Woland
Encyclopedia
Woland is a fictional character in the book The Master and Margarita
by the Russia
n (Soviet
) author Mikhail Bulgakov
. Woland is the mysterious foreigner and professor whose visit to Moscow sets the plot rolling and turns the world upside-down. He appears differently to different people. "[t]he first says that the [he] was short, had gold teeth, and limped on the right foot. The second, that the man was of enormous height, had platinum crowns, and limped on the left foot. The third states laconically that the man had no special distinguishing characters."
Woland's name itself is a variant of the name of a demon
who appears in Goethe's Faust
: the knight Voland or Faland. This link is made tighter by the quotation from Faust
at the beginning of the novel. However, Woland is seldom called by his name. His band refer to him as "messire", a French honorific title meaning "sire" or "master" and given to priests, advocates, etc.
His demonic retinue, which includes witches, vampire
s, and a gigantic talking cat, his role in the plot, and the fact that Woland was used as a synonym for Satan
in (now outdated) German all imply that he is, in fact, the Devil. More controversial interpretations see him as Paul
or even the Second Coming of Christ.
played him in a Moscow stage adaptation.
In the 1972 Italian-Yugoslavian adaptation, Il maestro e Margherita, Woland was played by French actor Alain Cuny
.
In the 1990 Polish TV series, Mistrz i Malgorzata, Woland was played by Gustaw Holoubek
.
In the 1994 Russian adaptation, Master i Margarita, Woland was played by Valentin Gaft
.
In the 2005 Hungarian TV movie, A mester és Margarita, Woland was played by Sergei Grekov.
In the 2005 miniseries adaptation, Woland was played by Oleg Basilashvili
.
The Master and Margarita
The Master and Margarita is a novel by Mikhail Bulgakov, woven around the premise of a visit by the Devil to the fervently atheistic Soviet Union. Many critics consider the book to be one of the greatest novels of the 20th century, and one of the foremost Soviet satires, directed against a...
by the Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n (Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
) author Mikhail Bulgakov
Mikhail Bulgakov
Mikhaíl Afanásyevich Bulgákov was a Soviet Russian writer and playwright active in the first half of the 20th century. He is best known for his novel The Master and Margarita, which The Times of London has called one of the masterpieces of the 20th century.-Biography:Mikhail Bulgakov was born on...
. Woland is the mysterious foreigner and professor whose visit to Moscow sets the plot rolling and turns the world upside-down. He appears differently to different people. "[t]he first says that the [he] was short, had gold teeth, and limped on the right foot. The second, that the man was of enormous height, had platinum crowns, and limped on the left foot. The third states laconically that the man had no special distinguishing characters."
Woland's name itself is a variant of the name of a demon
Demon
call - 1347 531 7769 for more infoIn Ancient Near Eastern religions as well as in the Abrahamic traditions, including ancient and medieval Christian demonology, a demon is considered an "unclean spirit" which may cause demonic possession, to be addressed with an act of exorcism...
who appears in Goethe's Faust
Faust
Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend; a highly successful scholar, but also dissatisfied with his life, and so makes a deal with the devil, exchanging his soul for unlimited knowledge and worldly pleasures. Faust's tale is the basis for many literary, artistic, cinematic, and musical...
: the knight Voland or Faland. This link is made tighter by the quotation from Faust
Faust
Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend; a highly successful scholar, but also dissatisfied with his life, and so makes a deal with the devil, exchanging his soul for unlimited knowledge and worldly pleasures. Faust's tale is the basis for many literary, artistic, cinematic, and musical...
at the beginning of the novel. However, Woland is seldom called by his name. His band refer to him as "messire", a French honorific title meaning "sire" or "master" and given to priests, advocates, etc.
His demonic retinue, which includes witches, vampire
Vampire
Vampires are mythological or folkloric beings who subsist by feeding on the life essence of living creatures, regardless of whether they are undead or a living person...
s, and a gigantic talking cat, his role in the plot, and the fact that Woland was used as a synonym for Satan
Satan
Satan , "the opposer", is the title of various entities, both human and divine, who challenge the faith of humans in the Hebrew Bible...
in (now outdated) German all imply that he is, in fact, the Devil. More controversial interpretations see him as Paul
Paul of Tarsus
Paul the Apostle , also known as Saul of Tarsus, is described in the Christian New Testament as one of the most influential early Christian missionaries, with the writings ascribed to him by the church forming a considerable portion of the New Testament...
or even the Second Coming of Christ.
In adaptations
Veniamin SmekhovVeniamin Smekhov
Veniamin Borisovich Smekhov is a Soviet and Russian actor and stage director.Smekhov has long worked in the Moscow Taganka Theatre where his roles included Woland in a stage adaptation of Mikhail Bulgakov's The Master and Margarita. In film, he is most known and loved for the role of Athos in a...
played him in a Moscow stage adaptation.
In the 1972 Italian-Yugoslavian adaptation, Il maestro e Margherita, Woland was played by French actor Alain Cuny
Alain Cuny
Alain Cuny was a French actor.He was born René Xavier Marie in Saint-Malo, Brittany, and studied medicine for a while before entering the film industry as a costume and set designer. Cuny started acting in the 1930s...
.
In the 1990 Polish TV series, Mistrz i Malgorzata, Woland was played by Gustaw Holoubek
Gustaw Holoubek
Gustaw Holoubek was a Polish actor, director, member of the Polish Sejm, and a senator.Holoubek participated in the September Campaign and was a prisoner of war during the Nazi German Occupation of Poland...
.
In the 1994 Russian adaptation, Master i Margarita, Woland was played by Valentin Gaft
Valentin Gaft
Valentin Yosifovich Gaft is a Russian and Soviet actor, People's Artist of Russia .-Biography:Valentin Gaft was born in Moscow to a family of a lawyer Iosif Romanovich Gaft and Gita Davydovna Gaft . The family moved to Moscow from Poltava, Ukraine...
.
In the 2005 Hungarian TV movie, A mester és Margarita, Woland was played by Sergei Grekov.
In the 2005 miniseries adaptation, Woland was played by Oleg Basilashvili
Oleg Basilashvili
Oleg Valerianovich Basilashvili is a well-known Soviet/Russian film and theatre actor of Georgian and Polish origin, as well as political figure in the former Soviet Union and in the new Russia.-Childhood:...
.