June 3, 2024, marked the 100th anniversary of the death of Franz Kafka, one of the most influential writers of the 20th century.
He was born in 1883, in Prague, capital of Bohemia, a Habsburg crown territory. As a Jewish person within the German community of a Czech city inside the Austro-Hungarian empire, Kafka lived in a minority within a minority within a minority.
His parents were Czech Jews, fresh from Bohemian backwaters. Their surname derived from the Czech for a raven-like creature, with which the Kafkas grimly identified, adorning their haberdashery shop with it. Czech remained native to the family lexicon, even after an aspirational turn to German.
Kafka’s writing, often characterised by its surreal and nightmarish qualities, delves into the absurdities of modern life. His most famous works, including “The Metamorphosis,” “The Trial,” and “The Castle,” present a world where protagonists grapple with incomprehensible and often oppressive forces. These stories resonate with readers, capturing the existential angst and uncertainty that permeate human existence.
Kafka’s works were not widely known during his lifetime. In fact, he published only a few short stories, and his novels remained unfinished. It was his friend and confidant, Max Brod, who posthumously published Kafka’s manuscripts, ensuring that his legacy would endure. Kafka had requested that his unpublished works be destroyed, a wish Brod famously ignored, recognizing the immense literary value of his friend’s writings.
Today, Kafka’s influence extends beyond literature. His exploration of the absurdity and alienation in the modern world continues to resonate in contemporary culture, influencing countless writers, artists, and thinkers. Kafkaesque has entered the lexicon to describe situations reminiscent of his work—bizarre, illogical, and oppressive.
