Franz Kafka’s The Trial bio, themes, intro, 3 levels of questions: Homework: read the first chapter and be ready for a quiz on it!!!

Kafka’s Bio “Franz Kafka, b. Prague, Bohemia (then belonging to Austria), July 3, 1883, d. June 3, 1924, has come to be one of the most influential writers of this century. Virtually unknown during his lifetime, the works of Kafka have since been recognized as symbolizing modern man's anxiety-ridden and grotesque alienation in an unintelligible, hostile, or indifferent world. Kafka came from a middle-class Jewish family and grew up in the shadow of his domineering shopkeeper father, who impressed Kafka as an awesome patriarch. The feeling of impotence, even in his rebellion, was a syndrome that became a pervasive theme in his fiction. Kafka did well in the prestigious German high school in Prague and went on to receive a law degree in This allowed him to secure a livelihood that gave him time for writing, which he regarded as the essence--both blessing and curse--of his life. He soon found a position in the semipublic Workers' Accident Insurance institution, where he remained a loyal and successful employee until-- beginning in tuberculosis forced him to take repeated sick leaves and finally, in 1922, to retire. Kafka spent half his time after 1917 in sanatoriums and health resorts, his tuberculosis of the lungs finally spreading to the larynx. (

Kafka’s bio (cont) “Kafka lived his life in emotional dependence on his parents, whom he both loved and resented. None of his largely unhappy love affairs could wean him from this inner dependence; though he longed to marry, he never did. Sexually, he apparently oscillated between an ascetic aversion to intercourse, which he called "the punishment for being together," and an attraction to prostitutes. Sex in Kafka's writings is frequently connected with dirt or guilt and treated as an attractive abomination. Nevertheless, Kafka led a fairly active social life, including acquaintance with many prominent literary and intellectual figures of his era, such as the writers Franz Werfel and Max Brod. He wrote primarily at night, the days being preempted by his job.” (

And some more bio from NY Times: Kafka’s Last Trial (N.Y. Times) By ELIF BATUMAN “During his lifetime, Franz Kafka burned an estimated 90 percent of his work. After his death at age 41, in 1924, a letter was discovered in his desk in Prague, addressed to his friend Max Brod. “Dearest Max,” it began. “My last request: Everything I leave behind me... in the way of diaries, manuscripts, letters (my own and others’), sketches and so on, to be burned unread.” Less than two months later, Brod, disregarding Kafka’s request, signed an agreement to prepare a posthumous edition of Kafka’s unpublished novels. “The Trial” came out in 1925, followed by “The Castle” (1926) and “Amerika” (1927). In 1939, carrying a suitcase stuffed with Kafka’s papers, Brod set out for Palestine on the last train to leave Prague, five minutes before the Nazis closed the Czech border. Thanks largely to Brod’s efforts, Kafka’s slim, enigmatic corpus was gradually recognized as one of the great monuments of 20th-century literature.”

3 levels of questions Pick your overarching themes: Themes to consider during your written analysis: a) how and why the setting induces anxiety for one or more characters; b) how unresponsive characters or an inappropriate response add(s)to the absurdity and/or anxiety of a particular moment in the novel; c) the use of the word “hand” as a motif; how this motif is used throughout the novel; d) how women are portrayed in the novel; e) social commentary: what does search for justice look like? f) how does the language of bureaucracy add to the absurdity and/or anxiety of a particular moment in the novel? g) what role does art play in the novel?

Characters and pronunciation: Josef K., Fräulein Bürstner Fräulein Montag Frau Grubach Uncle Karl____________________________ GERMAN 101: Fräulein = Miss Frau=Mrs. Ich liebe dich = I love you Du has mich gefragt; Ich habe nicht gesacht (Rammstein) Scheiße – sh..

Ms. Teref’s pick: b) how unresponsive characters or an inappropriate response add(s)to the absurdity and/or anxiety of a particular moment in the novel g) how does the language of bureaucracy add to the absurdity and/or anxiety of a particular moment in the novel? Level 3 Question: Talk to your peers about a life situation where you experienced the above. (e.g. college applications, acceptance letters…)(3 min)

Level 1 Questions (pages 1-4, Teref’s edition) : Part 1: 1.What is our protagonist’s full name, as we know it? 2.Who must have been telling lies about the protagonist? Whose POV is this? 3.Describe the man who entered K.’s room. 4.How does the man answer K’s question? Part 2: 5. What is K.’s first question in the passage? How is it answered? 6. Who has instituted “proceedings against” K.? 7. What are “proceedings” exactly? 8. When will he be “informed of everything?” 9. Identify all the “if” or “whether” clauses in the passage. 10. Identify all the “but” clauses in the passage. 11. Which articles of clothing of K.’s are the warders examining? 12. What is the belly of the second warder doing? 13. What questions is K. wondering about after the belly description? 14. How old is our protagonist on the day of his arrest?

Level 2 Questions: Word-by-word analysis: Think of the unresponsive characters, inappropriate responses, anxiety, absurdity, the language of bureaucracy “Someone must have been telling lies about Joseph K., for without having done anything wrong he was arrested one fine morning.” “Proceedings have been instituted against you, and you will be informed of everything in due course.” “They both examined his nightshirt and said that he would have to wear a less fancy shirt now, but that they would take charge of this one and the resort of his underwear and, if his case turned out well, restore them to him later.”