Rating: 
Summary: Truth And Justice For All
Review: I read this book only once. I will not read this book again although "The Trial" has been on my book shelves for fifteen years.The satory is simple. A bank clerk is dragged out of bed, arrested, put on trial, found guilty, and sentenced to death. He is never told what his crime is. Whenever he asks, he is lectured on Truth. His is knifed in an alley by two thugs from Justice. The book is a nightmare. You are afraid to go to sleep. You cannot say that this cannot happen here. I read a newspaper story about a family at dinner. It was summer. Suddenly a man burst open the kitchen door yelling to call the police because he was being chased. The man ran out the front door. He was in the street yelling for help when he tripped. His pursuer ran up to him, aimed his rifle, fired a shot, and disappeared. The police had no clue. Like this story, Kafka is powerful reading. My stomach tightens just holding this small book. My hands shake. Kafka wrote a masterpiece.
Rating:
Summary: Disorder In The Court
Review: We should all know the story concerning one of the greatest novels ever written, about a man being awaken to find out he is under arrest for a crime he knows nothing about, and charged by an unknown person.
It's been debated as to what is really Kafka's novel all about. Some say, it's "hero"(?) Joseph K. represents the "every man". Who has been forced to live in a world, where's man's biggest sin is being himself. The character K. like Kafka himself feels they are an outsider in a world they cannot function in. Others still, see the book as merely a semi-autobiography as Kafka's own feelings of worthlessness. We all know Kafka even doubted his own talents as a writer. But, yet again, others think that "K." is not the "every man". That he is guilty of his "sins".
So, what does all of this prove? It simply goes to show you the impact Franz Kafka has left on the world. Here we have a book published in 1925 and still causes debate as to what exactly were Kafka's intentions. If, infact, he didn't have any intentions!
'The Trial', to me is a story of a man's loneliness. It's a story of man who probably is guilty of what he is charged with. And we slowly read about his desent into a world of paranoia. I've heard some people agrue that what happens to "K." is all merely a dream. None of it ever really happened, but, it was "K." himself who brought this punishment on himself. Sort of like how Kafka himself did by never marrying the girl he loved, by living in the shadows of his father, who he adored, and never having an self confidence. If what happens in 'The Trial' is a dream, you can bet "K." learned something.
There's something about Kafka that fasincates me. He is one of my favorite authors. I find Kafka himself to be just as interesting has the stories he wrote. People tend to forget or overlook something in Kafka's writing. He WAS funny. His novels all have moments that are truly inspired. One of my favorite chapters in this book deals with "The Painter". What happens has "K." trys to leave and the Painter stops him asking him if he wants to buy a painting had me laughing.
For those of you who have never read this book, I do completely recommend it. You will find the book to be fascinating. Kafka was a master of thinking up these surreal stories. You may be bothered by the book's conclusion. Not that you'll mind the final act against "K." but, you'll be bothered by the way it happens. You would have expected more of a set-up. I know I did. Others who read the book may feel the book is incomplete. And that may lead them to dislike it. You are right in your judgement that the book is incomplete, but, remember, Kafka never wanted any of his books published. There's actually a chapter in here that was never finished. And, even though it is incomplete that didn't stop me from truly enjoying this masterpiece. If you have never read anything by Kafka, this is a fine place to start. I hope everyone finds 'The Trial' to be as enjoyable as I did.
Bottom-line: One of the great works by Kafka. It touches on themes that were ahead of their time. Themes that are still around us today. An excellent example of the paranoid mind. Everyone should read this!
Rating:
Summary: why to buy THE TRIAL
Review: I had read a lot of Kafka's short stories, but THE TRIAL was the first of his books I tackled. I just recently finished it, and I've been laying awake at night contemplating it ever since. If there's supposed to be any deep philosophical meaning to the book, I guess I just don't see it. I think Kafka writes about his own life and feelings in a symbolic way, and that's what the novel really is, a metaphor.
