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Definition of Motif
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of related symbols, help develop the central themes of a book... read full definition
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of related symbols, help develop the... read full definition
A motif is an element or idea that recurs throughout a work of literature. Motifs, which are often collections of... read full definition
Motifs
Explanation and Analysis—Written Records:
In a story that is at least partly about stories, the motif of record-keeping underpins The Master and Margarita but is also the subject of a complicated relationship. As characters try to capture their realities through words, the novel alternately affirms and challenges the written records’ truthful status. Writing is a means through which to document the truth and a medium vulnerable to devilish distortions.
Related Themes:
Motifs
Explanation and Analysis—Margarita vs. Pilate:
Margarita and Pilate—central characters in two of the novel’s plotlines—are connected by both the Master’s book and their efforts to undo the past. One mourns the loss of her lover; the other struggles with a mistake he can no longer revoke. They despair and dream. But read against each other, they explore different ways of coming to terms with loss and history.
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Chapter 29. The Fate of the Master and Margarita is Decided
Explanation and Analysis—Light and Dark:
In the high drama where the Devil and Jesus compete for space, The Master and Margarita invites the initial expectation of stark contrasts. So begins its motif of darkness and light, between which the novel repeatedly alternates. Through its moments of shadow and sunlight, the novel acts out a tension between good and evil that ultimately complicates those two distinctions.
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Related Themes:
