The Trial

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The Trial

Introduction

The Trial is one of the masterpieces of Franz Kafka which was published in the period between the First and Second World War. It is primarily an existential novel where most of the themes are established on the principles of philosophical theories. The essential goal of the writer is offering a disturbing and profound image of humanity in the world. It is critical to mention that being a high ranked government officer, Kafka was acquainted with the complex matters of bureaucracy and it plays an instrumental role in the book. The novel can appear daunting to students as well as teachers with heavy philosophical meaning.

Discussion

The theme of the story revolves around the predicament of Josef K. which is a fundamental problem faced by human beings. The novel highlights the notion of the end of progress in Europe. The Trial encompasses a wide range of issues as a political and literary tradition, stresses fairness and justice and other values which appreciate and value individuals ADDIN ZOTERO_ITEM CSL_CITATION {"citationID":"Z3pDJ9xO","properties":{"formattedCitation":"(Kafka and Mitchell)","plainCitation":"(Kafka and Mitchell)","noteIndex":0},"citationItems":[{"id":504,"uris":["http://zotero.org/users/local/yvjivw9i/items/2JRVZTTS"],"uri":["http://zotero.org/users/local/yvjivw9i/items/2JRVZTTS"],"itemData":{"id":504,"type":"book","title":"The trial","collection-title":"Oxford world's classics","publisher":"Oxford University Press","publisher-place":"Oxford [England] ; New York","number-of-pages":"191","source":"Library of Congress ISBN","event-place":"Oxford [England] ; New York","ISBN":"978-0-19-923829-3","call-number":"PT2621.A26 P713 2009","note":"OCLC: ocn309835613","language":"en","author":[{"family":"Kafka","given":"Franz"},{"family":"Mitchell","given":"Mike"}],"issued":{"date-parts":[["2009"]]}}}],"schema":"https://github.com/citation-style-language/schema/raw/master/csl-citation.json"} (Kafka and Mitchell). Instead of the transparent legal setting and government where rights of individuals are nourished, the novel sketches instances where power remains constant and trials become arbitrary. A critical appraisal of The Trial reflects it is a representation of the influence of government on individuals instead of focusing on growth and development. The totalitarian and oppressive regimes have suppressed the fundamental rights of individuals even in democratic and civilized societies. The governmental control and death squads were not the manifestations of imaginative thoughts or science fiction. These were real instances which were explicitly comprehended by the author.

Moreover, Josef K. has been accused and is facing a trial despite being innocent. He is a modern industrious, character and efficient but has been convicted. Here, the essence of the novel is presented which is the most valuable and worthy lesson learned from the novel. The traditional vision of human being adheres to social expectations and norms and finds success. However, Joseph does exactly the same but fails to accomplish success or even acceptance in the community. Kafka has expressed the thoughts as the world is a cruel place where humanity is desecrated at the hands of cruel rulers an oppressive regime. These thoughts are an explicit illustration of the radical instances that existed at the time of publication of The Trial. Kafka has sublimely demonstrated that the most haunting principle in the modern state of affairs is that redemption is illusory. The values and norms upon which human life is established succumb to the oppression and unfairness. However, the oppressors are safeguarded from being ill-treated because they do not conform to ethical, moral and legal values. Justice can be fleeting which is the tragedy of the modern era. The novel is aimed at a diverse audience. Students can read it to enhance their critical thinking skills and beware of the political and domestic state of affairs at the time of publication of the novel.

Conclusion

The Trial is a scintillating piece of Kafka which underpins the unfairness and inequality in the echelons of power. Individuals who prefer to conform to ethics, fairness and law are crushed by the powerful people and it is a tragedy of human beings. The characters and the settings of the novel speak volumes about the expertise of Kafka put into this work. Several philosophical interpretations can also be deduced from the work. The nature of humans is highlighted as they are inclined toward oppressing the feeble and all these ideas were taken from the era when the novel was published.

Works Cited

ADDIN ZOTERO_BIBL {"uncited":[],"omitted":[],"custom":[]} CSL_BIBLIOGRAPHY Kafka, Franz, and Mike Mitchell. The Trial. Oxford University Press, 2009.