Mikhail Bulgakov: The Censored Master of Soviet Literature

Mikhail Bulgakov, born in Kiev on May 15, 1891, and who passed away in Moscow on March 10, 1940, opposed Stalin's concept of socialist realism. After completing his medical studies, he served as a physician in the anti-Bolshevik forces during World War I and the subsequent civil war, before transitioning to journalism and writing. Following Mayakovsky's suicide, Stalin facilitated his employment as a playwright, yet Bulgakov encountered significant censorship. He employed irony and satire to critique the regime, with his works mirroring the struggles of 1930s communist Russia. In "Era maggio," a playwright interacts with a critic, while "The Master and Margarita" draws inspiration from his wife, Elena Sergeevna Silovskaya. Since the 1960s, his brilliance has been reassessed, leading to acknowledgment of his authorship of "The Master and Margarita."