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Colony, and Other Stories: The Great Short Works of Franz Kafka</h1><h2>by <a href="/author/kafkafranz">Franz Kafka</a><hr></h2><div class="authorsandseries"><h3><b>Other authors:</b> See the <a href="#otherauthors">other authors</a> section.</h3></div></div><div class="wslcontainer"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="wsltable"><tr class="wslheader"><td width="18%" class="firstchild">Members</td><td width="18%">Reviews</td><td width="18%">Popularity</td><td width="22%">Average rating</td><td width="25%" class="lastchild">Mentions</td></tr><tr class="wslcontent"><td valign="middle" class="firstchild"><a href="/work/2969633/members">1,724</a></td><td valign="middle"><a href="/work/2969633/reviews">9</a></td><td valign="middle"><a href="/work/2969633/popularity">10,710</a></td><td valign="middle"><nobr><a href="/work/2969633/members"><img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/ss8.gif" style="margin-bottom: -2px;"></a> <span class="dark_hint">(4.08)</span></nobr></td><td valign="middle" class="lastchild"><a href="/work/2969633/conversations">25</a></td></tr><tr class="wslcontent wslsummary"><td colspan="7" class="lastchild"><div class="" >Collection of the best know novellas and stories of one of the seminal writers of the twentieth century.</div class="" ></td></tr></table></div><div id="workpagesort_10" class="quickedit light flipped"><div class="nav"><div class="sectionhead_rbutcontainer"><span style="font-size:9px;font-weight:normal;"><a value="all members" value="all members" class="func_lt2_display_ui lt2button btn ltbtn-button-float-right btn-tiny btn-default" type="button" role="button" href="/work/2969633/members/" ><span class="btntxt">all members</span></a></span></div><span class="navInfoTitle"><span class="divotBig" onclick="LibraryThing.work.handleSectionHide(this, 'members', 'u_17d3ba61', '0');"><span class="chdivot" style="font-size:9px;vertical-align:bottom;">▼</span></span>Members</span><span class="sectionTitleST"></span></div><div 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onclick="loadReviewsIntoContainer('',0,2,3,'wp_reviews',5,'','2969633','',false, null, 'profile'); return false;">votes</a></div>Showing 1-5 of 9 (<a href="#" onclick="loadReviewsIntoContainer('',5,0,3,'wp_reviews',5,'','2969633','', false, null, 'profile'); return false;">next</a> | <a href="#" onclick="loadReviewsIntoContainer('',0,0,3,'wp_reviews',10000,'','2969633','', false, null, 'profile'); return false;">show all</a>)</div><div class="bookReview"><div class="bookReview_content"><div id="brtext_75862154" class="commentText brslop"><div class="brev_cover"><a href="/work/2969633" data-workid="2969633" class="" ><img src="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX100_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg" srcset="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX200_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg 2x, https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX300_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg 3x" class="bookReview_cover cover" /></a></div><div class="commentHeader"></div>I'd read some of the works collected here before--most notably "The Hunger Artist" and "The Metamorphosis"--and rereading them was a clear reminder of why and how they've stuck with me all these years. Kafka's sideways examination of the human condition, and social contracts and understandings, is as powerful and striking as ever, smartly written and driven forward with such intention as to be near other-worldly. Somehow, it's still "The Hunger Artist" that draws me back again and again as a heartbreaking and yet ever-meaningful story. But on this read, going through the whole of the collection, I also was left speechless by a number of other stories of Kakfa's which I'd not gotten around to reading before--especially "The Stoker", "A Report for an Academy", and "First Sorrow." I'm sure I'll be returning to this collection. <span class="rating">( <img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/ss8.gif"> )</span></div><div id="rfd_75862154" class="reviewFlagDialogBox"></div><div class="commentFooter"><span class="reviewMods"><span class="reviewVoteInfo"><span class="reviewVoteCount" id="rvc_75862154"> </span> </span><span class="reviewFlags"> <img id="rfi1_75862154" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/flag-trans.gif"> <img id="rfi2_75862154" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/flag-trans.gif"><span id="rfrf_75862154"> </span></span></span> <span class="controlItems ci3"><a href="/profile/whitewavedarling" target="_top">whitewavedarling</a> | Jul 16, 2023 | <a href="/review/75862154"><img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/permalink.gif" width="16" height="7"></a></span> </div></div></div><div class="bookReview"><div class="bookReview_content"><div id="brtext_200003021" class="commentText brslop"><div class="brev_cover"><a href="/work/2969633" data-workid="2969633" class="" ><img src="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX100_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg" srcset="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX200_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg 2x, https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX300_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg 3x" class="bookReview_cover cover" /></a></div><div class="commentHeader"></div>Minus a star for the Meditations, which are nearly all drafts only of interest to completists. Baffling that they were published.