Heart of a Dog (A Dog's Heart) by Mikhail Bulgakov - Bitig Books Classics

The Heart of a Dog is often regarded as science fiction or satirical fantasy. The novella tells the tale of Sharik, a stray dog who has been brought in for experimentation by the scientist Philip Philipovich Preobrazhensky. The experimenter specializes in transplanting the organs of animals into humans and vice versa.The work moves with a constantly shifting perspective, jumping from the dog's point of view to Preobrazhensky's to that of an unseen narrator. It opens with the howling of the dog, who complains that he was scalded when a cook at the National Economic Council's canteen spilled boiling water on him. Sharik recounts his misfortune to himself. He had been foraging in the garbage outside the council building when the cook threw the water out. The style shows some of what has been called "stream of consciousness," as the dog thinks about the good life he could have enjoyed, rolling in the park, and about his present misfortune.A girl finds the injured dog, and, without a break, the narrative slips from the dog's thoughts to a narrator outside the story. Then it returns to the dog, who sees Preobrazhensky in the street and imagines what the man is thinking. Preobrazhensky puts a leash on the dog and leads him away. Thus, the opening of the story introduces readers to the main characters and the technique of juxtaposing internal monologues and physical descriptions.The tale continues with Sharik watching the professor, who is seeing patients at his apartment. Sharik bites a man whom Preobrazhensky has been rejuvenating with transplants, and the dog sees a woman in whom the doctor promises to transplant monkey ovaries. The dog also watches as Preobrazhensky is visited by a house management committee threatening to install more residents in the doctor's home. Preobrazhensky overcomes this problem by calling a powerful patient waiting for an operation and threatening to end his practice. The scientist dismisses the committee with sneering comments about the proletariat. In this way, the science-fiction elements of the story are placed alongside elements of Socialist...