The novel starts out slow, the first hundred pages are kind of boring. But when the story's protagonist, K., starts really learning about the court he must fight his legal battle against, the novel gets intense. Of course, the more K. (and the reader) learn about the case, the more hopeless it seems.
THE TRIAL is like "1984" with the strangeness of "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland". The court K. must face is supreme and untouchable, and the only way to avoid condemnation is to stay on the good side of the perverse, unjust, yet powerful judges. If you're able to put yourself in K.'s position while reading this book, you'll find it extremely frightening.
This book gets five stars because of how well it creates an engaging world where there is no hope of salvation, and that's the most terrifying thing ever.
Rating:
Summary: The Trial
Review: The trial puts "K." into a society where he is accused of a crime about which he knows nothing, and is unable to find information. Kafka's novel is the frustrating and futile tale of K.'s attempts at resolving the situation that has been thrust upon him. In many respects, The Trial is a judicial dystopia, representing a worst case scenario about the judiciary (as well as institutions in general). Like any great novel, Kafka raises more questions than he gives answers for. Questions regarding the nature of man, institutions, man's relations with institutions, and man's endurance are all questions that my mind was thinking about when I finished the last page. The Trial is left intentionally vague and is thus much more far reaching than a simple commentary on judicial systems. Nowhere can you find any solid reference to time or place (save, of course, the names of the characters). The result of this vagueness is timelessness and universality. The questions raised in this book could be asked about virtually society in virtually any time period, and that is part of what makes this book so great. I picked up this book on the recommendation of a friend and was pleasantly surprised. This was my first, though certainly not last, exposure to Kafka, and I recommend it to anyone with the ability to think!
Rating:
Summary: very antiestablishment
Review: One morning you wake up to discover something very strange. You find strange men in your room who've come to arrest you. The men procede to interrogate you and give no information on the reason you've been arrested and bound for trial. This is what happens to the protagonist (Josef K.) of this novel. The best way to read this novel is to put yourself into the shoes of Josef K., not just an observer. Otherwise, the story may very well frustrate you to the point where you will not finish. The paragraphs are extremely long; one of the longest paragraphs is about 11.5 pages. The book focuses on Josef K. who is on a qwest to understand his situation properly. In his qwest, he has a few love interests but they are all met with frustration and despair much like everything else he tries. The more K. tries to understand and probe for information, the more he becomes tangled up in a senseless bureaucracy. For most of the book, K. is very calm and collected. He stays calm under situations that would cause most people to lose their patience and give up. Although some frustation in reading this novel is natural, one's focus is always better when calm. So it will behoove one to take a break from reading and come back later if frustration becomes too great.
Rating:
Summary: Joseph K. is 100% GUILTY!!!