<br><br>The shorts ranked:<br>1. A Little Woman<br>2. Jackals and Arabs<br>3. A Report to an Academy<br>4. An Old Manuscript<br>5. An Imperial Message <span class="rating">( <img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/ss8.gif"> )</span></div><div id="rfd_200003021" class="reviewFlagDialogBox"></div><div class="commentFooter"><span class="reviewMods"><span class="reviewVoteInfo"><span class="reviewVoteCount" id="rvc_200003021"> </span> </span><span class="reviewFlags"> <img id="rfi1_200003021" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/flag-trans.gif"> <img id="rfi2_200003021" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/flag-trans.gif"><span id="rfrf_200003021"> </span></span></span> <span class="controlItems ci3"><a href="/profile/brendanowicz" target="_top">brendanowicz</a> | May 9, 2021 | <a href="/review/200003021"><img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/permalink.gif" width="16" height="7"></a></span> </div></div></div><div class="bookReview"><div class="bookReview_content"><div id="brtext_163012075" class="commentText brslop"><div class="brev_cover"><a href="/work/2969633" data-workid="2969633" class="" ><img src="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX100_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg" srcset="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX200_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg 2x, https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX300_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg 3x" class="bookReview_cover cover" /></a></div><div class="commentHeader"></div>This collection of 41 pieces of Franz Kafka's shorter fiction includes English versions of the well-known classics as well as several more obscure works. <br><br>The four classics that are included are "The Metamorphosis", "The Hunger Artist", "The Judgment", and "In the Penal Colony". Other included works are "First Sorrow", 14 short pieces that made up his book "A Country Doctor", 18 short items that made up his first book, "Contemplation", and "The Stoker" (first chapter of the posthumous book "America"), plus 3 early stories ("Conversation with the Worshipper", "Conversation with the Drunk", and "Great Noise"). <br><br>The works were translated into English by Joachim Neugroschel. Two book jacket blurbs praise Neugroschel's translations as being an advance over previous translations (clearly including the older Willa and Edwin Muir translations). An introduction by Neugroschel reflects on the confusion and complexities involved in the translation of Kafka's prose. He notes that Kafka's wrote in "Prague" German, a form that "lacks the slang, colloquialisms, and dialectal influences" of High German.<br><br>This collection is a useful survey of Kafka's short fiction, and in addition to the classic works, includes a number of others not found in the early volume edited by the Muirs. Among them are Kafka's early stories, plus his first published collection "Contemplation" (published in 1912 as "Betrachtung", a title often rendered in English as "Meditation"), as well as the short stories that make up the 1917 collection "A Country Doctor". However, this collection also lacks some other short stories that Kafka fans and scholars consider to be notable, such as "The Great Wall of China", "The Burrow", and "Josephine the Singer or the Mouse Folk". <br><br>For my part, I favor three classic works ("The Metamorphosis", "The Hunger Artist", and "The Judgment") while considering "In the Penal Colony" bizarre and disturbing. The remaining selections I find to be as enigmatic and perplexing, and have few attractions for me. My ratings for this collection reflect its coverage and the perceived quality of its translations more than my own reaction to the pieces themselves. <br><br>Readers interested in reading descriptive commentaries on each of the stories found in "A Country Doctor" and "Contemplations can find them at Wikipedia, via the links below: <br><br><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Country_Doctor_(short_story_collection)" rel="nofollow" target="_top">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Country_Doctor_(short_story_collection)</a><br><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contemplation_(short_story_collection)" rel="nofollow" target="_top">https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contemplation_(short_story_collection)</a> <span class="rating">( <img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/ss8.gif"> )</span></div><div id="rfd_163012075" class="reviewFlagDialogBox"></div><div class="commentFooter"><span class="reviewMods"><span class="reviewVoteInfo"><span class="reviewVoteCount" id="rvc_163012075">1</span> <img title="1 member found this review helpful" id="rvi_163012075" alt="vote" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/voteup-y.gif"></span><span class="reviewFlags"> <img id="rfi1_163012075" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/flag-trans.gif"> <img id="rfi2_163012075" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/flag-trans.gif"><span id="rfrf_163012075"> </span></span></span> <span class="controlItems ci3"><a href="/profile/danielx" target="_top">danielx</a> | Dec 27, 2018 | <a href="/review/163012075"><img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/permalink.gif" width="16" height="7"></a></span> </div></div></div><div class="bookReview"><div class="bookReview_content"><div id="brtext_139020927" class="commentText brslop"><div class="brev_cover"><a href="/work/2969633" data-workid="2969633" class="" ><img src="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX100_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg" srcset="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX200_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg 2x, https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX300_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg 3x" class="bookReview_cover cover" /></a></div><div class="commentHeader"></div>A collection of Kafka's shorter fiction published in his lifetime with some travel writing as an appendix.<br><br>This is the first Kafka I've read. I can see why 'The Metamorphosis' is well known but I found the rest of the collection to be pretty much hit or miss, with some weird tales and others that just left going "so?". 'The Hunger Artist' was interesting, but actually my favourite was 'The Aeroplanes at Brescia', a piece of travel writing about a trip Kafka made in 1909 by train and car to see the air show at Brescia in 1909 - the whole idea of doing such a thing in 1909 seems so unexpected. <span class="rating">( <img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/ss6.gif"> )</span></div><div id="rfd_139020927" class="reviewFlagDialogBox"></div><div class="commentFooter"><span class="reviewMods"><span class="reviewVoteInfo"><span class="reviewVoteCount" id="rvc_139020927"> </span> </span><span class="reviewFlags"> <img id="rfi1_139020927" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/flag-trans.gif"> <img id="rfi2_139020927" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/flag-trans.gif"><span id="rfrf_139020927"> </span></span></span> <span class="controlItems ci3"><a href="/profile/Robertgreaves" target="_top">Robertgreaves</a> | May 31, 2018 | <a href="/review/139020927"><img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/permalink.gif" width="16" height="7"></a></span> </div></div></div><div class="bookReview"><div class="bookReview_content"><div id="brtext_119619545" class="commentText brslop"><div class="brev_cover"><a href="/work/2969633" data-workid="2969633" class="" ><img src="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX100_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg" srcset="https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX200_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg 2x, https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/P/0684800705.01._SX300_SCLZZZZZZZ_.jpg 3x" class="bookReview_cover cover" /></a></div><div class="commentHeader"></div>I'm giving this book a certain score, but realize first and foremost that it is wildly inconsistent. There can be no doubt that "The Metamorphosis" and "In The Penal Colony" are masterpieces of short literature that rank with the highest of perhaps anything that's been written in the form. The works that come close to those are "The Judgment" and "A Hunger Artist" which perhaps most merit the score I give. They're very good achievements, but they don't have a good connection to the hand that wrote "The Trial", which is Kafka's unfinished masterpiece.<br><br>The rest of this collection is somewhat similar to Typee from Herman Melville. The elements of good writing are present but they haven't formed into that je ne sais quois that forms literature. These works can't even be called Kafka-esque in the same way Typee can't be considered Melvillean. Everyone will remember Melville for Moby Dick, a work that almost achieves the status of The Great American Novel, and similarly Kafka will be remembered for "The Trial" and the short stories for which this collection is partially named, but both authors must've not been able to feel their way out naturally since they both produce art that is wildly non-indicative.<br><br>It's not so much that these other stories are bad, but in a collection like this they are indeed "other." It's too bad that Kafka was not as prolific as Melville, since Melville managed to pump out a good bevy of excellent short stories between Moby Dick and his final hurrah of "Billy Budd, Sailor." This final stage of Melville's life carries almost as much of his legacy as Moby Dick itself. Kafka, on the other hand couldn't seem to decide what he wanted to produce in finality. Or else he could, but he still dotted it with less important work along the way.<br><br>I would suppose it were a blessing that Kafka couldn't decide on his ultimate vision the way Edgar Allan Poe or H.P. Lovecraft could. After all, his vision was a lot more complicated. It encased the full experience of the 20th century man, parts of which were left out for Poe or Lovecraft- Poe being nevertheless a literary auteur of the strange, frightening, and imaginative. Kafka, in his few masterworks, reached into the soul of man and reflected it back to us in all of its stunning sadism and otherwise. His beautiful portraits of transformation and auto-mechanism should be familiar to all. We can learn the ways we shouldn't treat each other in Kafka. <span class="rating">( <img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/ss8.gif"> )</span></div><div id="rfd_119619545" class="reviewFlagDialogBox"></div><div class="commentFooter"><span class="reviewMods"><span class="reviewVoteInfo"><span class="reviewVoteCount" id="rvc_119619545"> </span> </span><span class="reviewFlags"> <img id="rfi1_119619545" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/flag-trans.gif"> <img id="rfi2_119619545" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/flag-trans.gif"><span id="rfrf_119619545"> </span></span></span> <span class="controlItems ci3"><a href="/profile/Salmondaze" target="_top">Salmondaze</a> | Jul 24, 2015 | <a href="/review/119619545"><img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/permalink.gif" width="16" height="7"></a></span> </div></div></div><div class='reviewnav'><div class="right"><strong><a href="#" onclick="loadReviewsIntoContainer('',0,3,3,'wp_reviews',5,'','2969633','',false, null, 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style="margin-top: 5px !important;"><a href="javascript:otherauthors_edit(2969633)">» Add other authors (7 possible)</a></p><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0" class="otherauthor"><tr class="head"><td>Author name</td><td>Role</td><td>Type of author</td><td>Work?</td><td>Status</td></tr><tr><td><a href="/author/kafkafranz">Franz Kafka</a></td><td>—</td><td>primary author</td><td>all editions</td><td>calculated</td></tr><tr><td><a href="/author/neugroscheljoachim">Neugroschel, Joachim</a></td><td>Translator</td><td>secondary author</td><td>some editions</td><td>confirmed</td></tr></table></div></div></div><div id="workpagesort_57" class="quickedit light flipped"><div class="nav"><span class="navInfoTitle"><span class="divotBig" onclick="LibraryThing.work.handleSectionHide(this, 'relationships', 'u_4a299535', '0');"><span class="chdivot" style="font-size:9px;vertical-align:bottom;">▼</span></span>Series and work relationships</span></div><div class="qelcontent" id="u_4a299535" style="display:block;"><div id="seriesforwork_container"></div><div id="relationships_container"><h2>Contains</h2><div id="u_cb7a7d6d" class="showmore"><div class="actionWorklistAItem"><span class="worklistAwork"><a data-workid="5473" href="/work/5473">The Metamorphosis</a> by <a data-authorid="kafkafranz" href="/author/kafkafranz">Franz Kafka</a></span></div><div class="actionWorklistAItem"><span class="worklistAwork"><a data-workid="22631571" href="/work/22631571">In the Penal Colony [short story]</a> by <a data-authorid="kafkafranz" href="/author/kafkafranz">Franz Kafka</a></span></div></div></div></div></div><div id="workpagesort_59" class="quickedit light flipped"><div class="nav"><span class="navInfoTitle"><span class="divotBig" onclick="LibraryThing.work.handleSectionHide(this, 'newaward', 'u_d9ff3108', '0');"><span class="chdivot" style="font-size:9px;vertical-align:bottom;">▼</span></span>Awards and Honors</span></div><div class="qelcontent" id="u_d9ff3108" 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edit Common Knowledge data.</div> For more help see the <a href="https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/Common_Knowledge">Common Knowledge help page</a>. </div> </td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_canonicaltitle"></a>Canonical title</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_5a12f02a' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='21' name='u_5a12f02a' allowmultiple='0' hasHistory = '1' fieldName = 'canonicaltitle' uitype = '1' ltlang='eng' hint = 'Authoritative title for a work in the language of the site you are on' ><div class='fwikiItem divcanonicaltitle'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ><a href="/commonknowledge/search.php?q=The+Metamorphosis%2C+In+the+Penal+Colony%2C+and+Other+Stories%3A+The+Great+Short+Works+of+Franz+Kafka&f=21&exact=1&type=1">The Metamorphosis, In the Penal Colony, and Other Stories: The Great Short Works of Franz Kafka</a> </div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_originaltitle"></a>Original title</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_bbd0a890' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='41' name='u_bbd0a890' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'originaltitle' uitype = '1' ltlang='eng' hint = 'The original title in the original language' ><div class='fwikiItem divoriginaltitle'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_alternativetitles"></a>Alternative