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sidharthvardhan 's review for:
A Country Doctor
by Franz Kafka
May be I had developed a habit of looking for an allegory or something in ever work Kafka say but this is more of a mixed bag by his standards. I will comment only on a few stories – that I had to read at least twice.
Country Doctor
A short story showing snow ball effect after an initial not-so-important-looking choice. Like a snowball, Country doctor is struck down the wrong path and he knows it, there are elements (horses!) that keep reminding him that he must return, he wishes to and can, yet he wouldn't bring himself to go against the momentum. The whole thing is like a bad dream - you know you are doing something bad or harming yourself, and want to stop, there is no reason not to and yet you don't. This is what old people must have felt when they think their whole life was decided by a bad decision on a fact that didn't looked so important when it was taken.
Up in the Gallery
A take on by-stander effect, social efforts to hide exploitation and silence of victims , all within two sentences. Kafka argues that if the torture was too obvious than there was a slight chance (a slight chance!) that someone would have raised her/his voice against it but, in reality it is hidden under social veil giving it softer appearances. Moreover, even the victim is keeping up with those appearances and thus no one in audience is troubled or can do anything to save her.
A visit to mine
Anything sufficiently powerful acquires a divine status for weak in Kafka’s world. The mine worker, out of no good reason, seems to have a genuine respect for visitors even when they couldn't understand later’s mannerisms. When a not-so-powerful attendant tries to imitate them, he is ridiculed by workers. Workers and visitors may had been in parallel dimensions – for they won’t talk to each other; visitors seem to pay no attention to them but workers, with their boring routines, found the visit a great subject to talk about.
A message from emperor
Suppose if you were finally to know the purpose of your life – if God or Government (for Kafka they are same) was to send you a message of what is required of you … but it may take a great while for message to reach you –it may be too late. No problem, you can always gaze through the window to know what it was.
A problem for the father of the family aka Odradek
No one knows what Odradek means. Freudicians (they seem to be interpreting everything), Marxists and Kafka-experts seem to put different analysis. Most common interpretation is that it is a useless object. I think Kafka is trying to objectify the general inadequacy that could be present in a disjointed family. The very description of its appearance shows an inadequacy. Sometimes it is gone – you can’t feel it in some of happy moments. Sometimes it is there somewhere in living room, under-the-stairs waiting to be felt. Sometimes you ask it “who are you” and it gives its name (which may be derived from a word that means ‘to counsel against’). Even its laughter is inadequate. The family man is worried that this thing may survive me and torment later generations.
A report to academy
A monkey who learned to live like a man. Mostly interpreted as satire on Jewish integration to western world. It may fit any person trying to be somebody else to fit in. The newly-in-money merchant families in old England (bonnet family of Pride and Prejudice) or the children trying to fit in with grown ups (though that last part about wife won’t fit in). While reading it, I keep thinking of Migrants from third world to west – may be because I recently read ‘Seasons of Migration to North” which is a tragic take on an African guy who tries and fits almost successfully in European world. They, the immigrants, (at least some of them) make same effort to fit in, thinking westerns to be a higher breed, trying to fit in while learning to hate their roots, basic nature. You can be something new, but you can’t destroy your old self. Of course many of them return to native lands to have supposes.
‘Before the law’, “Jackals and Arabs” and ‘A leaf from an old manuscript’ are awesome too but I'm tired of interpreting.
Country Doctor
A short story showing snow ball effect after an initial not-so-important-looking choice. Like a snowball, Country doctor is struck down the wrong path and he knows it, there are elements (horses!) that keep reminding him that he must return, he wishes to and can, yet he wouldn't bring himself to go against the momentum. The whole thing is like a bad dream - you know you are doing something bad or harming yourself, and want to stop, there is no reason not to and yet you don't. This is what old people must have felt when they think their whole life was decided by a bad decision on a fact that didn't looked so important when it was taken.
Up in the Gallery
A take on by-stander effect, social efforts to hide exploitation and silence of victims , all within two sentences. Kafka argues that if the torture was too obvious than there was a slight chance (a slight chance!) that someone would have raised her/his voice against it but, in reality it is hidden under social veil giving it softer appearances. Moreover, even the victim is keeping up with those appearances and thus no one in audience is troubled or can do anything to save her.
A visit to mine
Anything sufficiently powerful acquires a divine status for weak in Kafka’s world. The mine worker, out of no good reason, seems to have a genuine respect for visitors even when they couldn't understand later’s mannerisms. When a not-so-powerful attendant tries to imitate them, he is ridiculed by workers. Workers and visitors may had been in parallel dimensions – for they won’t talk to each other; visitors seem to pay no attention to them but workers, with their boring routines, found the visit a great subject to talk about.
A message from emperor
Suppose if you were finally to know the purpose of your life – if God or Government (for Kafka they are same) was to send you a message of what is required of you … but it may take a great while for message to reach you –it may be too late. No problem, you can always gaze through the window to know what it was.
A problem for the father of the family aka Odradek
No one knows what Odradek means. Freudicians (they seem to be interpreting everything), Marxists and Kafka-experts seem to put different analysis. Most common interpretation is that it is a useless object. I think Kafka is trying to objectify the general inadequacy that could be present in a disjointed family. The very description of its appearance shows an inadequacy. Sometimes it is gone – you can’t feel it in some of happy moments. Sometimes it is there somewhere in living room, under-the-stairs waiting to be felt. Sometimes you ask it “who are you” and it gives its name (which may be derived from a word that means ‘to counsel against’). Even its laughter is inadequate. The family man is worried that this thing may survive me and torment later generations.
A report to academy
A monkey who learned to live like a man. Mostly interpreted as satire on Jewish integration to western world. It may fit any person trying to be somebody else to fit in. The newly-in-money merchant families in old England (bonnet family of Pride and Prejudice) or the children trying to fit in with grown ups (though that last part about wife won’t fit in). While reading it, I keep thinking of Migrants from third world to west – may be because I recently read ‘Seasons of Migration to North” which is a tragic take on an African guy who tries and fits almost successfully in European world. They, the immigrants, (at least some of them) make same effort to fit in, thinking westerns to be a higher breed, trying to fit in while learning to hate their roots, basic nature. You can be something new, but you can’t destroy your old self. Of course many of them return to native lands to have supposes.
‘Before the law’, “Jackals and Arabs” and ‘A leaf from an old manuscript’ are awesome too but I'm tired of interpreting.