Franz Kafka was born into a middle-class, German-speaking Jewish family on July 3, 1883 in Prague, Bohemia, now the Czech Republic. He would go on to have a very difficulty relationship with his father who was abusive and detrimental to Kafka’s literary future. All of this would eventually go into the writings of Kafka, his pain and disillusionment was clearly seen. He is known for his novellas and short stories such as The Metamorphosis and “The Trial”.
‘The Judgement’, written in 1912, was in many ways Franz Kafka’s breakthrough work. Very autobiographical in nature, the story reflects on Kafka’s turbulent relationship with his father, with his fiancé and anxiety prone review of his own literary ability.
The story was first published in 1912 as Das Urteil, in Arkadia (a literary journal) owned by his close friend Max Brod.
In this short story, a young man Georg Bendemann writes to his friend who is living in Russia. His letter reflects his anxieties of day to day living, his upcoming marriage, his family’s business state, and most importantly, his relationship with his aged father.
The ill father is groused by his helpless state and instead of being kind to his son who tends to him he lashes at him.
He questions whether the friend even exists. At the end of the story, the man’s father condemns his son to death by drowning, and the son goes and throws himself into the river.
“With weakening grip he was still holding on when he spied between the railings a motor-bus coming which would easily cover the noise of his fall, called in a low voice: ‘Dear parents, I have always loved you, all the same,’ and let himself drop”
A story of incredible sadness, I felt it also was unfair. Just like life. We see everyday similar situations where kindness is repaid or responded back with utter selfishness. This in turn leads to anxiety and stress for people.
Photo by Penguin Books UK 1965. Cover drawing by Yosl Bergner.
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