11. Ivan splits in two

English > The novel > Annotations per chapter > Chapter 11

The former Ivan and the new Ivan

Bulgakov describes the split of Ivan’s personality. Somewhere else in the book is made the diagnosis of schizophrenia. Today we know that people with schizophrenia have no split personalities, but it used to be a widely spread idea, certainly in the 30’s. Schizophrenia was one of the most popular diagnoses when dissidents or “saboteurs” were arrested by the secret police.

It’s interesting to see which words Bulgakov is using in Russian to describe the “old Ivan” and the “new Ivan”. The most common word in Russian to describe “old” is старый (stary), but Bulgakov describes the “old Ivan” as ветхий (vetkhy), which also means “old”, but only used in the biblical term Ветхий Завет (Vetkhy Zavyet), or Old Testament.

He was already picturing a palm tree on its elephant's leg

In a previous version of the novel Ivan already dreamed of palm trees in de scene at Patriarchs’ Ponds. But there he was told sternly not to sing under the palms, because "that's not what they were planted for"!



Share this page |