Kafka: Making of an Icon

Franz Kafka was a prolific writer who published only seven small books during his lifetime, but his legacy includes three unfinished novels and a vast collection of stories, reflections, and personal writings. His novels, such as The Judgement and The Metamorphosis, have made him one of the most widely read, significant, and influential writers of the twentieth century. This collection of essays explores Kafka's life and times, his experiences, and his influence on literature, theater, and cinema. It also highlights his ability to speak to the changing concerns of later generations and his fascination with remote spaces and European colonialism.

Format: Hardback
Length: 192 pages
Publication date: 30 May 2024
Publisher: Bodleian Library

Franz Kafka, a prolific writer who left behind a lasting legacy, died in 1924 at the age of forty-one. Despite publishing only seven small books during his lifetime, he left behind three unfinished novels and a vast collection of stories, reflections, and personal writings that were published posthumously. Kafka's novels, such as "The Judgement" and "The Metamorphosis," have become some of the most widely read, significant, and influential works of the twentieth century. His writings have an extraordinary ability to speak to the changing concerns of later generations. This collection of essays, accompanied by manuscripts, archival material, postcards, and family photographs, provides a comprehensive insight into Kafka's life and times, as well as his influence on literature, theater, and cinema. Kafka's experiences, both literal and imaginative, played a significant role in his writing. His travels in Western Europe allowed him to practice descriptive writing, while his imaginative journeys through reading deepened his fascination with remote spaces and made him aware of European colonialism. Familiar settings in his fiction became alien and bewildering, and when writing about animals, he sought to enter imaginatively into their non-human way of being. This book celebrates not only Kafka's achievements and creativity but also the enduring inspiration he continues to provide for new literary, theatrical, and cinematic creations around the world, even 100 years after his death.

Weight: 1108g
Dimension: 267 x 246 x 20 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781851246229