Publication
Amsterdam : Athenaeum-Polak & Van Gennep; 95 p, 17 cm; http://opc4.kb.nl/DB=1/PPN?PPN=251896749
ISBN
9025327540 / 9789025327545
Collections
Description
"One of the most astonishing and revelatory pieces of writing ever produced by this twentieth-century literary icon, presented in both the original German and the English translation. Kafka's letter to his father is at once an exploration of his relationship to his father, his need to write, and the source of his fear--one that his father prompts in him but that is beyond the scope of Kafka's memory and power of reasoning. There is no greater text about authority, the disfiguring effects of shame, and, in particular, Kafka's lifelong need to have his father's unobtainable approval"--
Genres
User reviews
LibraryThing member DanielSTJ
This was an eloquent, and detailed, letter from Franz Kafka to his father. Through it, you are able to see the man behind the works that he is most known for. The depiction is sharp, and Kafka does not try to disguise himself (even with the fear of his father being present- a concept that comes up
3.5 stars- worth it.
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several times in his letter) in his rendition. It is a deep letter and one that now, having read it, feel that I have a slightly larger glimpse of the man behind the letters, words, sentences, paragraphs, and pages that compose his oeuvre of work. 3.5 stars- worth it.
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LibraryThing member stillatim
The genius of Kafka: he writes a letter to his father. His father comes across as a horrific human being. At the end of the letter, Kafka imagines his father's response--and it's just as convincing as Kafka's accusations. Nobody is innocent before the law.
LibraryThing member oldandnewbooksmell
Dearest Father is a letter that Franz Kafka wrote to his father about the hardship and emotional abuse he went through as his son. His father never read it though as Franz had given it to his mother to give to his father but she never gave it to him, instead, returned it back to Franz. The letter,
To read about what Kafka went through and how that formed him into the adult he was when he wrote it (36 years old) made me so sad.
“It is as if a person were a prisoner, and he had not only the intention to escape, which would perhaps be attainable, but also, and indeed simultaneously, the intention to rebuild the prison as a pleasure dome for himself. But if he escapes, he cannot rebuild, and if he rebuilds, he cannot escape.”
Because this wasn't intended for the public consumption, the writing is so raw and filled with the human experience. Kafka cries for both freedom and recognition from his father that he never did receive.
I always feel a little weird reading pieces that authors themselves never published because you never know if they ever wanted it out there. However, Kafka writes at one point,
"What do these children know? Nobody's been through that! Does any child understand such things today?"
And I think he would appreciate that he wasn't alone when it comes to it and that his letter might help others to see the same.
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like most of Kafka's writes, wasn't meant for the public eye.To read about what Kafka went through and how that formed him into the adult he was when he wrote it (36 years old) made me so sad.
“It is as if a person were a prisoner, and he had not only the intention to escape, which would perhaps be attainable, but also, and indeed simultaneously, the intention to rebuild the prison as a pleasure dome for himself. But if he escapes, he cannot rebuild, and if he rebuilds, he cannot escape.”
Because this wasn't intended for the public consumption, the writing is so raw and filled with the human experience. Kafka cries for both freedom and recognition from his father that he never did receive.
I always feel a little weird reading pieces that authors themselves never published because you never know if they ever wanted it out there. However, Kafka writes at one point,
"What do these children know? Nobody's been through that! Does any child understand such things today?"
And I think he would appreciate that he wasn't alone when it comes to it and that his letter might help others to see the same.
Show Less
Original publication date
1919 (written)
1952 (published on Neue Rundschau)