This is my 149th post on my blog rizkhan.in and I have to admit it has taken me the longest to coin the Title of this post. I have been researching on Franz Kafka ( one of the great novelists of the 20th century ) for sometime now and whenever I read about him I was deeply intrigued by his personality, his unaccustomed life, his extraordinary zeal and his success which he could never see or experience. There wasn’t much to cheer in his life ( all of 40 years only ), however his unrelenting focus on his writing, the hardwork on the unwavering objectives envisaged by him, even when his body began to ditch him, speak volumes about the man he was. Franz Kafka has been inspiring enough for me to work upon and pen down this post today.
Early Life
Franz Kafka was a German speaking Czech, born in Prague( the capital of the Kingdom of Bohemia at that time ) in 1883 and the eldest child in the family . Unfortunately he lost two brothers in their infancy and so he alongwith his 3 sisters lived in Prague with their parents. Franz had a lonely childhood with his parents working 12 hours a day to raise the family, having little time for him and his siblings . His relationship with his father too was an uneasy one, whom he described as an overbearing and dominating parent and his loneliness pushed him towards writing. He wrote several letters to his father whom he found difficult to communicate through any other medium.
Flawed Notions
The impressionable young child started making progress as a writer and unknowingly began to develop his skills as one who could pen down situations with great detail and effectiveness. Though he was blossoming as a writer, deep inside his psyche, self doubts about his personality were developing too. Franz felt as if he was an unlikeable, repulsive character and had his own preconceived notions about his physicality. He studied law and then worked with great distinction as an Insurance officer. However he continued writing without a blip. Writing for Franz was an indespensable part of his life and he considered it as a form of ‘ prayer ‘.
Writing and Failing Health
It was difficult for Franz to enter relationships due to his own misconceptions, apart from his great friend Max Brod, whom he was closest to. People who met Franz always spoke good about him. They praised his intelligence, his looks and his sense of humour too, but Franz stayed shy and secluded and never married. His writings continued with in-depth precision and displayed pain, anxiety, truthfulness and self consciousness with disarming flair. However, Franz remained unknown to the world and the exposure of his talent remained elusive to readers. His health too began to ring alarm bells as Franz was diagnosed of laryngeal Tuberculosis, a disease which had no treatment at that time.
The Final Days
The weakened body did not weaken Franz’s resolve and he continued writing manuscripts and diaries. But the deadly disease worsened to a point where his throat closed and it became impossible to feed him and eventually Franz died due to starvation at a sanatorium in Kierling, on the outskirts of Vienna in April 1924, just 3 months short of his 41st Birthday. Before he died Franz in no uncertain terms directed his friend Max Brod in the form of a will to destroy all his writings and work post his death. But Max Brod had other ideas.
Success…well deserved
The good friend assimilated Franz’s work with immense effort and care and published them for the world to read and admire the capabilities of his friend. ‘ Metamorphosis ‘ a collection of short stories, the novels ‘ The Trial ‘ and ‘ The Castle ‘ met with tremendous critical acclaim and success and particularly post the World War II, his work was much appreciated across Europe. The Franz Kafka museum at Prague, where his work is one of the major exhibits is testimony to the quality of his literature.
Franz Kafka led a life of persistent struggle right through to his very difficult final days, but still he continued to do what he loved. The accolades arrived only after he was gone. Had he published his work earlier some of the pain would have surely eased.
Franz Kafka…solemn, dignified, inspirational.
The author of the blog has sensitively narrated the lifetstory of the famous writer novelist Franz kafka.all throughout his life there were struggles …loneliness except one sincere friend and a serious illness which caused his death finally.it is so poignant to know that all the appreciation for his great literary works came only after his death….it seemed he lacked self esteem and confidence which came as an obstruction in his path of success in his life..inspite of the people having a good opinion of him Franz had no self worth..therefore all he achieved was only after his life had ended and his hidden literary talent was introduced to the world byt his true friend.
Bulls eye