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La metamorfosi e altri racconti
"La metamorfosi" (1915), il più celebre racconto di Kafka, narra le vicende di un uomo, Gregor Samsa, che, rimasto l'unico sostegno della famiglia dopo il fallimento del padre, è orgoglioso di poter mantenere la sorella agli studi di musica. Una mattina però egli si sveglia trasformato in scarafaggio, senza esser mutato nell'animo. Tutti lo scansano inorriditi e solo una serva ha compassione di lui. Il povero scarafaggio, ormai rassegnato al suo destino, cerca di non arrecare il minimo disturbo alla famiglia. Ma un giorno, attirato dal dolce suono di violino, si reca nella sala e il padre infastidito dalla sua presenza gli lancia contro una mela uccidendolo. In questa raccolta anche "La condanna" e "La costruzione della Grande Muraglia cinese". Introduzione di Magda Indiveri e Cinzia Ruozzi.
Paperback
Published August 23, 2018
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About the author
Franz Kafka
3,277 books38.9k 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.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
September 1, 2024
Ho comprato il libro in realtà solo per leggere "La metamorfosi", che mi ha colpito molto, sicuramente un racconto da leggere almeno una volta nella vita che rispecchia il carattere e lo stile di Kafka a pieno. "La condanna" è stata una piacevole scoperta, ne avevo sentito parlare ma non ho mai saputo la trama ma son davvero felice di averla letta, un racconto inaspettato. Se il libro si fosse limitato a questi due racconti avrei dato le 5 stelle, il problema è stato recato dall'ultimo racconto cioè "La costruzione della Grande Muraglia cinese" che ha fatto abbassare il voto poiché non ho trovato una connessione con gli altri due letti in precedenza. Un'altra cosa che poteva essere risparmiata era l'introduzione poiché l'ho trovata troppo lunga che rende il lettore meno propenso a continuare il libro. Non mi sento di dare meno di quattro stelle solo per i due brani che mi son piaciuti molto ma capisco se qualcuno abbia messo una valutazione più bassa.
December 25, 2021
Le 3 stelle rappresentano il voto dell'introduzione. Carente sotto molti aspetti, si limita a fornire una piccola esegesi letteraria intrecciata alla vita di Kafka senza fornire spunti particolarmente interessanti.
July 22, 2022
L'unica cosa buona di quest'edizione è la copertina, per il resto è una grande delusione.
La Metamorfosi è da 5☆, La Condanna da 3.5☆, La Costruzione della Grande Muraglia Cinese 0☆ e quel noiosissimo ed inutile saggio iniziale ancor meno stelle, se solo si potesse.
La Metamorfosi è da 5☆, La Condanna da 3.5☆, La Costruzione della Grande Muraglia Cinese 0☆ e quel noiosissimo ed inutile saggio iniziale ancor meno stelle, se solo si potesse.
July 26, 2022
Sono una falsa perché in realtà ho letto solo "La metamorfosi" e non mi ha trasmesso molto
April 1, 2024
La Metamorfosi merita, così come La Condanna. Il racconto sulla grande muraglia poteva evitarlo XD
June 7, 2024
A seminal work of existential literature that explores the themes of alienation, identity, and the absurdity of existence.
August 19, 2024
4.5
Davvero un racconto che ti fa riflettere ed entrare in empatia con Gregor. Una riflessione in chiave sarcastica sulla morale umana
Davvero un racconto che ti fa riflettere ed entrare in empatia con Gregor. Una riflessione in chiave sarcastica sulla morale umana
September 1, 2024
la metamorfosi e la condanna racconti interessantissimi! poi,Kafka è Kafka alla fine ;)
January 27, 2026
media 3/5
La metamorfosi
4/5
diventare un insetto come metafora per essere inutili, non amati e comunque dover chiedere scusa. alienazione domestica, senso di colpa incluso nel prezzo.
La condanna
3.5/5
una sentenza emotiva senza processo. angosciante, rapido, efficace, ma ti lascia più confusa che devastata.
La costruzione della muraglia cinese
2.5/5
idea interessante, esecuzione dispersiva. più saggio che racconto, più concetto che emozione. kafka quando si perde nei corridoi della propria mente.
La metamorfosi
4/5
diventare un insetto come metafora per essere inutili, non amati e comunque dover chiedere scusa. alienazione domestica, senso di colpa incluso nel prezzo.
La condanna
3.5/5
una sentenza emotiva senza processo. angosciante, rapido, efficace, ma ti lascia più confusa che devastata.
La costruzione della muraglia cinese
2.5/5
idea interessante, esecuzione dispersiva. più saggio che racconto, più concetto che emozione. kafka quando si perde nei corridoi della propria mente.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews