Franz Kafka becomes a writer

How did Franz Kafka become an inexhaustible author despite the most unfavourable circumstances and enormous doubts? Where did his indomitable will and the certainty that he had to write come from? And how was he able to breathe such clarity and purity into his language?

His success was preceded by many years of groping and trials. His main long-term treatment plan has been "as much sun and fresh air as possible", and at the naturopathic clinic "Jungborn" he strictly adheres to this. The clinic focusing on natural healing and lifestyle was to provide him with relaxation for the "immense world I have in my head". Little does Kafka know that he is about to experience weeks that will change his life in a fundamental way.

After returning from the clinic, we find Kafka in the silence of his friend Max Brod's room at the moment when he is deciding on the order of the stories he wants to publish for the first time. But a surprise awaits him in the Brod family dining room: her name is Felice Bauer! Shortly afterwards, he writes his first letter, and then comes the turning point, the night after which nothing will be the same: "The only way to write is in such a context, with a complete opening of body and soul." This night would be a powerful stimulus for Kafka, which in no small measure contributed to his literary breakthrough.

Strongly influenced by his school reading of Greek mythology, Kafka's way of expressing himself undergoes a decisive change again after a long time. In the months that follow, texts emerge that have a fascinating clarity and clarity of language and are considered the author's seminal work.

Now he is finally sure of himself.

Przemek Schreck will talk about how Kafka's family rejected his writing very strictly, and we will also learn that he burned thousands of pages that did not meet his strict standards. We'll follow Kafka's painstaking, yet lively and entertaining, trail through his harrowing, deprived journey to the point where he becomes a co-founder of literary modernism.

The event will take place in German and will be simultaneously interpreted into Czech.

EDITOR: Przemek Schreck

TRANSLATOR: Jiřina Pribylová

The evening is organised by the Unijazz Reading Room in cooperation with Die Erzählerei e.V.

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