“Here he politely removed his beret, and the friends had no choice but to raise themselves slightly and bow in response.”

Woland is polite and well-mannered when meeting people who do not know his identity. Despite being Satan, he presents himself as a presentable, civil man. In reality, these mannerisms are careful manipulations. Woland parodies polite society by adhering to manners and gestures, such as removing his beret in company, while at the same time being the physical embodiment of evil in the world. Woland makes the other men act politely in his presence, manipulating them and mocking them at the same time as he reveals the inherent hypocrisy of society.

“There is no devil!”

Ivan insists that “there is no devil” (34). His statement will prove to be very wrong as the novel unfolds, but the fervor with which Ivan makes this statement is telling. Ivan is a self-confessed atheist who does not believe in God or the devil. Despite the growing evidence around him, however, he continues to decry the spiritual or the supernatural. Ivan makes a statement with almost religious fervor, showing that his atheism is hollow and cannot accommodate evidence. Instead, he is religious in his disbelief.