8 results for "Short Stories"

In the Penal Colony

FRANZ. KAFKA
In the Penal Colony ( In der Strafkolonie ) by Franz Kafka is presented here in a precise and faithful English translation. Written in 1914 and published in 1919, this stark and unforgettable story explores justice, obedience, and the cruelty of systems. It follows a visiting traveler to a remote island prison where executions are performed by a mechanical apparatus that inscribes the condemned man's sentence into his flesh. What unfolds is a confrontation between blind devotion to law and the dawning recognition of its absurdity. Kafka's calm, exact prose captures the horror of order turned against itself. Within this brief and haunting tale lies a vision of modern authority stripped of meaning. The officer's faith in the execution machine represents humanity's attachment to rules long after their purpose has decayed. Kafka portrays a civilization that worships efficiency over empathy and obedience over reason. The story's quiet tone and mechanical precision intensify its unease, leaving the reader to confront the terrifying logic of systems that operate without conscience. In the Penal Colony remains one of Kafka's most incisive works, combining psychological insight with moral clarity. It speaks to anyone who has questioned the power of institutions and the price of submission to them. This unabridged edition presents the complete text in a faithful, accessible translation that preserves Kafka's measured rhythm and disturbing lucidity. A cornerstone of twentieth-century literature and an essential read for those drawn to existential, philosophical, and allegorical fiction.
Amazon Digital Services LLC - Kdp 2025-11-10 34 pages

A Country Doctor

Franz Kafka
About the Book "A Country Doctor" (German: "Ein Landarzt") is a short story written in 1919 by Franz Kafka. It was first published in the collection of short stories of the same title. The plot follows a country doctor's hapless struggle to attend a sick young boy on a cold winter's night. A series of surreal events occur in the process, including the appearance of a mysterious groom in a pig shed. -Wikipedia For more eBooks visit www.kartindo.com
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform 2013-12-17 26 pages

Betrachtung

Franz Kafka
Betrachtung author: Franz Kafka s Böses getan, niemand aber will mir helfen. Lauter niemand. Aber so ist es doch nicht. Nur daß mir niemand hilft --, sonst wäre lauter niemand hübsch. Ich würde ganz gern -- warum denn nicht -- einen Ausflug mit einer Gesellschaft von lauter Niemand machen. Natürlich ins Gebirge, wohin denn sonst? Wie sich diese Niemand aneinander drängen, diese vielen quer gestreckten und eingehängten Arme, diese vielen Füße, durch winzige Schritte getrennt! Versteht sich, daß alle in Frack sind. Wir gehen so lala, der Wind fährt durch die Lücken, die wir und unsere Gliedmaßen offen lassen. Die Hälse werden im Gebirge frei! Es ist ein Wunder, daß wir nicht singen.
CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform 2018-09-06 46 pages