titles</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_2938099b' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='42' name='u_2938099b' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'alternativetitles' uitype = '1' ltlang='eng' hint = 'Avoid titles already listed as the Canonical or Original titles as well as foreign-language titles available on the "Details" tab.' ><div class='fwikiItem divalternativetitles'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_originalpublicationdate"></a>Original publication date</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_eaa7514c' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='16' name='u_eaa7514c' allowmultiple='0' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'originalpublicationdate' uitype = '1' ltlang='eng' hint = '1952-12-30, 1933-10, 1902, or 120 BCE' ><div class='fwikiItem divoriginalpublicationdate'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_characternames"></a>People/Characters</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_6ec7db97' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='3' name='u_6ec7db97' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'characternames' uitype = '1' ltlang='eng' hint = 'Enter each character's name in a separate box. Examples: Hermione Granger, Andrew Jackson, Oberon, St. Paul of Tarsus, or Zeus (Deity)' ><div class='fwikiItem divcharacternames'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_placesmentioned"></a>Important places</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_ceaa1efd' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='2' name='u_ceaa1efd' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'placesmentioned' uitype = '1' ltlang='eng' hint = '"Boston, Massachusetts, USA", "London, England", "The Plaza Hotel, New York, New York, USA", "Hogwarts", "Alpha Centauri", "Hell"' ><div class='fwikiItem divplacesmentioned'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_events"></a>Important events</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_5cd74892' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='34' name='u_5cd74892' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'events' uitype = '1' ltlang='eng' hint = 'Great Fire of London (1666), Battle of the Bulge (1944|1945), Assassination of John F. Kennedy (1963-11-22), Battle of Hoth' ><div class='fwikiItem divevents'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_movies"></a>Related movies</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_bc2f1528' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='37' name='u_bc2f1528' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'movies' uitype = '1' ltlang='eng' hint = 'Blade Runner (1982), The Fellowship of the Ring (2001), The Three Musketeers (1993)' ><div class='fwikiItem divmovies'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" editVal="" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr>     <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_epigraph"></a>Epigraph</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_9fbc12ec' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='28' name='u_9fbc12ec' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'epigraph' uitype = '3' ltlang='eng' hint = 'The work's epigraph, "a phrase, quotation, or poem that is set at the beginning of a document or component." ' ><div class='fwikiItem divepigraph'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextLong fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_dedication"></a>Dedication</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_5ea61069' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='30' name='u_5ea61069' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'dedication' uitype = '3' ltlang='eng' hint = 'Author's dedication' ><div class='fwikiItem divdedication'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextLong fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_firstwords"></a>First words</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_622e991e' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='25' name='u_622e991e' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '1' fieldName = 'firstwords' uitype = '3' ltlang='eng' hint = 'The first sentence of the work.' ><div class='fwikiItem divfirstwords'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextLong fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" >"As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect."</div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_quotations"></a>Quotations</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_0d72a72b' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='27' name='u_0d72a72b' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'quotations' uitype = '3' ltlang='eng' hint = 'Well-known, relevant or interesting quotations from the work; Quotation marks are unnecessary.' ><div class='fwikiItem divquotations'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextLong fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_lastwords"></a>Last words</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_3137291b' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='26' name='u_3137291b' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '1' fieldName = 'lastwords' uitype = '3' ltlang='eng' hint = 'The last sentence of the work. Content will be hidden unless clicked.' ><div class='fwikiItem divlastwords'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextLong fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" id="u_87c06c00" style="display: none; min-height:12px;" >But they pulled themselves together, thronged around the cage, and refused to move on.