What do you think?
Rate this book
Процесс. Рассказы
Франц Кафка - уникальный немецкоязычный писатель, автор книг, которые потрясли литературный мир ХХ века. Романы "Процесс" и "Замок" увидели свет после смерти писателя и вопреки его воле: он завещал уничтожить все рукописи. Романы и новеллы Кафки - это особый мир, который завораживает своим сюрреализмом, причудливым переплетением реальности и вымысла, синтезом простоты и символичности сюжетного рисунка. Помимо романов "Процесс" и "Замок" в сборник вошли новеллы, созданные Кафкой в разные годы.
639 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1956
23 people are currently reading
220 people want to read
About the author
Franz Kafka
3,231 books38.7k followersFranz Kafka was a German-speaking writer from Prague whose work became one of the foundations of modern literature, even though he published only a small part of his writing during his lifetime. Born into a middle-class Jewish family in Prague, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Kafka grew up amid German, Czech, and Jewish cultural influences that shaped his sense of displacement and linguistic precision. His difficult relationship with his authoritarian father left a lasting mark, fostering feelings of guilt, anxiety, and inadequacy that became central themes in his fiction and personal writings.
Kafka studied law at the German University in Prague, earning a doctorate in 1906. He chose law for practical reasons rather than personal inclination, a compromise that troubled him throughout his life. After university, he worked for several insurance institutions, most notably the Workers Accident Insurance Institute for the Kingdom of Bohemia. His duties included assessing industrial accidents and drafting legal reports, work he carried out competently and responsibly. Nevertheless, Kafka regarded his professional life as an obstacle to his true vocation, and most of his writing was done at night or during periods of illness and leave. Kafka began publishing short prose pieces in his early adulthood, later collected in volumes such as Contemplation and A Country Doctor. These works attracted little attention at the time but already displayed the hallmarks of his mature style, including precise language, emotional restraint, and the application of calm logic to deeply unsettling situations. His major novels The Trial, The Castle, and Amerika were left unfinished and unpublished during his lifetime. They depict protagonists trapped within opaque systems of authority, facing accusations, rules, or hierarchies that remain unexplained and unreachable. Themes of alienation, guilt, bureaucracy, law, and punishment run throughout Kafka’s work. His characters often respond to absurd or terrifying circumstances with obedience or resignation, reflecting his own conflicted relationship with authority and obligation. Kafka’s prose avoids overt symbolism, yet his narratives function as powerful metaphors through structure, repetition, and tone. Ordinary environments gradually become nightmarish without losing their internal coherence. Kafka’s personal life was marked by emotional conflict, chronic self-doubt, and recurring illness. He formed intense but troubled romantic relationships, including engagements that he repeatedly broke off, fearing that marriage would interfere with his writing. His extensive correspondence and diaries reveal a relentless self-critic, deeply concerned with morality, spirituality, and the demands of artistic integrity. In his later years, Kafka’s health deteriorated due to tuberculosis, forcing him to withdraw from work and spend long periods in sanatoriums. Despite his illness, he continued writing when possible. He died young, leaving behind a large body of unpublished manuscripts. Before his death, he instructed his close friend Max Brod to destroy all of his remaining work. Brod ignored this request and instead edited and published Kafka’s novels, stories, and diaries, ensuring his posthumous reputation.
The publication of Kafka’s work after his death established him as one of the most influential writers of the twentieth century. The term Kafkaesque entered common usage to describe situations marked by oppressive bureaucracy, absurd logic, and existential anxiety. His writing has been interpreted through existential, religious, psychological, and political perspectives, though Kafka himself resisted definitive meanings. His enduring power lies in his ability to articulate modern anxiety with clarity and restraint.
