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Description edit
An inspired work of science fiction and a biting political allegory, Bulgakov's The Fatal Eggs tells of a brilliant scientist whose experiments with life spiral terribly—and fatefully—out of control. Foreword by Doris Lessing. Quite by chance, Professor Persikov discovers a new form of light... read more
Ridiculously Simplified Synopsis edit
Characters/People edit
- Vladimir Ipatyevich Persikov: A soviet zoologist who invents a "ray of life".
- Maria Stepanovna: Professor Persikov's housekeeper
- Pytor Stepanovich Ivanov: Professor Persikov's lab assistant
- Vlas: The Zoological Institute's longstanding caretaker.
- Pankrat: The new caretaker at the Zoological Institute. Vlas's replacement.
- Alfred Arkadyevich Bronsky: a young soviet correspondent for the Moscow magazines Red Light, Red Pepper, Red Journal, and Red Searchlight, and the newspaper Red Moscow Evening News.
- Father Sawaty Drozdov, deceased: the former priest of the former church located on the street formerly called "Church Street" (now "Personal") in the town formerly called Trinity, (now "Glassworks").
- Father Sergius: The senior priest at the "Glassworks" church.
- Drozdova: known only by her patronymic "Stepanovna", she is the wife of the late Father Drozdov, and the founder of the Glassworks Poultry Cooperative.
- Matryona: Stepanovna's neighbor across the road
- Matryoshka: Stepanovna's servant and an official member of her collective
- Alexander Semyonovich Faight: Head of the "The Red Ray" model State Farm
Quotes edit
-
“Your frogs make me shudder with intolerable loathing. I shall be unhappy all my life because of them.”
from the farewell note of Professor Persikov's ex-wife -
“It must be said that instead of losing heart, the widow of Father Sawaty Drozdov, who had died in twenty-six of anti-religious mortification, set up a nice little poultry business.”
Setting & Locations edit
Moscow, and locations in rural Russia following the Bolshevik Revolution in 1917
- Moscow: The capital of the Soviet Union and its chief city.
- Moscow Zoological Institute: where Professor Persikov conducted his research, located on Herzen Street, Moscow.
- Prechistenka Street: The Moscow street where Professor Persikov lived in a five-room flat.
- Glassworks, formerly Trinity: a small, provincial town in Kostroma Province, Russia
Organizations edit
- Izvestia: the newspaper of record in the Soviet Union. The word means "notifications", or in a narrower context, "news".
- GPU: The acronym for (transliterated Russian) "Gosudarstvennoye Politicheskoye Upravlenie", or the State Political Directorate. These were the secret police of the Soviet Union following the Bolshevik Revolution until the mid-1930s.
First Sentence edit
On the evening of 16 April, 1928, the Zoology Professor of the Fourth State University and Director of the Moscow Zoological Institute, Persikov, went into his laboratory at the Zoological Institute in Herzen Street.
Table of Contents edit
(Based on Hesperus Modern Voices 2005 edition ISBN 9781843914112)
Forward by Doris Lessing
Introduction
Chapter I - Professor Persikov's Curriculum Vitae
Chapter II - A Coloured Helix
Chapter III - Persikov's Caught It
Chapter IV - Thrushova the Priest's Widow
Chapter V - The Chicken Business
Chapter VI - Moscow in June 1928
Chapter VII - Faight
Chapter VIII - The Business on the State Farm
Chapter IX - Living Mush
Chapter X - Catastrophe
Chapter XI - Battle and Death
Chapter XII - A Frosty Deus in Machina
Notes
Biographical Note
Series & Lists edit
This book is in Modern Voices. (community list)
First Edition edit
Original Language: Russian
Publisher: Add the publisher.
Country: Add the country of publication.
Publication Date: 1925
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Add the publisher.
Country: Add the country of publication.
Publication Date: 1925
ISBN: N/A
Page Count: 112
Classification edit
- Library of Congress: Add the Library of Congress Classification.
- Dewey: 813
Notes for Parents edit
Reading Level: Young AdultsSatire reflecting a violent period in Soviet history. Some disturbing imagery may be difficult for younger teens.
Subjects edit
- Books › Literature & Fiction › Authors, A-Z › ( L ) › Lessing, Doris
- Books › Nonfiction › Foreign Language Nonfiction › Russian
- Books › Literature & Fiction › World Literature › Russian
- Books › Science Fiction & Fantasy › Science Fiction › Short Stories
- Books › Literature & Fiction › Classics › Russian
- Books › Literature & Fiction › Classics
- Books › Entertainment › Humor
- Books › Literature & Fiction › Literary
- Books › Literature & Fiction › Contemporary
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