</div><a href="javascript:showHiddenfieldcontent('u_87c06c00')" id="link_u_87c06c00">(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)</a><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_disambiguation"></a>Disambiguation notice</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_c2458c87' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='13' name='u_c2458c87' allowmultiple='0' hasHistory = '1' fieldName = 'disambiguation' uitype = '3' ltlang='eng' hint = 'Clarifications to be used by future combiners and separators, or just as information.' ><div class='fwikiItem divdisambiguation'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextLong fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" >Contents<UL><LI>Conversation With the Worshiper</LI><LI>Conversation With the Drunk</LI><LI>Great Noise</LI><LI>Children on the Highway</LI><LI>Exposing a City Slicker</LI><LI>The Sudden Stroll</LI><LI>Decisions</LI><LI>The Outing in the Mountains</LI><LI>The Bachelor's Unhappiness</LI><LI>The Businessman</LI><LI>Absently Gazing Out</LI><LI>The Way Home</LI><LI>The People Running By</LI><LI>The Passenger</LI><LI>Frocks</LI><LI>The Rejection</LI><LI>Reflections for Amateur Jockeys</LI><LI>The Window Facing the Street</LI><LI>The Wish to Be an Indian</LI><LI>The Trees</LI><LI>Unhappiness</LI><LI>The Judgment</LI><LI>The Stoker</LI><LI>The Metamorphosis</LI><LI>In the Penal Colony</LI><LI>The New Lawyer</LI><LI>A Country Doctor</LI><LI>Up in the Gallery</LI><LI>An Ancient Manuscript</LI><LI>Before the Law</LI><LI>Jackals and Arabs</LI><LI>A Visit to the Mine</LI><LI>The Next Village</LI><LI>An Imperial Message</LI><LI>The Anxiety of the Head of Family</LI><LI>Eleven Sons</LI><LI>A Fratricide</LI><LI>A Dream</LI><LI>A Report for an Academy</LI><LI>First Sorrow</LI><LI>The Hunger Artist</LI></UL></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_series"></a>Publisher's editors</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_ea4f9f1b' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='1' name='u_ea4f9f1b' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '1' fieldName = 'literaryeditors' uitype = '1' ltlang='eng' hint = 'Publisher's or acquiring editor' ><div class='fwikiItem divliteraryeditors'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ><a href="/publisherseditor/Goldman%2C+Erika">Goldman, Erika</a></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_blubers"></a>Blurbers</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField fwikiGroup' id='u_b025ab87' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='29' name='u_b025ab87' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '1' fieldName = 'blurbers' uitype = '1' ltlang='eng' hint = 'Who blurbed the book? A blurb is defined as a super-short review, done before the book is published or reviewed professionally. As Rachael Donadio wrote, "Book blurbs are a tangled mass of friendships, rivalries, favors traded and debts repaid, not always in good faith." This field aims to capture that tangle! <b>Note:</b> Please enter only the names of people, not publications. Use the form: Lastname, Firstname.' ><div class='fwikiItem divblurbers'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ><a href="/commonknowledge/search.php?q=Bloom%2C+Harold&f=29&exact=1&type=1">Bloom, Harold</a> </div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> <div class='fwikiItem divblurbers'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ><a href="/commonknowledge/search.php?q=Coates%2C+Joseph&f=29&exact=1&type=1">Coates, Joseph</a> </div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> <div class='fwikiItem divblurbers'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ><a href="/commonknowledge/search.php?q=Hayman%2C+Ronald&f=29&exact=1&type=1">Hayman, Ronald</a> </div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> <div class='fwikiItem divblurbers'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ><a href="/commonknowledge/search.php?q=Havel%2C+Vaclav&f=29&exact=1&type=1">Havel, Vaclav</a> </div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_originallanguage"></a>Original language</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_27553b14' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='58' name='u_27553b14' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'originallanguage' uitype = '1' ltlang='eng' hint = '' ><div class='fwikiItem divoriginallanguage'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_canonicalddc"></a>Canonical DDC/MDS</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_4ac4ba3b' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='61' name='u_4ac4ba3b' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'canonicalddc' uitype = '1' ltlang='eng' hint = 'Best consensus choice within the Melvil Decimal Classification System' ><div class='fwikiItem divcanonicalddc'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel"><a name="ck_canonicallcc"></a>Canonical LCC</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_48c1a728' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='66' name='u_48c1a728' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'canonicallcc' uitype = '1' ltlang='eng' hint = 'Best consensus choice within the Library of Congress Classification system' ><div class='fwikiItem divcanonicallcc'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> </table></div></div></div><div id="workpagesort_65" class="quickedit light flipped"><a class="nooffset" name="references"></a><div class="nav"><span class="navInfoTitle"><span class="divotBig" onclick="LibraryThing.work.handleSectionHide(this, 'references', 'u_779a0a96', '0');"><span class="chdivot" style="font-size:9px;vertical-align:bottom;">▼</span></span>References</span></div><div class="qelcontent references alwaysblue" id="u_779a0a96" style="display:block;"><p>References to this work on external resources.</p><h2><img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/favicon_wikipedia.gif" class="icon">Wikipedia in English</h2><p>None</p></div></div><div id="workpagesort_80" class="quickedit light flipped"><div class="nav"><span class="navInfoTitle"><span class="divotBig" onclick="LibraryThing.work.handleSectionHide(this, 'desc', 'u_91ac8d98', '0');"><span class="chdivot" style="font-size:9px;vertical-align:bottom;">▼</span></span>Book descriptions</span></div><div class="qelcontent" id="u_91ac8d98" style="display:block;">Collection of the best know novellas and stories of one of the seminal writers of the twentieth century.</div></div><div id="workpagesort_25" class="quickedit light"><div class="nav"><span class="navInfoTitle"><span class="divotBig" onclick="LibraryThing.work.handleSectionHide(this, 'libdesc', 'u_f149a848', '0');"><span class="chdivot" style="font-size:9px;vertical-align:bottom;">▼</span></span>Library descriptions</span></div><div class="qelcontent" id="u_f149a848" style="display:block;"><p>No library descriptions found.</p></div></div><div id="workpagesort_70" class="quickedit light flipped"><div class="nav"><div class="sectionhead_rbutcontainer"><span class="sectionTitleHelp"><a href="https://wiki.librarything.com/index.php/Common_Knowledge#LibraryThing_members.27_description" class="blacklink" title="Help"><img style="vertical-align:middle;" class="helpIcon" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/helpq.png" alt="?"></a></span></div><span class="navInfoTitle"><span class="divotBig" onclick="LibraryThing.work.handleSectionHide(this, 'ckdesc', 'u_2ce614c4', '0');"><span 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It is not a review.' ><div class='fwikiItem divdescription'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextLong fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> </table></div> <a name="haiku"></a> <div class="workSection"> <table class="fwikiContainerTable ch2"> <tr> <td valign="top" class="fwikiLabel">Haiku summary</td> <td><table class="fwikiGroup"><tr><td class='fwikiField' id='u_79e29a96' itemType='1' itemNum='2969633' fieldType='57' name='u_79e29a96' allowmultiple='1' hasHistory = '0' fieldName = 'haikusummary' uitype = '3' ltlang='eng' hint = 'Add a summary or other appreciation in haiku form (17 syllables; 5/7/5); include your member name in parentheses.' ><div class='fwikiItem divhaikusummary'><div class='fwikiItemText fwikiItemTextLong fwikiItemTextUnknownUser'><div class="fwikiAtomicValue" style="min-height:12px;" ></div><img style="float:left;" src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/transdot.gif' height='12px' width='1px' alt=''></div></div> </td><td class='fwikiItemControls'></td></td></tr></table></td> </tr> </table></div> </div></div> </td> <td class="right"> <div class="greenbox ltauthor"><img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/badge-legacy-clipped.gif" width="60" height="57" class="logo"><div class="inside"><h2 class="first">Legacy Library: <nobr>Franz Kafka</nobr></h2> <p>Franz Kafka has a Legacy Library. Legacy libraries are the personal libraries of famous readers, entered by LibraryThing members from the <a href="/groups/iseedeadpeoplesbooks">Legacy Libraries</a> group.</p><p>See <a href="/profile/Franz_Kafka">Franz Kafka's legacy profile</a>.</p><p class="last">See <a href="/author/kafkafranz">Franz Kafka's author page</a>.</p></div></div><div class="greenbox currentdiscussions" style="position: relative;"><h2>Current Discussions</h2>None</div><div class="greenbox popularcovers"><h2>Popular covers</h2><div id="popularcovers"></div></div><div id="buyborrowswapbox" class="greenbox bluntbottom"><table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 width="100%"><tr><td><h2 class="first">Quick Links</h2></td><td width="20px"></td></tr></table><div class="quicklinks_in_greenbox"><div class="ql_printdisplay_line" bsm_code="500:395"><a href="javascript:eda(2969633, 500, 395);"><img class="ql_iconthing flim" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/steps-1.gif?20"></a><a href="javascript:eda(2969633, 500, 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gtb-googlebooks-title">Google Books</span> — <span class="gbssummary">Loading...