Kafka studied law at the German University in Prague, earning a doctorate in 1906. He chose law for practical reasons rather than personal inclination, a compromise that troubled him throughout his life. After university, he worked for several insurance institutions, most notably the Workers Accident Insurance Institute for the Kingdom of Bohemia. His duties included assessing industrial accidents and drafting legal reports, work he carried out competently and responsibly. Nevertheless, Kafka regarded his professional life as an obstacle to his true vocation, and most of his writing was done at night or during periods of illness and leave. Kafka began publishing short prose pieces in his early adulthood, later collected in volumes such as Contemplation and A Country Doctor. These works attracted little attention at the time but already displayed the hallmarks of his mature style, including precise language, emotional restraint, and the application of calm logic to deeply unsettling situations. His major novels The Trial, The Castle, and Amerika were left unfinished and unpublished during his lifetime. They depict protagonists trapped within opaque systems of authority, facing accusations, rules, or hierarchies that remain unexplained and unreachable. Themes of alienation, guilt, bureaucracy, law, and punishment run throughout Kafka’s work. His characters often respond to absurd or terrifying circumstances with obedience or resignation, reflecting his own conflicted relationship with authority and obligation. Kafka’s prose avoids overt symbolism, yet his narratives function as powerful metaphors through structure, repetition, and tone. Ordinary environments gradually become nightmarish without losing their internal coherence. Kafka’s personal life was marked by emotional conflict, chronic self-doubt, and recurring illness. He formed intense but troubled romantic relationships, including engagements that he repeatedly broke off, fearing that marriage would interfere with his writing. His extensive correspondence and diaries reveal a relentless self-critic, deeply concerned with morality, spirituality, and the demands of artistic integrity. In his later years, Kafka’s health deteriorated due to tuberculosis, forcing him to withdraw from work and spend long periods in sanatoriums. Despite his illness, he continued writing when possible. He died young, leaving behind a large body of unpublished manuscripts. Before his death, he instructed his close friend Max Brod to destroy all of his remaining work. Brod ignored this request and instead edited and published Kafka’s novels, stories, and diaries, ensuring his posthumous reputation.
The publication of Kafka’s work after his death established him as one of the most influential writers of the twentieth century. The term Kafkaesque entered common usage to describe situations marked by oppressive bureaucracy, absurd logic, and existential anxiety. His writing has been interpreted through existential, religious, psychological, and political perspectives, though Kafka himself resisted definitive meanings. His enduring power lies in his ability to articulate modern anxiety with clarity and restraint.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews
September 8, 2021
Sämsta böckerna jag läst, men det får man väl hålla tyst om
October 18, 2021
განა ადამიანი შეიძლება იყოს დამნაშავე?
აი ასეა მოკლედ, იბადები და ეგრევე გეუბნებიან რომ რაღაცაში ხარ დამნაშავე. ეს ცოდვილობის ტვირთი საზიდი გაქვს მთელი ცხოვრება, სიკვდილამდე. არ არსებობს არცერთი გამართლებული (ანუ უცოდველი არავინ იბადება). უბრალოდ, ზოგს გავლენიანი ნაცნობები ჰყავს და უკეთეს პირობებშია. უცოდველი კი არაა, მარა ცოდვებს არც არასდროს მოჰკითხავენ.
ცოდვილობის ტვირთის აბსურდულობაზე გვესაუბრება კაფკა.რა გასაკვირია, რომ დოსტოევსკისადმი მიქსდ ფილინგები ჰქონდა.
აქვე: დოსტოევსკი ჩემთვის არის დიდებული ტალანტი გაფლანგული ფუჭად. მენანება.
აი ასეა მოკლედ, იბადები და ეგრევე გეუბნებიან რომ რაღაცაში ხარ დამნაშავე. ეს ცოდვილობის ტვირთი საზიდი გაქვს მთელი ცხოვრება, სიკვდილამდე. არ არსებობს არცერთი გამართლებული (ანუ უცოდველი არავინ იბადება). უბრალოდ, ზოგს გავლენიანი ნაცნობები ჰყავს და უკეთეს პირობებშია. უცოდველი კი არაა, მარა ცოდვებს არც არასდროს მოჰკითხავენ.
ცოდვილობის ტვირთის აბსურდულობაზე გვესაუბრება კაფკა.რა გასაკვირია, რომ დოსტოევსკისადმი მიქსდ ფილინგები ჰქონდა.
აქვე: დოსტოევსკი ჩემთვის არის დიდებული ტალანტი გაფლანგული ფუჭად. მენანება.
January 8, 2011
A monstrously spellbinding mockery of over-the-top bureaucracy set within a horrendous dreamscape only Kafka could possibly conjure. The book is almost a weapon against government depending on how close a reader pays attention. There is much to be learned about both sides of the bureaucratic machine; the public and the officials. Both sides have a similar view of the other and both are very wrong. Rumor has it, or more appropriately, the commonplace thought is that this work was unfinished by Kafka as it simply stops in the middle of a sentence. I posit that this is what Kafka intended because it is typical of a bureaucracy to not allow closure on any matter. Kafka's friend, who was responsible for publishing The Castle despite Kafka's wishes that he burn all his manuscripts upon his death, had no way of knowing Kafka's real intentions. I think Kafka knew well enough that his friend would publish this abomination and it would be his joke from the grave. During the several weeks it took me to read this novel, my sleep was populated with terrible dreams associated with this book...these dreams were all too familiar because I live them everyday. It is a haunting piece by a terrible human being and a master writer. I loved it for the same reason I get up for work every morning and contribute to a reprehensible but comforting Establishment. Rot in hell Kafka, your novel gets 5 stars.
