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3.86 AVERAGE
3.86 AVERAGE
I've only read The Metamorphosis, I might get around to the other stories later on, but for right now I am giving three stars to The Metamorphosis only.
I first read Kafka when studying/performing Metamorphosis as a teen. I think I got caught up in pretending to be a giant Beetle and didn't fully appreciate the writing for what it is.
The great thing about Kafka is the variety of interpretations one can take from his stories. Not only did I really enjoy reading the stories themselves, I also loved reading through all of the reviews and interpretations and discovering what other's saw in his work.
Thoroughly enjoyed reading this and would recommend trying the audiobook too - definitely helped to give the stories a little something extra.
The great thing about Kafka is the variety of interpretations one can take from his stories. Not only did I really enjoy reading the stories themselves, I also loved reading through all of the reviews and interpretations and discovering what other's saw in his work.
Thoroughly enjoyed reading this and would recommend trying the audiobook too - definitely helped to give the stories a little something extra.
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I liked Metamoprhisis, it was a very interesting kind of story. I thought it did a good job capturing the subjective experience of alienation and a very specific aspect of depression for me personally. The issue I had with this book is really the 'other stories'. Metamorphisis was probably the best work in here. My copy included Investigations of a Dog (boring) and The great wall of China (even more boring). Both The Burrow and The Giant Mole were interesting but didn't push the premise far enough, I felt like within the first two or three pages I got the idea of the entire work. In the Penal Settlement was probably the most interesting thing aside from Metamorphosis, but unfortunately having two of six stories doing anything for me isn't enough to carry the whole book.
the penguin edition is a great, compact selection of kafka's short stories. minor highlights include the terse prose poems of "contemplation" and "a country doctor" ("before the law" is a huge standout among these very short works for its satirical presentation of bureaucratic labyrinths and the complacence of the human psyche all in the span of just 2 pages). the torturous fates of artists in relation to the unbiased, uncaring ignorance that pervades their world as depicted in "a hunger-artist" and "josefine the singer" are also presented in typical kafkaesque (finally i get to use that word as it was intended!) fashion of ironic detachment with flashes of surreal humour and absurdity.
of course, the two biggest draws of this collection are the excellent novellas "in the penal colony" and the eponymous "metamorphosis". the former reads like an exploration of the horror of individual immutability in the face of larger change brought to its logical, visceral extreme, and of course more than enough ink has been spilt on the latter -- it's been read through enough freudian, marxist, sociological, autobiographical etc interpretations to fill a book of their own. i personally read it primarily as an investigation into the composites of human identity, in fact gregor's fate throughout the story feels akin to a tripartite loss of self in a way, first his body, then his human soul and finally his spirit, his will to live altogether.
would you still love me if i was a monstrous vermin
of course, the two biggest draws of this collection are the excellent novellas "in the penal colony" and the eponymous "metamorphosis". the former reads like an exploration of the horror of individual immutability in the face of larger change brought to its logical, visceral extreme, and of course more than enough ink has been spilt on the latter -- it's been read through enough freudian, marxist, sociological, autobiographical etc interpretations to fill a book of their own. i personally read it primarily as an investigation into the composites of human identity, in fact gregor's fate throughout the story feels akin to a tripartite loss of self in a way, first his body, then his human soul and finally his spirit, his will to live altogether.
would you still love me if i was a monstrous vermin
challenging
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
the metamorphosis itself is quite good, but the shorter stories didn’t really do it for me personally.
only read the metamorphosis and i enjoyed it a lot. intensely relatable unfortunately
dark
funny
mysterious
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes