dailykafka

[dailykafka]

Empty? No. No it's not.

Yes, it is.

[dailykafka]

Not anymore. :)

Okay so I was going to answer this with simple

A classic! Can't go wrong with it.

But! Then I thought we just created a Schordinger's ask! (Not sure if this is the case though, like if im referring to it right)

If I had not answered this, it would have been true, but I did answer so it is no longer true. Its like if Pinocchio says "my nose will grow now", what is actually going to happen?

[dailykafka]

— April 7, 1914 / Franz Kafka diaries

[dailykafka]

I cannot believe my inbox is finally empty!! It was tough but I did it!!😌😌

[dailykafka]

my favorite author is franz frankenstein

He was the best😌

[dailykafka]

Feeling angry and mad like omfg smoke is fuming out of my nostrils rn thus oh DailyKafka my good humble librarian of Franz Kafkas brain and life and all the followers who are experts on his weight, may you please search for Franz Kafka quotes being super angry and mad so I can validate my feellings and imagine myself as a angry tuberculosis-sickened austro-hungarian bc im mentally iww like that hihi bitte bitte bitte bitte bitte bitte bitte

I assume you've calmed down already since Im answering this like bijilion years later so…

[dailykafka]

Dora Diamant named her first and only daughter Franziska after Kafka and I need all of you to know that

I knoow!! Its so cute🥺🥺

[dailykafka]

I hope Kafka fucked wild and died a little less tortured for it all.

Amen to that!

[dailykafka]

It is a really weird assumption to think that Kafka died a virgin especially because he had so many girlfriends? Do people really think they just went out for tea and nuts? (Kafka had a weird diet that included a whole lot of nuts)

I don't think he had any sexual relations with his girlfriends because of the customs of that time but that doesn't mean people didn't have sex lol (especially men lol)

[dailykafka]

— March 30, 1913 / Letters to Felice

[dailykafka]

— March 27, 1914 / Franz Kafka diaries

[dailykafka]

Im writing a paper trying to articulate the self in metamorphosis through the lens of heidegger.. are you aware of martin heidegger’s theory of the self and existence?

You guys think Ive read everything…

Heidegger was a constructivist in a sense, he viewed that the structures around us, like historical events, culture, society and such, shape the self. These are pre-existing structures which we did not choose and these pre-existing structures shape who we are (kinda deterministic imo). So for Heidegger the self is constructed and it is constructed by these pre existing structures.

Also, because the self is constructed by "outside forces" it is never constant and is always changing (through coming in contact with the world), for example through relationships.

In Kafka's Metamorphosis "As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into a monstrous vermin". Here we already encounter Heidegger's Gewofenheit (throwness).

But even before Samsa's transformation, he was trapped (thrown) in his life. He works a job he dislikes to support his family, his identity is defined by external pressures rather than his own choices, he does not question his life's meaning but rather conforms to societal expectations (das Man-the anonymous "they").

I think you could say that Gregor's transformation is a physical manifestation of his inauthentic self defined by das Man.

Heidegger defines the self as part of the world as it exists through the relationships and interactions with others. You could talk about how lack of such connections transforms a person "into a monstrous vermin". Gregor is disconnected from the world and the people around him. Heidegger considers these relationships crucial for the self and Kafka's metamorphosis proves him right. It shows the degradation of the self without such structures.

But I think it would be interesting to say that… idk how to formulate this but Heidegger says social relationships are important and they make us as we are. Kafka goes deeper and asks what holds these relationships together? He shows that once an individual is no longer useful, he loses the connections to others, hence he loses himself (is this true though? or is Kafka just a terrible pessimist?) Without the connections to the world does the self also disappear? And can the self only have connections, thus only exist, if it is useful to the world?

Finally, you could talk about Heidegger's being-towards-death (Sein-zum-Tode). For Heidegger, an authentic existence means confrontation with death and realization of your own mortality. Does Gregor achieve this? He never considers his mortality properly, he just accepts it.

In Metamorphosis Gregor goes through a metamorphosis but it is not a good one, it is the process of the degradation of the self. Through Heidegger's lense you could say that The metamorphosis is a critique of inauthentic existence and the alienation imposed by the society. Gregor never achieves his authentic self, rather his transformation only highlights and externalizes the degradation of his selfhood.

Shortly, The metamorphosis is a perfect example of what happens when Dasein cannot assert itself against das Man and throwness.

[dailykafka]

I will never forget that one time I saw a tiktok of some guy titling his post "HOW TO PRONOUNCE NAMES OF CLASSIC AUTHORS✨" but then he like completely utterly butchers every single name, and when it got to Franz Kafka he deadass just says "Frankenstein!😊"

Well, it makes sense, dramaturgically…

[dailykafka]

115 lbs!

Thanks! I didn't know this😄

[dailykafka]

Strange feeling-ish, Ngl. But I find Franz Kafka, as a person, a little bit intimidating(?). Somehow? Not intimidating like omfg so scary nor that he is a bully. Ive finished rereading the trial with a huge focus on how K. interacts with people + his diaries focusing on how he interacts with women and his peers. For some reason I feel like had Franz Kafka met me in real life, he would be extremely judgemental of me... perhaps leaning towards negatively. Idk. I still adore Franz Kafka oj so much and find him a very wonderful individual, but just how the strict concrete bureaucracy builds his personality, perspectives, and interactions with people (plus most of his adult life is in Austro-Hungary, extremely different from where I live now)... I feel like we'd have extremely different temperments, judgements, and opinions even though we'd have similar interests. I love him so fucking much, but its bc of that its somehow „intimidating“. I dont even know how to explain. I might even be using the wrong word loool. But do you people get it??

Are you worried that a man from more than 100 years ago might be bit judgmental towards you…??

I'm gonna hold your hand as I say this…

[dailykafka]

Well, I have finally gotten around to reading the apparently-infamous slash fic about Kafka and Oskar Pollak. I am pleasantly surprised to find that it is actually quite tasteful and even humorous at times!

From the last chapter: “But what does it mean, he thinks, when he speaks to Oskar in a way which is even quieter, even more genuine, even more real, even more hopeful— As if the sky could shatter like glass and fall to their feet and it wouldn’t matter, as if they could be told that every last one of their dreams and wishes are altogether futile and pointless and still they would try and try again. What does it mean, when you speak to man like lover?

—And he would ask himself again, again and again and again, and everyone else in the world would ask it too, centuries past and centuries forward: what does it mean, when you speak to man like lover?

What does it mean, when you speak to man like lover?”

Also, the author of the fic (who is apparently a 13-year-old girl) gets sent to the mental hospital like immediately after uploading the first chapter and then uploads the second one immediately after she gets out. I was cracking up. Historical RPF is definitely not my thing but hey, I was curious 😂

The last part😭😭 lmaoo

[dailykafka]

I feel so bad for Franz Kafka for every reason one could feel bad for anyone for.

Yeahh…