hat and instead
got a black cat on his head (p. 209-210)
Rimsky did not go back for his hat in the office (p.158)
Russian Superstitions cont
Black Cats
Thought to be an omen of evil and the devil
When the foreigner - Satan - arrives in Moscow he brings
with him a giant black cat
...a tom-cat, who appeared out of nowhere, huge as a
hog, black as soot or as a rock, and with a desperate
cavalrymans whiskers. (pg 49)
What effect do you think the
Superstitious Elements
had on the novel?
Why Superstitious Elements
Monsieur Woland, with a sance of black magic
theres no such thing in the world, and that its all
just superstition p. 122

They are used to explain or foreshadow negative

events in the novel.
Supernatural Elements
The Devil
Larger-than-life black cat
Flying people; the dead green girl from p. 157,
Margarita, Natasha, and Nikolai Ivanovich
Satans Ball
Chess pieces
Magic Show
Conclusion
Superstitious elements are used in Master and
Margarita to convey the supernatural elements of
the novel, and to foreshadow or explain negative
events in the novel.
Works Cited
http://rbth.com/articles/2010/09/07/twelve_russian_superstitions04931.html

http://weirdrussia.com/2014/08/31/russian-traditions-and-superstitions/

http://www.inyourpocket.com/russia/st-petersburg/Russian-superstitions_71055f

http://www.russian-language-for-lovers.com/russian-superstition.html

Master and Margarita by Mikhail Bulgakov