From the Bookshelf of On Paths Unknown…

The Castle

Franz Kafka

Start date: January 29, 2016

Finish date: December 16, 2018

Discussion: THE SURREALISTS: FRANZ KAFKA

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THE SURREALISTS: FRANZ KAFKA

Franz Kafka: The Castle. Opening thread. Chapter 1: Arrival
By Traveller · 15 posts · 32 views

last updated Feb 27, 2016 07:32AM

The Castle by Kafka; thread 2 from Ch 2 (Barnabas) to Ch 6 ( 2nd Conversat w. the Landlady)
By Traveller · 11 posts · 54 views

last updated Feb 09, 2016 07:32AM

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Jan 10, 2018 Nandakishore Mridula rated it really liked it · review of another edition

It was the start of the year when NK. picked up The Castle by Kafka, a book he had tried to read a lot of times but failed in the past; but now he was full of a new resolution that he will finish it this time. He had hardly read a few pages, however, when his wife called him. "We need to withdraw some money from the bank," she said: "There are a lot of bills to be paid, and some of them are long overdue.""Can't we do it online?" NK. grumbled. "No," said his wife. "The grocer and the vegetable pe It was the start of the year when NK. picked up The Castle by Kafka, a book he had tried to read a lot of times but failed in the past; but now he was full of a new resolution that he will finish it this time. He had hardly read a few pages, however, when his wife called him. "We need to withdraw some money from the bank," she said: "There are a lot of bills to be paid, and some of them are long overdue.""Can't we do it online?" NK. grumbled. "No," said his wife. "The grocer and the vegetable peddler do not carry card-swiping machines." NK. set off to the bank, annoyed.

At the bank, he tried to withdraw money, first from the ATM, and when that proved unsuccessful, from the bank personally; but the teller told him: "I am afraid there is a technical issue, sir, you Aadhar number which is linked your account has some problem, so I am unable to complete the transaction.""Oh," said NK. "What is the problem?" "I can't see that from here, sir," said the teller. "I think you will have to log in to the site with your ID and check yourself." "Can I do it from here?" NK. asked. "No sir, our bank policy prevents us from allowing outsiders to use our computers. I am sorry, sir." The teller replied.

NK. returned home. "Got the money?" asked his wife. "No. There is a problem with my Aadhar number and I need to correct it online." NK. said. His wife replied: "Well, you can't do it from here. There is a power shutdown until the evening.""I will do it on my laptop," NK. said and went to his office room. But the laptop would not power up: he suddenly remembered that the battery was dead and had to be replaced. He called his computer serviceman. "I guess you will have to bring it here, sir," said that gentleman. "Today all my assistants are on leave and there is no one to send." Accordingly NK. went outside to catch an auto-rickshaw.

He was standing on the roadside for quite some time without success, when a neighbour chanced by. "What are you waiting for?" he asked. "An auto," said NK. "Well, you won't get any today. There's a lightning bandh declared by one of the political parties, the Congress, BJP or CPI(M), I don't know which, to protest against a killing somewhere in the North." Said the neighbour. "Well, in that case I better go home,"NK. said. The neighbour concurred.

By this time it had grown quite dark. NK. wondered where the day had gone. As he went into his office room, he saw The Castle lying unread on his table. "I will definitely read it tomorrow," he said. ...more

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Feb 23, 2010 Cecily rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: kafka-and-kafkaesque, favourites, aaa-tbr-very-soon

An extraordinary combination of beauty and subtle, paranoid horror - "growing inured to disappointment". Who else can make snow sinister (scary perhaps, but surely not sinister)? It ends in the middle of a sentence, more tantalisingly still, it ends with a mysterious old woman just about to say something... Very apt for a tale of layers of secrecy and never-ending frustration.

It can be interpreted as an allegory for Jewish alienation and/or as a semi-autobiographical rendition of his relationsh ...more

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Dec 30, 2014 Jonfaith rated it it was amazing

Only a total stranger could ask such a question. Are there control agencies? There are only control agencies. Of course they aren’t meant to find errors, in the vulgar sense of that term, since no errors occur, and even if an error does occur, as in your case, who can finally say that it is an error.

We were all once younger. I don't know if we have all been haunted. ...more

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Aug 31, 2015 Xandra rated it liked it

Shelves: 1001-books, z-m, 1900-1949, european, surreal-fantasy-magic, czech

He’s a victim of darkly comical and increasingly wearisome bureaucracy and he can’t do his job for the castle but at least he gets to listen to the villagers’ long contradictory monologues.

5 likes · Like · see review