Masters Theses

Date of Award

3-1983

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Major

German

Major Professor

Ursula Ritzenhoff

Committee Members

Henry Kratz

Abstract

The work of Franz Kafka deals to a great extent with the struggle of individuals or social groups endeavoring to cope with a power which threatens their existence.

The purpose of this study is to analyze in The Castle, Kafka's last novel, how the author defines power as being nothing but an illusion. In the first chapter, the literary devices he uses in order to support this idea are outlined. The second chapter demonstrates how the author carries out his intention by describing the castle, the laws and the civil servants as completely powerless. The third chapter assesses to what degree the villagers as a whole, the protagonist K. and some secondary figures submit to this immaterial power. Kafka's objective to depict the passivity of the castle and its representatives is emphasized through Amalia's story, which is discussed in the fourth chapter.

This result differs from the conclusions reached by Kafka criticism to date. Most interpreters of The Castle concentrate on determining whether the power is to be found in the castle itself or in its civil servants. More recently, critics have contended that the power of the castle only exists in the villagers and in K.'s imagination, or as a secret force somewhere beyond the castle.

The conclusions of this study suggest that Kafka's novel The Castle is meant to be read as a warning that man will be destroyed unless he learns not to fall prey to a non-existent power.

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