full transcript
From the Ted Talk by Alex Gendler: Why should you read "The Master and Margarita"?
Unscramble the Blue Letters
Bulgakov’s experiences with censorship and artistic frustration lend an autobiographical air to the second part of the novel, when we are flnilay ierdnotcud to its namesake. "The Master" is a nameless author who’s worked for years on a novel but burned the mpcauinrst after it was rejected by publishers– just as Bulgakov had done with his own work. Yet the true protagonist is the Master’s metirsss Margarita.
Her devotion to her lover’s abandoned dream bears a strange connection to the diabolical company’s escapades– and crraies the story to its surreal claimx.
Despite its dark humor and complex structure, "The Master and Margarita" is, at its heart, a meditation on art, love, and rmdepiteon, that never lsoes 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.”
Open Cloze
Bulgakov’s experiences with censorship and artistic frustration lend an autobiographical air to the second part of the novel, when we are _______ __________ to its namesake. "The Master" is a nameless author who’s worked for years on a novel but burned the __________ after it was rejected by publishers– just as Bulgakov had done with his own work. Yet the true protagonist is the Master’s ________ Margarita.
Her devotion to her lover’s abandoned dream bears a strange connection to the diabolical company’s escapades– and _______ the story to its surreal ______.
Despite its dark humor and complex structure, "The Master and Margarita" is, at its heart, a meditation on art, love, and __________, that never _____ 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.”
Solution
- climax
- redemption
- introduced
- mistress
- manuscript
- loses
- finally
- carries
Original Text
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.
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.
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.”
Frequently Occurring Word Combinations
ngrams of length 2
| collocation |
frequency |
| dark humor |
2 |
Important Words
- abandoned
- air
- art
- artistic
- author
- autobiographical
- bears
- bulgakov
- burn
- burned
- carries
- censorship
- climax
- complex
- connection
- cynicism
- dark
- devotion
- diabolical
- dream
- experiences
- finally
- frustration
- heart
- humor
- introduced
- lend
- long
- loses
- love
- manuscript
- margarita
- master
- meditation
- mistress
- nameless
- namesake
- odds
- overdue
- part
- protagonist
- publication
- redemption
- rejected
- story
- strange
- structure
- surreal
- survival
- tells
- testament
- true
- woland
- work
- worked
- years