Reading Master & Margarita - 8

Chapter 8

The Combat between the Professor and the Poet

This chapter depicts the conversation which takes place between Professor Stravinsky and Ivan Bezdomnyi in Professor’s clinic.

Action takes place on the second day, approximately at that time when Stepan Likhodeev was flung out of his flat. Ivan wakes up in Room No 117 of Professor Stravinsky’s clinic.

He names the room where he is going to be interrogated by the doctors as ‘Factory-Kitchen’.

We notice that Ivan has calmed down a little. He is convinced that he can’t get out of here and hence he decides to cooperate with the doctors.

When the nurse, attending on him praises her hospital, note how Ivan reacts:

…on seeing the water gush into the tub in a wide stream from the gleaming faucet, said ironically:

'Look there! Just like the Metropol!...'

'Oh, no,' the woman answered proudly, `much better. There is no such equipment even anywhere abroad. Scientists and doctors come especially to study our clinic. We have foreign tourists every day.'

At the words 'foreign tourists', Ivan at once remembered yesterday's consultant. Ivan darkened, looked sullen, and said: `Foreign tourists... How you all adore foreign tourists! But among them, incidentally, you come across all sorts. I, for instance, met one yesterday - quite something!'

There was a general feeling of anger towards the foreigners…people did not like to interact with them; they were angry that foreigners were given many facilities and preferences over the Russians in the Soviet Union.

Another remark about educated people:

When Professor Stravinsky tries to find out in a reasonable way why Ivan wanted to get the mysterious Professor arrested, Ivan is impressed by his approach to the whole thing and he thinks, “This man is intelligent. I must confess that sometimes you find intelligent people among the intellectuals. You can’t deny this.”

He cooperates with Professor Stravinsky who succeeds in convincing him that Ivan need not personally rush to the police station to complain about the whole episode. It would be better to give a description of the whole episode and proper action will be taken by the authorities.

So, from an aggressive and adamant Ivan we see a person who is in the reconciliatory mode. This is the middle stage of Ivan’s complete transformation. Soon we shall see a calm and intelligent Ivan in the following chapters who comes to understand the reality of the world in general and that of the literary world in particular!