Neither an author with a difficult and dark outlook nor a political prophet who anticipated the calamities of the 20th century, but a man of great empathy, who above all knew how to listen, but who had to fight against the ghosts of his childhood, something he achieved by finding an angle comical in any situation. This is how he has described Franz Kafka the german writer Pure sting in his speech at the book fair that closes in Prague and is dedicated to the centenary of the writer's death, which is commemorated on June 3.
Stach, one of the world's authorities on Franz Kafka studies, believes that in the last two decades there has been a renaissance of the author of Jewish origin and attributes this to the fact that he is "fun."
“In Kafka there are comic places. If there's something wrong, you'll find a comical angle. He wanted this himself,” said Stach about the German-speaking Prague writer, author of “The Metamorphosis,” “The Trial” and “The Castle.”
The essayist participates in the “Svět knihy Praha 2024” Book Fair at the fairgrounds in the Czech capital, where he invited his audience to “leave the interpretations and enjoy” reading Kafka, and to undergo that kind of existential therapy .
GOOD LISTENER
“Now (young people) realize that he is funny, that he writes authentically, without mercy. "That continually surprises, and that nothing can be foreseen in it," says Stach, author of the monumental trilogy "The Early Years (1883-1910)", "The Years of Decisions (1910-1916)" and "The Years of knowledge (1916-1924)” dedicated to Kafka.
«Kafka encourages us not to let ourselves be dominated by situations. He can be horrible, but totally funny,” says the expert, who also recognized the writer's empathy and his ability to give advice.
“He was a champion of monologue, but he knew how to give advice. And he understood situations quickly. Many young women entertained themselves with him, and he understood them. They wanted to have him as an advisor, uncle or colleague. He had a reputation as a good listener,” states Stach.
COMICS AND THEATER
The fair's leitmotiv is the writer's phrase "A book must be an ax for the frozen sea within us." Among other works dedicated to the author, it presents a section of comics inspired by Kafka's own drawings, as well as the book “Kafka's Prague”, a work by Radim Kopáč and Petr Stančík that shows the writer's intimate relationship with the city.
In addition to the fair, these days there are grotesque theater plays in Prague, an exhibition at the DOX modern art gallery on Kafka's impact on plastic authors and an interesting monographic exhibition at the Museum of Literature.
Kafka, who has been translated into 120 languages, “realizes that things are important, but that they should not be taken so seriously,” Stach comments on this facet of the writer, which is very relevant today.
In a context of disorientation due to the complexity of everything that surrounds us, something that young people especially perceive, the figure of Kafka emerges and hence his growing popularity among new generations, he explains.
Kafka shows that “he can be a modern author, so as not to go crazy in a world like today,” Stach adds. EFE