摘要：This paper presents a new approach to Bulgakov’s masterpiece, the novel The Master and Margarita. By examining the theme that “manuscripts don’t burn,” this paper argues that this novel cannot be simply compared to individual religions or to other works of fiction, as it has generally been treated. Instead, a multivocal analysis is needed since none of these past interpretations succeeds in rationalizing a monological foundation of the novel. This paper analyzes the characters of Ieshua and Woland to demonstrate that the novel cannot be explained by one system (whether Christianity, Pelagianism, or Manichaeism), but must be addressed in its own right as a constructive theological system. By treating Bulgakov’s work not as a variation of something preexistent, but as a theology with familiar symbols but entirely different implications, we can begin to understand what Bulgakov was presenting as a new religion for the Soviet age.
关键词：Theology; Bulgakov; The Master and Margarita; Pelagianism; Manichaeism; God; Devil