November 25, 2017
This is my world
March 10, 2019
Estoy leyendo El Castillo, no El proceso. Hasta ahora he visto al menos tres capítulos enteramente e innegablemente humorísticos. No todo es angustia aquí, se diga lo que se diga.
March 4, 2024
Il Processo 4/5 🌟
Un racconto in cui traspare al massimo l'ideologia di kafka.
Un pretesto semplice ma che arriva ad analizzare il rapporto dell'essere umano con la legge e in maniera macroscopica dell'essere umano con la terra.
Il processo e la condanna che inesorabilmente gravano sulla sorte del protagonista gli fanno perdere la testa, e così si vede la sua rovina.
La perdita di energie, di interesse al proprio lavoro, di idee e pergiunta di voglia di combattere il suo stesso processo.
Una straziante storia in cui viene messo a nudo il rapporto che ogni essere umano ha con il mondo, l'incromprensibilità del mondo e delle sue leggi e l'enigma della vita.
K. non riesce mai ad afferrare la verità che costantemente gli sfugge e diventa inafferrabile, parabola dell'essere umano con la verità indecifrabile del mondo
Il Castello 4/5 🌟
Seppur opposta risulta, per certi versi, la continuazione ideologica del Processo.
Una storia kafkiana, dove la tensione e l'angoscia tipiche dell'autore sono constantemente palpabili.
Le interpretazione per questo libro, come per il processo, sono innumerevoli e in continuo cambiamento ed evoluzione. Quella a cui io resto più fedele è la rappresentazione di una meta irraggiungibile.
Josef K. e K. sono entrambi alla ricerca delle regole che governano il loro mondo ma entrambi sbagliano alla radice del loro problema: non comprendendo perché sono accusati o perché sono stati convocati.
Questa stessa incomprensione può essere rispecchiata nella nostra vita di tutti i giorni e, come dicevo prima, nella ricerca di una qualsiasi meta in verità irraggiungibile.
Ricerca di un oggetto, di una condizione, di una persona che non siamo in grado di comprendere a pieno e che mai riusciremo a comprendere.
Ricerca e, di conseguenza, attesa che ci logoreranno e priveranno della nostra forza vitale togliendo significato a qualsiasi nostra attività e in maniera inevitabile, alla nostra stessa esistenza.
Due storie simili e allo stesso tempo molto diverse che sono riuscite a toccarmi nel profondo. Seppur piene di significati differenti, non mi recludo la possibilità di una futura, anche se lontana, rilettura con conseguente migliore comprensione.
Un racconto in cui traspare al massimo l'ideologia di kafka.
Un pretesto semplice ma che arriva ad analizzare il rapporto dell'essere umano con la legge e in maniera macroscopica dell'essere umano con la terra.
Il processo e la condanna che inesorabilmente gravano sulla sorte del protagonista gli fanno perdere la testa, e così si vede la sua rovina.
La perdita di energie, di interesse al proprio lavoro, di idee e pergiunta di voglia di combattere il suo stesso processo.
Una straziante storia in cui viene messo a nudo il rapporto che ogni essere umano ha con il mondo, l'incromprensibilità del mondo e delle sue leggi e l'enigma della vita.
K. non riesce mai ad afferrare la verità che costantemente gli sfugge e diventa inafferrabile, parabola dell'essere umano con la verità indecifrabile del mondo
Il Castello 4/5 🌟
Seppur opposta risulta, per certi versi, la continuazione ideologica del Processo.
Una storia kafkiana, dove la tensione e l'angoscia tipiche dell'autore sono constantemente palpabili.
Le interpretazione per questo libro, come per il processo, sono innumerevoli e in continuo cambiamento ed evoluzione. Quella a cui io resto più fedele è la rappresentazione di una meta irraggiungibile.
Josef K. e K. sono entrambi alla ricerca delle regole che governano il loro mondo ma entrambi sbagliano alla radice del loro problema: non comprendendo perché sono accusati o perché sono stati convocati.
Questa stessa incomprensione può essere rispecchiata nella nostra vita di tutti i giorni e, come dicevo prima, nella ricerca di una qualsiasi meta in verità irraggiungibile.
Ricerca di un oggetto, di una condizione, di una persona che non siamo in grado di comprendere a pieno e che mai riusciremo a comprendere.
Ricerca e, di conseguenza, attesa che ci logoreranno e priveranno della nostra forza vitale togliendo significato a qualsiasi nostra attività e in maniera inevitabile, alla nostra stessa esistenza.
Due storie simili e allo stesso tempo molto diverse che sono riuscite a toccarmi nel profondo. Seppur piene di significati differenti, non mi recludo la possibilità di una futura, anche se lontana, rilettura con conseguente migliore comprensione.