Review: K. is NOT the 'average Joe.' He is not 'everyman'. ARE YOU ALL BLIND? He's a horrible, horrible person-- and THAT'S WHAT HE'S GUILTY OF! The Court is not a legal court, it is a moral court. You think I'm crazy? Look at the evidence: Every word from his mouth, and nearly every thought he thinks is condescending or derogatory. He treats all women like whores or objects. Every man is beneath him. He thinks only of himself. If he is ever even slightly nice to anyone, it is only because he believes they can help him with his case, and when he no longer finds them useful, he thinks of them as garbage. Don't believe me? Go through the book again and see for yourself-- you'll wonder how you ever missed it. Consider, for instance, when he describes the Arrest to Fraulein Burstner. Initially, he is somewhat sorry for having disturbed her property. But in his selfish need to assuage his conscience, he nearly tortures her by demanding that she listen to him, despite the fact that she is tired and does not really care, and after yelling at her, he grabs her and kisses her in a way which Kafka clearly compares to vampirism. Consider also, the first Interrogation, where K. walks in to an overcrowded room and immediately believes himself superior to every man in the room. He then harangues them for NINE PAGES, ending with a threat to strike a defenseless old man. The Examining Magistrate seems more than justified in telling K. that K. is throwing away all the benefits and goodwill the court was willing to offer him. It is this, his lack of consideration and his arrogance, which are his downfall. The Court's function is to judge his personality and his treatment of others. After the episode of the Whipper and the first Interrogation, it becomes clear to the Court that K. is guilty. They then try to save him by summoning him to the Cathedral for a lesson in morality from the Priest. All their attempts at enlightening K. fail, and he is sentenced to death for his crimes, perhaps without ever having truly realized what he was guilty of. Kafka's real genius, in this book, lies in his ability to make us sympathize with K. A daunting task, if you consider who K. really is. Therefore, what is Kafka trying to say to all of us? Are we all so arrogant and egocentric as K., that we should overlook all his faults and see the poor officers of the Court as evil-- and not even be aware of it? I admit that I, too, did not see this side of "The Trial" (despite having studied it in high school and in college) until I read another book which I highly recommend to anyone who doubts what I'm saying here. It is: Kafka: Judaism, Politics, and Literature, by Ritchie Robertson. Yes, that's a very intimidating title, but it's also an excellent, revelatory, and easily-read book. His arguments are backed up by utterly convincing evidence from the book.
Rating:
Summary: How it feels to be caught in the bureaucracy.
Review: This book will strike a nerve if you have ever struggled fruitlessly against a bureacracy. For me, it was the struggles that my wife and I endured as she found herself caught in the cogs of the medical establishment - insurance companies, hospitals, doctors who tell you it's all in your head, endless tests, scans, and injections from every intern or nurse who comes near you. And like Kafka's protagonist "K", everything we did to try to understand our predicament or make things better just made them worse as her health spiraled downward. This book perfectly captures this feeling of helplessness as K. struggles to clear his name -- indeed, to even to discover what crime he has been accused of. That such helplessness seems to be a natural byproduct of the conventions of human society is all the more disturbing. Like many of Kafka's works, the book is incomplete and the plot is never fully developed (although we do find out what happens to K. in the end). The incompleteness doesn't matter though, it is the feeling and process that this book evokes that matter. I also started reading The Castle once but did not finish it- it has the same themes but, unlike The Trial, is very long, and frankly frustrating to read.
Rating:
Summary: KAFKA'S BEST: A TRIP INTO THE ABSURD
Review: If you are into existencialism or if you are worried about the meaning of your subjective life and the absurdity of the workings of modern society, this is a book you must read. Or maybe, if you read this though provoking masterpiece, you will start to think seriously about these issues and other aspects of the individual, and its daily relationship with society, bureaucracy and power.
This book was published poshumously in 1925 (Kafka died in 1924), and is considered by many philosophers and critics the best that he wrote.
The description of solitude and of the alienation of the modern human being is at the core of all Kafka's opus. We could consider that K. anticipated some recurrent themes of the existencialists. His detailed and realistic description of the human individual existence reveals its absurdity and irreality. From a metaphysical perspective, the absurd is based on the absence of God and the impossibility to understand anything that goes beyond rationality. From the social standpoint, it stems from the suffocating or controlling character of modern society. Struck by these complexities, the individual can only seek refuge in his small personal reality, renouncing reassuring answers and certainties.
Rating:
Summary: classic
Review: This is another of Kafka's masterpieces that everyone should read at some time. It's a fascinating book, that has too much going on in it to be able to discuss in the short space here. it will make you think.
Rating:
Summary: A masterpiece
Review: I read 'The Trial' by Franz Kafka 10 years after reading 'The Castle', which I didn't like at that time. Maybe I'm older (and a little wiser as well .. :) but this is a masterpiece, especially if you're fed up with life and the way society works in general. Throughout the novel I was amazed by how well structured AND readable it was, despite the absurdity and the surreal situations. I plan to reread 'The Castle' soon!
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