The Trial by Franz Kafka Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of The Trial
Book Review: Ahhhh!
Summary: 5 Stars
I will not take to much space to say that this is book that needs to be read by any lover of great books. One word popped into my mind upon completion of this novel -- WOW!Book Review: Am I dreaming, or is this real?
Summary: 5 Stars
Have you ever bolted upright out of a nightmare and sat there breathing and sweating, wondering 'was that real?' Kafka's portrayal of a regular citizen caught in the faulty machinery of an incomprehensible legal system will give you that eerie nightmarish sensation. Like watching an accident about to happen with your feet rooted to the ground, you'll want to reach out and help the mian character -- but you can't! A must read. HBook Review: An eternal cry against oppression, and of the quiet, unseen struggle waged by ordinary people
Summary: 4 Stars
Franz Kafka has a unique reputation in European literature of the 20th century. He died of tuberculosis in 1924, aged only 41. Were it not for the efforts of his great friend, Max Brod, most, if not all, Kafka's work would have probably been lost. "The Trial" appeared in 1925.
Kafka's work comprised only three novels ("The Trial", "America" and "The Castle"), but numerous stories, letters, diaries and fragments. This is surprisingly little output to have elevated Kafka to the reputation he has enjoyed since his untimely death.
There have been many attempts to interpret Kafka and his view of life. No doubt these attempts will continue, for it is an invariable characteristic of great writers (and indeed of great artists of all kinds) that their work yields fresh insights and also re-affirms ageless truths as new generations of readers arise.
In "The Trial" Kafka treats some of the fundamental dilemmas of human life. There is the struggle of an isolated human being to survive against mysterious, implacable forces of an anonymous, all-powerful judiciary.
The central character, K, is arrested in his bedroom on a charge which is never specified, and is forced to embark on his own defence, which comes to dominate his life, seemingly to no avail. People who are ostensibly on his side obstruct him in his efforts. K is alone in his efforts to defend himself, and has little skill to fall back on. He muddles along as best he can, but with energy and persistence. He never gives up.
There are mysterious connections with people such as Fraulein Burstner who seem to play little role in the central story, but who appear momentarily and disturbingly in K's life. This gives the book an almost dream-like, or perhaps nightmarish, quality - as if there is a parallel universe that we can only glimpse dimly.
When this book appeared, virulent communism was entrenching itself by force in every nook and cranny of Russian life. Other authoritarian regimes such as fascism were about to rise out of the turmoil and disruption following World War 1 and the Great Depression. Of course it would be fatuous to say that Kafka anticipated these developments.
Nevertheless, his work remains the eternal cry of man in the face of oppression, and of the quiet, unseen struggle that many ordinary people have waged against bureaucratic and authoritarian regimes. It is a timeless message. In this respect "The Trial" has much in common with "The Castle."
"The Trial" is certainly heavier going than "America," but reflective readers will appreciate its enduring qualities, and will come to understand why Kafka is such an important writer.
Book Review: An existentialist creed in poetic prose
Summary: 5 Stars
The Trial is the primary work which has helped spawn the epithet Kafkaesque, which refers to any situation that is both profoundly absurd and undeniably human. The aesthetic of the apocalyptic fairy tale that is common in all of Kafka's works, with the possible exception of Amerika, pervades the Trial, in which Joseph K. is arrested and tried for an unknown crime by and unknown court that consists of an endless chain of higher powers. The trial is essential Kafka that is extremely readableBook Review: Belasco - 3rd Quarter Outside Reading - The Trial
Summary: 4 Stars
I found The Trial to be thoroughly enjoyable and absolutely one of Kafka's best. I found myself absorbed in the captivating storyline but the analyses involved within the story were what I found truly intriguing. The novel analyzed both the judicial system and the human mind. When K. finds out that he has been arrested, he cannot figure out what it is for. He has done nothing for which to be arrested and was claimed fraudulently by a vile court. However, no one is free of guilt so he continues to ponder what he may have done until the end of the novel. This displays the untrustworthiness of the judicial system and, more importantly, the guilt and paranoia that is constantly existent in the human mind.The full understanding and appreciation of this novel involves extensive thinking and regardless of how well the reader understands it, he or she will surely still be a little bemused with unanswered questions at the end. However, when understood and considered, this story can bring a new outlook to the reader's life, like it did to mine. The Trial is interesting throughout and thought provoking even after finishing.