The Great Exit of Satan

In the works of Senkovsky, behind supernatural events lies sharp social satire, raising questions about human nature and societal morals. In the story "The Great Exit of Satan," the author depicts a grotesque picture of the annual "reception" in hell: Satan, seated in a huge hall deep within the earth, receives his "subordinates" — demons, each responsible for a specific sphere of human vices and weaknesses. The work became one of the first examples of devilish themes in Russian literature and a precursor to an entire genre, and almost a hundred years after the publication of the story, a similar ball will be described by Mikhail Bulgakov in his novel "The Master and Margarita." The collection also includes other stories and tales, as well as the cycles "The Fantastic Travels of Baron Brambeus" and "Petersburg Morals."