Lermontov’ drama is the playwright’ road to Russian tragedy. Classical tragedy is determined by
the fate of a hybristes, i.e. a hero, who violates the order of the universe. Lermontov creates a
special hero, a demon, who can be interpreted as a hybristes in the heathen past. His first play,
The Spaniards, is marked as a tragedy, but it relies on the laws of melodrama: The poetics of accidental
determines its plot, but binary oppositions identify situations, not the hero. The play is
important with its dividing antagonist into two: the demon (Fernando) and the devil (Sorini). The
difference between them is fundamental: The demon revolts against God and the devil acts
against man. A new type of a hero is introduced into Masquerade – it is a player who is above a
demon, because he does not oppose God, but plays the part of Him.