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Kafka

Franz Kafka was a German-language writer born in Prague in 1883 who is considered one of the major figures of 20th-century literature. He studied law and worked as an insurance clerk while writing in his spare time. Many of his works were published posthumously by his friend Max Brod and explore themes of alienation, existential anxiety, and the individual's isolation in modern society.

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Anna Priddy
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82 views8 pages

Kafka

Franz Kafka was a German-language writer born in Prague in 1883 who is considered one of the major figures of 20th-century literature. He studied law and worked as an insurance clerk while writing in his spare time. Many of his works were published posthumously by his friend Max Brod and explore themes of alienation, existential anxiety, and the individual's isolation in modern society.

Uploaded by

Anna Priddy
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Franz Kafka

Anna Priddy and


Will Willis
Overview

● born July 3, 1883 in Prague


● Middle-class Jewish Family
● Studied law at the University of Prague
○ worked in insurance and wrote in the evenings
● 1923 - moved to Berlin to focus on writing
○ died of tuberculosis shortly after
● Max Brod (friend) published most of his work
posthumously
○ Amerika and The Castle
Early Years
● Two younger brothers died in infancy
○ Franz was the only son in a family with three daughters
● Difficult relationship with both parents
○ mother did not have intellectual depth to understands
son’s dreams of writing
○ father had a forceful personality that he brought home
● Father was a tyrant with a “wicked temper”, did
not appreciate creativity
○ translated into Kafka’s literature
○ characters rose up against an overbearing power
● Kafka attributed personal struggles (in romance
and relationships) to complicated relationship
with father
Education and Work
● intelligent child
● attended the Altstädter Staatsgymnasium, an exacting
high school for the academic elite
● had trouble with discipline
● enrolled at Charles Ferdinand University of Prague
○ intended to study chemistry but after just two weeks switched to law
● completed law degree in 1906, spent a year as an unpaid
law clerk
● First job at an Italian insurance agency
● Terrible job, but the job and his employers suited him
○ he worked hard and was quickly promoted
Love and Health
● Sociable at work, but personal life was complicated
● Engaged twice to Felice Bauer (finally parted ways
in 1917)
● Later fell in love with Dora Dymant
○ both were Jewish
● relationship centered on Kafka’s illnesses
○ strain and stress causes migranes, boils, depression, anxiety,
insomnia
● Kafka and Dora returned to Prague
● Went to Vienna for tuberculosis treatment but died
on June 3, 1924
Writing von Kafka
● gained fame after his death
● 1913: Betrachtung
○ collection of short stories
● 1915: “Vor dem Gesetz”
● Continued to write even with declining
health ● 1919: “In der Strafkolonie”
● 1915: “Die Verwandlung” and “Ein Landarzt”
○ most popular and best selling short story ● 1924: Ein Hungerkünstler
● 1916: “The Judgment” ○ four short stories, concise and
○ spoke directly about his relationship with his lucid style that is common of
father his later writing
Published by Brod
● Kafka requested that Brod destroy any
unpublished manuscripts but he did not
abide
● 1925: Der Proceß
○ dark, paranoid tale that was Kafka’s most
successful novel
● 1926: Das Schloss
● 1927: Amerika (Der Verschollene)
○ also undertones of father issues
○ also spoke to Kafka’s love of travel books and
memoirs
Fragen?

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