Your Favourite Kafka Stories

[KingArmery]

The obvious choice is Metamorphosis, but are there any other stories by Franz Kafka that you have enjoyed?

My top 5 favourites that I've read so far are as follows:

1. Metamorphosis
2. A Country Doctor
3. A Hunger Artist
4. The Trees
5. Investigations of a Dog

 

[SilentCom]

It's been a while since I read any Kafka. I do sort of remember A Hunger Artist so I'll have to go with that one.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

The Trial. Sheer faceless brilliance.

 

[SwimmingRock]

Hunger Artist was the only one I really liked. Metamorphoses is overrated and The Trial was decent, but not great. Honestly, I suggest reading Jorge Luis Borges over Kafka. Everybody I know who's read both agrees that Borges is essentially "Kafka, but better".

EDIT: Forgot about In The Penal Colony. Was interesting, but again not great. Maybe it's because I read translations, but his style just bores me.

 

[KefkaCultist]

Well there was this one time that I became the god of magic and destroyed the entire world with my light of judgement.

Oh wait... Who is "Kafka"?!?!?! This fool is an imposter of the great Kefka Palazzo and shall be punished!

I hate hate hate hate HATE when people try to steal my namesake!

 

[tigermilk]

The only two Kafka novels I have read are 'Inside the Penal Colony' and 'A Hunger Artist'. Both were great and I do mean to read more of his work perhaps one day attempting to tackle 'The Trial'.

Oh yeah and I read 'Kafka for Beginners' which is great for putting his work in the context of his life and times and for the Robert Crumb illustrations.

 

[KingArmery]

The Trial. Sheer faceless brilliance.

I haven't read The Trial but it certainly sounds interesting. What is it about?

Hunger Artist was the only one I really liked. Metamorphoses is overrated and The Trial was decent, but not great.

Why do you think Metamorphosis is overrated? I thought it was a fantastic blend of comedy and commentary on social position, while very much written with a focus.

Honestly, I suggest reading Jorge Luis Borges over Kafka.

I will definitely be looking into him now that you've mentioned his name. What would you recommend reading by Jorge Luis Borges? Ficciones, The Aleph,...?

 

[SwimmingRock]

Hunger Artist was the only one I really liked. Metamorphoses is overrated and The Trial was decent, but not great.

Why do you think Metamorphosis is overrated? I thought it was a fantastic blend of comedy and commentary on social position, while very much written with a focus.

Honestly, I suggest reading Jorge Luis Borges over Kafka.

I will definitely be looking into him now that you've mentioned his name. What would you recommend reading by Jorge Luis Borges? Ficciones, The Aleph,...?

Okay, I'm not sure how to do the quote-splitting you did, so I'll just respond in points.

1. I guess we simply have different taste in writing then, because I didn't find Metamorphoses at all humorous and thought it took way too damn long. It also didn't really get into the existential implications for the main character beyond the 'freaking the hell out' period of adjustment. It could have gone somewhere, but in the end I felt it didn't. It just kind of meandered and then stopped.

2. Ficciones is a good place to start with Borges. It was the first I read. Personally, though, I liked The Book of Sand and Sheakespeares Memory (sold as one book from Penguin) more. Also, don't bother getting The Book of Imaginary Beings if you want to read stories. It's a reference work which, although fascinating in its own right, doesn't contain much originality (duh for a reference book), so it doesn't display the creativity of Borges. Haven't read The Aleph myself, so can't give much info or feedback there.

I first read Ficciones at 17, so they may not hold up as well as I believe, but the three stories that stuck with me in particular were The Circular Ruins, The Babylon Lottery and The Garden Of Forking Paths. Hope this helps.

 

[KingArmery]

Okay, I'm not sure how to do the quote-splitting you did, so I'll just respond in points.

I just hit the Quote button twice and cut-paste what I want to answer in each quote.

1. I guess we simply have different taste in writing then, because I didn't find Metamorphoses at all humorous and thought it took way too damn long. It also didn't really get into the existential implications for the main character beyond the 'freaking the hell out' period of adjustment. It could have gone somewhere, but in the end I felt it didn't. It just kind of meandered and then stopped.

It was more about the delusion for Samsa of being able to change back into a human (or continue acting as if he were human), the continual spiral into less and less human qualities, and also his family more and more accepting that he is gone. By the sound of it, this was not what you were hoping for. So yes, it seems we do have somewhat different tastes in writing.

2. Ficciones is a good place to start with Borges. It was the first I read. Personally, though, I liked The Book of Sand and Sheakespeares Memory (sold as one book from Penguin) more. Also, don't bother getting The Book of Imaginary Beings if you want to read stories. It's a reference work which, although fascinating in its own right, doesn't contain much originality (duh for a reference book), so it doesn't display the creativity of Borges. Haven't read The Aleph myself, so can't give much info or feedback there.

I first read Ficciones at 17, so they may not hold up as well as I believe, but the three stories that stuck with me in particular were The Circular Ruins, The Babylon Lottery and The Garden Of Forking Paths. Hope this helps.

Thank you for the recommendation; I will start of with Ficciones, and am ordering it as I speak.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

The Trial. Sheer faceless brilliance.

I haven't read The Trial but it certainly sounds interesting. What is it about?

"You have no need to know that, K. Move along. Your sentencing is about to start."

 

[oliveira8]

The Trial. Sheer faceless brilliance.

The Orson Welles movie about it, is also sheer faceless brilliance. It's in public domain too.

 

[similar.squirrel]

The Burrow. For some odd reason, I can really relate to the unspecified creature that takes the role of the protagonist. And now that I think of it, the story is essential reading for any Minecraft player. Kafka captured that whole mentality superbly.