Franz Kafka & His Relationship with His Father Revealed in His Writing
Franz Kafka:
How his relationship with his father was revealed in
“A Letter to My Father”, “The Judgment”,
& “The Metamorphosis”
Franz Kafka is an icon of dark existentialist and absurdist literature that frequently wrote about themes of isolation, alienation, and authoritarian oppression. His well-known work includes the short stories "The Metamorphosis", and “ The Judgment.” as well as his prominent "Letter to His Father", in which he attempted to clarify the tense relationship and his emotional oddness. Franz Kafka was born in Prague on July 3rd, 1883. Prague was a perplexed city, a great deal like Kafka himself. With several languages and ethnic groups struggling for a position in Prague, it was apparent in the late 19th century that Jewish residents were relatively low in social status. Kafka was a Czech-born, German-speaking Jewish boy. Franz had a complex time while living at home because he suffered from hypersensitivity to noise and a yearning for solitude. His father Hermann was an importer and ran a store specializing in “fine goods” for the rising middle- class. Hermann was a self-made man, extremely aware of his own success and his son’s lack of success. His father quite often, verbally abused Franz, a truth revealed in a good deal of Kafka’s stories and within his diaries. Kafka never did rebel openly against his father; however, he did express his feelings towards his father in many pieces of work. In “Letter to My Father”, Franz Kafka openly expresses his feelings and emotions towards the relationship he had with his father. Hermann Kafka was a major influence in the writer's life, commonly described as big, loud, impulsive, and authoritarian. He stated: "My writing was all about you; all I did there, after all, was to bemoan what I could not bemoan upon your breast. It was an intentionally long-drawn-out leave-taking from you." Kafka's hesitant take on authority-his capability to respect it, rebel against it, and blame himself for
How his relationship with his father was revealed in
“A Letter to My Father”, “The Judgment”,
& “The Metamorphosis”
Franz Kafka is an icon of dark existentialist and absurdist literature that frequently wrote about themes of isolation, alienation, and authoritarian oppression. His well-known work includes the short stories "The Metamorphosis", and “ The Judgment.” as well as his prominent "Letter to His Father", in which he attempted to clarify the tense relationship and his emotional oddness. Franz Kafka was born in Prague on July 3rd, 1883. Prague was a perplexed city, a great deal like Kafka himself. With several languages and ethnic groups struggling for a position in Prague, it was apparent in the late 19th century that Jewish residents were relatively low in social status. Kafka was a Czech-born, German-speaking Jewish boy. Franz had a complex time while living at home because he suffered from hypersensitivity to noise and a yearning for solitude. His father Hermann was an importer and ran a store specializing in “fine goods” for the rising middle- class. Hermann was a self-made man, extremely aware of his own success and his son’s lack of success. His father quite often, verbally abused Franz, a truth revealed in a good deal of Kafka’s stories and within his diaries. Kafka never did rebel openly against his father; however, he did express his feelings towards his father in many pieces of work. In “Letter to My Father”, Franz Kafka openly expresses his feelings and emotions towards the relationship he had with his father. Hermann Kafka was a major influence in the writer's life, commonly described as big, loud, impulsive, and authoritarian. He stated: "My writing was all about you; all I did there, after all, was to bemoan what I could not bemoan upon your breast. It was an intentionally long-drawn-out leave-taking from you." Kafka's hesitant take on authority-his capability to respect it, rebel against it, and blame himself for
References: § http://www.pitt.edu/~kafka/kafkabio.html § http://www.notablebiographies.com/Jo-Ki/Kafka-Franz.html § http://www.wsu.edu/~delahoyd/20th/kafka.html § http://www.aranea.co.nz/HTM/Kafka.htm § Butler, Lance St. John, "The Judgment: Overview" in Reference Guide to Short Fiction, 1st ed., St. James Press, 1994. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/LitRC?vrsn=3&OP=contains&locID=nysl_me_touro&srchtp=athr&ca=1&c=22&ste=16&stab=512&tab=2&tbst=arp&ai=U13007810&n=10&docNum=H1420004475&ST=kafka&bConts=278447 § Goldfarb, Sheldon, Critical Essay on "The Metamorphosis," Short Stories for Students, Vol. 12, The Gale Group, 2001. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/LitRC?vrsn=3&OP=contains&locID=nysl_me_touro&srchtp=athr&ca=1&c=32&ste=16&stab=512&tab=2&tbst=arp&ai=U13007810&n=10&docNum=H1420035801&ST=kafka&bConts=278447 § Aldiss, Brian W., "Franz Kafka: Overview" in St. James Guide to Science Fiction Writers, 4th ed., St. James Press, 1996. http://galenet.galegroup.com/servlet/LitRC?vrsn=3&OP=contains&locID=nysl_me_touro&srchtp=athr&ca=1&c=16&ste=16&stab=512&tab=2&tbst=arp&ai=U13007810&n=10&docNum=H1420004468&ST=kafka&bConts=278447