The experiment turned out to be successful as documented in the form of the professor’s medical observations, but it’s also there that things start to go wrong and maybe too much for the professor to handle. We also find out that the reason the professor had adopted Sharik was for the purpose of conducting an experiment in which the professor implanted a recently-deceased man’s testicles and pituitary gland on him. Of course, his lavish lifestyle does not escape the notice of the management committee of his apartment and they set themselves up to be his enemies, despite the professor being shielded by his connections.

The professor happens to be famous in Moscow circles and frequently does medical procedures on many clients, some of whom are powerful figures. He’s taken to his seven-room apartment and pampered. In the novella, we follow a dog named Sharik who is picked up by the professor who names him. Neither man nor animal can be influenced by anything but suggestion.” Maybe at some point, I’ll make a more thorough analysis of the story. This wouldn’t be a thorough analysis of the work because it being a work in translation guarantees that there would be a lot of things I missed and I’d rather do more research before I do that. For example, the professor’s name, Filipp Filippovich Preobrazhensky was apparently derived from the Russian word for transformation (‘преобразование’). The names in particular, flew over my head because the Vintage Classics edition doesn’t come with footnotes and as it turns out, the names have meaning. This book convinced me that his work is for me after all, even though I might not always understand the satire and have to research some things to further understand what the author meant.

In any case, I decided to pick up The Heart Of A Dog which is a much shorter work, the edition I read having 128 pages and translated by Michael Glenny. I did kind of wonder if it was the translation or the author himself I didn’t click with. Unfortunately, while I clicked with the premise of the story, I found the translation underwhelming and lacking fluidity. I heard that it’s a masterpiece of Russian literature and isn’t as long or as intimidating as War and Peace or The Brothers Karamazov so I decided to check it out. The first time I encountered Bulgakov’s work was The Master and Margarita.

Bulgakov heart of a dog