</span></div><div class="ql_printdisplay_line" bsm_code="700:1"><a href="javascript:eda(2969633, 700, 1);"><img class="ql_iconthing flim" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/steps-1.gif?20"></a><a href="javascript:eda(2969633, 700, 1);">WorldCat</a></div></div></div><div id="getthisbooklinks" class="greenbox blunttop"><div class="ql_printdisplay_line"><div class="ql_printdisplay_line"><a href="/work/2969633/get#swap"><img class="ql_iconthing" src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/fugue/arrow-circle-double.png" alt=""></a><a class="alwaysblue" href="/work/2969633/get#swap">Swap</a> <span class="detail gray">(1 have, 17 want)</span></div></div></div><div class="greenbox genrething"><h2 class="first">Genres</h2><div id="genregreenbox"><div class="genreline"><div class="text"><a href="/genre/58/Fiction-and-Literature" class="" >Fiction and Literature</a></div><div class="chartline2" style="min-width:200px;height:20px" ><span style="width:79.6%"></span></div></div> <div class="genreline"><div class="text"><a href="/genre/8/General-Fiction" class="" >General Fiction</a></div><div class="chartline2" style="min-width:200px;height:20px" ><span style="width:78%"></span></div></div></div><h2 style="margin-top: 2em;" class="" >Melvil Decimal System (DDC)</h2><span class="cattype_label ddc"><a href="/mds/833.912">833.912</a></span><a class="bluelink cattype_item" href="/mds/833.912">Literature <span class="breadcrumb_separator">&rsaquo;</span> German and related languages <span class="breadcrumb_separator">&rsaquo;</span> German fiction <span class="breadcrumb_separator">&rsaquo;</span> 1900- <span class="breadcrumb_separator">&rsaquo;</span> 1900-1990 <span class="breadcrumb_separator">&rsaquo;</span> 1900-1945</a><h2 class="" >LC Classification</h2><div class="cattype_item"><span class="cattype_label lcc"><a href="/lcc/PT2621.A26" class="" >PT2621.A26</a></span><span class="lccsch"><a href="/lcc/P" class="bluelink cattype_item" target="_top" ><span class="wording">Language and Literature</span></span></a> <span class="breadcrumb_separator">&rsaquo;</span> <span class="lccsch"><a href="/lcc/PT" class="bluelink cattype_item" target="_top" ><span class="wording">German, Dutch and Scandinavian literatures</span></span></a> <span class="breadcrumb_separator">&rsaquo;</span> <span class="lccsch"><a href="/lcc/PT1-4897" class="bluelink cattype_item" target="_top" ><span class="wording">German literature</span></span></a> <span class="breadcrumb_separator">&rsaquo;</span> <span class="lccsch"><a href="/lcc/PT1501-2688" class="bluelink cattype_item" target="_top" ><span class="wording">Individual authors or works</span></span></a> <span class="breadcrumb_separator">&rsaquo;</span> <span class="lccsch"><a href="/lcc/PT2600-2653" class="bluelink cattype_item" target="_top" ><span class="wording">1860/70-1960</span></span></a></div></div> <div class="greenbox"> <h2>Rating</h2>Average: <nobr><img src="https://image.librarything.com/pics/ss8.gif" style="margin-bottom: -2px;"> <span class="work_hint">(4.08)</span></nobr><table border=0 cellspacing=0 cellpadding=0 class="greenbar"><tr><td class='gbl'>0.5</td><td class='gbr'><img src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/gb.gif' height=5 width=1> 1</td></tr><tr><td class='gbl'>1</td><td class='gbr'><img src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/gb.gif' height=5 width=4> 4</td></tr><tr><td class='gbl'>1.5</td><td class='gbr'><tr><td class='gbl'>2</td><td class='gbr'><img src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/gb.gif' height=5 width=9> 10</td></tr><tr><td class='gbl'>2.5</td><td class='gbr'><img src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/gb.gif' height=5 width=4> 4</td></tr><tr><td class='gbl'>3</td><td class='gbr'><img src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/gb.gif' height=5 width=36> 39</td></tr><tr><td class='gbl'>3.5</td><td class='gbr'><img src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/gb.gif' height=5 width=12> 13</td></tr><tr><td class='gbl'>4</td><td class='gbr'><img src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/gb.gif' height=5 width=110> 118</td></tr><tr><td class='gbl'>4.5</td><td class='gbr'><img src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/gb.gif' height=5 width=12> 13</td></tr><tr><td class='gbl'>5</td><td class='gbr'><img src='https://image.librarything.com/pics/gb.gif' height=5 width=99> 106</td></tr></table> </div> </div> </td> </tr> </table> </div> </div> <p style="clear: both;"> </p> <script src="https://www.librarything.com/js2/card5.js?5297" flag_fte="2" static_host="https://www.librarything.com/" type="text/javascript" language="Javascript"></script> <script src="https://www.librarything.com/js2/reviewMods.js?5297" flag_fte="2" static_host="https://www.librarything.com/" type="text/javascript" language="Javascript"></script> <script src="https://www.librarything.com/js/work.js?5297" flag_fte="2" 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