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Law, Literature and Modernism

The document discusses Franz Kafka's novel "The Trial" and provides several discussion prompts to analyze the key themes and interpretations of the novel. It asks students to consider whether the novel is a comedy, satire, or allegory and examines the multiple meanings of "the trial" and interpretations of the work. It focuses on analyzing the theme of how the law is portrayed in the novel, how it illustrates the difficulty of discerning the truth or meaning of the law. It also prompts examining details about the arbitrary and illegitimate nature of the court system in the story and considering the background and personality of the main character Josef K.

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Sumeeran Bhandari
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217 views2 pages

Law, Literature and Modernism

The document discusses Franz Kafka's novel "The Trial" and provides several discussion prompts to analyze the key themes and interpretations of the novel. It asks students to consider whether the novel is a comedy, satire, or allegory and examines the multiple meanings of "the trial" and interpretations of the work. It focuses on analyzing the theme of how the law is portrayed in the novel, how it illustrates the difficulty of discerning the truth or meaning of the law. It also prompts examining details about the arbitrary and illegitimate nature of the court system in the story and considering the background and personality of the main character Josef K.

Uploaded by

Sumeeran Bhandari
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Law, Literature and Modernism

(Dear students, I request all of you to attempt a critical essay, considering the below given hints,
in order to construct a critical connection between law and literature. You can also interpret
Kafka ‘s The Trial from the perspective of Modernism by depicting the conditions of law and
justice in the “modern” world . Hope you would take this critical writing exercise very
seriously.)

How do you characterize this novel? Is it a comedy? A satire? An allegory? Although it is

frequently characterized as a dark and brooding novel, The Trial is often quite funny. When

Kafka read portions of the novel to his friends, it was reported that he read them in a way that

had everyone laughing. Reread some of the scenes looking for the humor in them.

The Trial works on many levels. What is the “Law”? What is the Court System? What is the

“trial” that is being conducted against K.? The title in German for The Trial probably more

accurately translates to “The Process.” Is the novel about the law and legal procedure? Is it about

totalitarianism? Bureaucracy? Is the novel an allegory about death and dying? Is the trial is a

psychological one and the events of the novel are symbolic of what is going on inside K.’s head

(or take place inside K.’s mind)? Is the novel about one’s becoming paranoid or insane? Is the

novel meant to represent life itself, the modern condition? Is the novel about our ability to find

truth? Is it about faith and religion and the inability to ever know divine Law or God? Perhaps it

is about all these things simultaneously and we are to see the connections and parallels among

them.

Focus on the theme of the law and its interpretation. The Trial illustrates the difficulty in arriving

at the truth – in particular, the truth about the Law. What is the Law? Does anybody have access

to the Law? Do the Court officials know what the Law is? Does the Law even exist? What does

the novel demonstrate about the way the law works -- its authority, legitimacy, psychology,
bureaucracy, procedure? On pp. 215-217, the priest tells K. a parable. The priest and K. then

discuss various interpretations of the parable. Read the parable again and think about how it

relates to the novel. What does this scene illustrate about interpretation?

Think about the Court that applies and enforces the law. Why do the workings of the Court seem

so makeshift and unprofessional? Why are Court offices in attics? The courtroom where K.

initially appeared is really a “fully furnished living room.” (p. 55). A portrait of an examining

magistrate appears to have him sitting on a throne but he’s actually sitting on a kitchen stool with

an old horse blanket folded over it. (p. 106). What do these details and others tell you about the

Court? About the nature of authority? About the legitimacy of the Court?

Focus as well on the background and personality of Josef K. What type of a person is K.? How

much about K.’s life and personality do we learn? How does the trial affect K.? Although the

novel begins with K. being arrested “one morning” (p.3), we later find out that this is K.’s 30th

birthday. His trial ends on his 31st birthday. Why do you think this is? After his arrest and his

initial court proceeding, the Court seems to forget about K. K. seems to seek out the Court rather

than vice versa. Perhaps he is not trying to escape from authority but is seeking it out. What does

this say about K. and about human nature in general? What could K. be guilty of? Is he guilty of

a crime or is he just experiencing guilt? Guilt about Fraulein Burstner? Guilt over the way he

lived his life? Or generalized guilt without being tied to anything in particular? Or is K.

inexplicably subjected to suffering (perhaps K. is a modern version of Job)?

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