Отказ

by Franz Kafka, Франц Кафка, Соломон Апт (Translator)

Рассказы и романы Кафки аллегоричны, но не в обычном смысле этого слова; они являются, так сказать, математическими, алгебраическими символами — столько же условными, сколько реальными. Это своеобразие творческого метода Кафки возникло не само по себе. В нем явственно ощутимы традиции романтического и даже реалистического гротеска прошлого века. Гофман, Гоголь, Достоевский, новеллы Эдгара По — вот те источники, из которых питалось воображение писателя, стремившегося раскрыть некие потаенные, невидимые простым глазом, непознаваемые здравым рассудком отношения человека с действительностью и самим собой... Такими эти отношения представлялись ему, жившему в

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Classics, German Literature, Literature

1 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 1, 1920

About the author

Franz Kafka was a German-speaking writer from Prague whose work became one of the foundations of modern literature, even though he published only a small part of his writing during his lifetime. Born into a middle-class Jewish family in Prague, then part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, Kafka grew up amid German, Czech, and Jewish cultural influences that shaped his sense of displacement and linguistic precision. His difficult relationship with his authoritarian father left a lasting mark, fostering feelings of guilt, anxiety, and inadequacy that became central themes in his fiction and personal writings.
Kafka studied law at the German University in Prague, earning a doctorate in 1906. He chose law for practical reasons rather than personal inclination, a compromise that troubled him throughout his life. After university, he worked for several insurance institutions, most notably the Workers Accident Insurance Institute for the Kingdom of Bohemia. His duties included assessing industrial accidents and drafting legal reports, work he carried out competently and responsibly. Nevertheless, Kafka regarded his professional life as an obstacle to his true vocation, and most of his writing was done at night or during periods of illness and leave. Kafka began publishing short prose pieces in his early adulthood, later collected in volumes such as Contemplation and A Country Doctor. These works attracted little attention at the time but already displayed the hallmarks of his mature style, including precise language, emotional restraint, and the application of calm logic to deeply unsettling situations. His major novels The Trial, The Castle, and Amerika were left unfinished and unpublished during his lifetime. They depict protagonists trapped within opaque systems of authority, facing accusations, rules, or hierarchies that remain unexplained and unreachable. Themes of alienation, guilt, bureaucracy, law, and punishment run throughout Kafka’s work. His characters often respond to absurd or terrifying circumstances with obedience or resignation, reflecting his own conflicted relationship with authority and obligation. Kafka’s prose avoids overt symbolism, yet his narratives function as powerful metaphors through structure, repetition, and tone. Ordinary environments gradually become nightmarish without losing their internal coherence. Kafka’s personal life was marked by emotional conflict, chronic self-doubt, and recurring illness. He formed intense but troubled romantic relationships, including engagements that he repeatedly broke off, fearing that marriage would interfere with his writing. His extensive correspondence and diaries reveal a relentless self-critic, deeply concerned with morality, spirituality, and the demands of artistic integrity. In his later years, Kafka’s health deteriorated due to tuberculosis, forcing him to withdraw from work and spend long periods in sanatoriums. Despite his illness, he continued writing when possible. He died young, leaving behind a large body of unpublished manuscripts. Before his death, he instructed his close friend Max Brod to destroy all of his remaining work. Brod ignored this request and instead edited and published Kafka’s novels, stories, and diaries, ensuring his posthumous reputation.
The publication of Kafka’s work after his death established him as one of the most influential writers of the twentieth century. The term Kafkaesque entered common usage to describe situations marked by oppressive bureaucracy, absurd logic, and existential anxiety. His writing has been interpreted through existential, religious, psychological, and political perspectives, though Kafka himself resisted definitive meanings. His enduring power lies in his ability to articulate modern anxiety with clarity and restraint.

Reviews

[Mohajerino]

«امتناع»نگاشته شده در پاییز 1920

[Madilyn Heim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I actually really enjoy his work, this was a very interesting narrative on a small town society trained to submit to the law without question.

[mayar¹⁷ (dk’s version) 🇵🇸 · Rating 3 out of 5]

read this for english class and i liked it honestly, i like to imagine what im reading as pictures in my mind and this was enjoyable.

[Alexa · Rating 4 out of 5]

quite interesting

[Osiadły. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Schizo sexist mf

[Lequay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Totally kafkaesque

[Aimee · Rating 1 out of 5]

Sexistisch und arrogant

[Flurrimint · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read this for school, was a pretty decent story. One thing that I do when I read is imagine the story as pictures, and in my head, the town was pretty cloudy and depressing. Don't know why this story got such bad reviews, it's just your average story. I kind of like Kafka's writing, I'll try to read another one of his stories.

[Or Avsian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short story on how we submit to the law by a distant , impersonal authority without question. The only people discontent with this system are the young people (ages 17-20) mostly because everyone else has grown accustomed to this system even though most of their requests get denied. People are just relieved when they do not have to interact with the government officials.

[mia ୨୧ · Rating 3 out of 5]

read this in class idk how to feel about it, on one hand i liked it cuz like i finally got to read something and over analyze it in class, but on the other hand i have no clue what i was reading and i was kinda bored trying to figure out what every little thing meant

[Adria Mae · Rating 3 out of 5]

This text was used as an example for how to effectively teach high school English. The way I was taught was so engaging that I liked the story before I even read it. I read The Refusal after class, and I enjoyed it a great deal since I had a general understanding of the story prior to reading it.

[Brian Finch · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting short story about how people will just follow directions without ever stopping to ask why.

[az · Rating 2 out of 5]

definition of boring. Totally pointless, let’s not talk about the characters( waste of time).

[Aline. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Score: 4/10 (2 stars)
We get it Kafka you hate Bureaucracy

[trains · Rating 3 out of 5]

i found it interesting

[Jubilee Rayne]

I read this for my English class, however I’d like to reread it before giving it a proper review and rating; therefore, I’ll be back.

[David · Rating 3 out of 5]

Odd little reflection on authoritarianism.

[yara · Rating 3 out of 5]

If im being honest, i wasn’t exactly sure what i was reading. I did however enjoy the writing, very Kafka of him.

[Ashleigh · Rating 2 out of 5]

ehhh.... kinda boring had to read for my ela class.

[Hedi · Rating 1 out of 5]

Das ist die Franz-Kafka-Version von Typen, die nach einem Korb sagen „macht nichts, warst eh hässlich“