November 19, 2012
Kafka can be tough to read, especially these two long works. I read The Trial last year, but somehow when I was adding this combined version, I deleted my original review. It was the newer Breon Mitchell translation, whereas this combined copy is an older translation by the Muirs with appended manuscript and inclusions. I'll try to revive some of my earlier thoughts on The Trial below. I don't believe anyone should have to read either of these more than once a lifetime.
The biggest theme, reflected of course in the digressive style of the plot, is the hyperbolic absurdity of governmental bureaucracy. It's a good joke, but unfortunately only for a few pages, then it gets tedious. I can't say which text, The Castle or The Trial, kills the joke quicker and to what extent, but they both beat it right into the ground. In both, the hero seems complicit in the absurdity. It's very difficult to enjoy the story when the narrator is just as faulty as his villains.
The two tales only seem to differ in their setting: the former seemingly set in the past (excepting the strange inclusion of the telephone in the inn), and the latter in an Orwellian bleak future. Kafka's fantasy is unique in that it always seems timeless and medieval, regardless of the dialogue and technology present.
There is a brilliance in Kafka's dialogue. It takes hard work to make every argument circle around on itself. Every time a character seems to represent some hope to K., the character gradually undoes the logic of the solution until they're useless.
Moreso than in The Trial which is a political stage, in The Castle an analogy of Deism seems prevalent. The Castle as a location in the plot has obvious allusions to a delinquent and unattainable deity. In this line, the character Klamm becomes Jesus, then later other officials step up to become saints and/or clergymen. All such "castellans" seem amoral and unsympathetic to the townsfolk. In fact, the only dignified trait of K. is his selfishness and greed.
I don't recommend these two works unless you're a glutton for punishment. Stick to his short but finished works.
The biggest theme, reflected of course in the digressive style of the plot, is the hyperbolic absurdity of governmental bureaucracy. It's a good joke, but unfortunately only for a few pages, then it gets tedious. I can't say which text, The Castle or The Trial, kills the joke quicker and to what extent, but they both beat it right into the ground. In both, the hero seems complicit in the absurdity. It's very difficult to enjoy the story when the narrator is just as faulty as his villains.
The two tales only seem to differ in their setting: the former seemingly set in the past (excepting the strange inclusion of the telephone in the inn), and the latter in an Orwellian bleak future. Kafka's fantasy is unique in that it always seems timeless and medieval, regardless of the dialogue and technology present.
There is a brilliance in Kafka's dialogue. It takes hard work to make every argument circle around on itself. Every time a character seems to represent some hope to K., the character gradually undoes the logic of the solution until they're useless.
Moreso than in The Trial which is a political stage, in The Castle an analogy of Deism seems prevalent. The Castle as a location in the plot has obvious allusions to a delinquent and unattainable deity. In this line, the character Klamm becomes Jesus, then later other officials step up to become saints and/or clergymen. All such "castellans" seem amoral and unsympathetic to the townsfolk. In fact, the only dignified trait of K. is his selfishness and greed.
I don't recommend these two works unless you're a glutton for punishment. Stick to his short but finished works.
May 8, 2017
This book is punishment. I have never hating reading a book more. This book is a series of pointless conversations. When something new happens, you don't care because none of the characters are likeable. I read this book while on a beautiful vacation and it would have ruined the trip if I didn't decide to stop reading. All of the sentences just kind of... happen... one after the other in an unpoetic list of actions and thoughts, similar to the way I have decided to format this review. If you enjoy the happy, emotional, transcendent, fulfilling feeling that comes with reading a nice book, you will not enjoy The Castle or The Trial by Kafka. If you enjoy unenjoyable things, boredom and the sound of people arguing in circles, well hey, you might want to check out The Castle or The Trial by
(Notice how I didn't finish the review. It is quite unsatisfying, isn't it.)
(Notice how I didn't finish the review. It is quite unsatisfying, isn't it.)
June 12, 2008
I'd been putting off reading this because of the sheer weight of these books. They seemed so... serious. Surprisingly, The Castle ended up being pretty hilarious. Many of the characters seem like they jumped out of some Chevy Chase SNL skit. K's eternal struggle doesn't seem quite so depressing when coupled with this kind of slapstick humor. The Castle was really beautiful and incredibly readable.
After reading the Castle I decided that I couldn't jump right into another 400 page Kafka novel. I'll get around to the Trial soon enough.
After reading the Castle I decided that I couldn't jump right into another 400 page Kafka novel. I'll get around to the Trial soon enough.
October 26, 2011
"El castillo", Franz Kafka.
Al principio me parecía interesante pero después se estancó...
Al principio me parecía interesante pero después se estancó...
August 13, 2011
The worst book I have ever read.
July 22, 2012
Read the Castle
Displaying 1 - 13 of 13 reviews