The novel "The Trial", written by Franz Kafka, analyzes the classic problem of the modern society - the confrontation between man and bureaucratic system. The novel tells the story about Josef K. who is arrested in the morning of his 30th anniversary without being told the reason for arrest. However, Josef continues to live his life as he does it before because the organization that has arrested him is not afraid of his abscondence. He is invited to the court, is visited at home and at workplace, is pursued by servants of justice. All this time he is trying to figure out the reason for his arrest, but he cannot discover the truth from the prosecutors.
The composition of the novel is based on the classical principle: at the beginning Josef K. awakes from sleep and learn about his arrest and an interrogation takes place in the room of K.'s neighbor, then there is a development of the action (and it all goes very slowly, considering the fact that the lawyer Huld is writing the first petition to the court for a few months), after that the high point of the novel comes (Josef dismisses the lawyer and talks to the priest who tells him a philosophical parable "Before the Law"). The final seems sudden, at first glance, but quite logical (death penalty execution). However, Josef K. still does not know the reason of the trial even in the moment of execution when he is killed "like a dog".
All the characters in the book are somehow connected with judicial proceedings. Innumerable judicial officials of different statuses, lawyer Herr Huld, painter Titorelli, nurse Leni, Herr Huld's nurse) - all they work either at the court, or for those who is connected to it. Even Fräulein Bürstner, an ordinary typist which appeared in the life of Josef K., after his arrest, immediately wants to study law in order to be able to help the protagonist to drop the charges.
Kafka shows surrounding bureaucratic life is by depicting the spaces and places. Josef K. is constantly confronted with the judicial system in the closed, stuffy spaces - in his room (and almost in bed), in the attic of the judicial offices, in studio with tightly closed windows. Over time, the space begins to shrink in the main character`s life: he can see through the windows only the tiny pieces of walls and roofs of neighboring houses, he is always surrounded by crowds of people indoors – by court officials, bank employees, teenage girls.
Another important detail characterizes the bureaucratic system. Everyone, who is faced by K., treats him courteously and helpfully. Even the executioners pass politely the knife one to another, deciding who will lead the sentence. In addition, everyone is ready to explain the details of the trial, but the result is still absurd. K. has to deal only with cogs in the machine who are eager to tell him about their own problems and who seems to be not guilty of what is happening, and the highest authorities, which Josef believes responsible for all, remains unknown and inaccessible to him.
The absurdity of the trial is underscored by the fact that neither the protagonist nor the readers do not understand why Josef has been charged, what kind of crime he had committed. In general, incomplete information is one of the features of this trial. For example, when Josef K. goes to the first session of the court, he understands that he was not informed about a precise address, or even the time of the hearing.
So, the bureaucratic system, which carries out the trial, is portrayed in a terrible way. In fact, the reader gets the impression that the power of the court is boundless, every citizen can be charged and it is not possible to prove innocence. The author seems to be saying that the fight against the bureaucracy is meaningless and hopeless. At the same time, the parable "Before the Law" demonstrates that citizens voluntarily give themselves at the mercy of the bureaucratic authorities. They obediently agree with what they are told (or not told) be the authorities or servants of justice. After all, the protagonist of the parable could go away, when the doorkeeper told him that he was not allowed to enter the doorway right now. The man decided to stay and wait resignedly and spent a lifetime waiting at the doorway.
Franz Kafka describes the bureaucratic court system, pointing out that often the right decision may be obtained by the right relationship or help from an influential person. For example, the protagonist of the novel says that he really could use the women`s help since they have an impact on people who have power. Readers learn about the importance of relationships from the speeches of Herr Huld, who promises to use all his contacts to get Josef out of the trial. So, we understand that this society has a strong hierarchy and everything is decided by right contacts, not by the law.
The feeling of hopelessness is enhanced when the readers learn the characters who have to fight against this system by the nature of their activities. The first one is lawyer Herr Huld. An old and sick lawyer is living in a gloomy building. It is hard to believe that the person who serves as an official lawyer can live in such appalling conditions. The second character is an artist Titorelli living in the attic in a deserted block. Titorelli is sluggish and cynical, he can offer only dubious tricks hardly capable of winning trials.
Kafka saw in the life of man in society one endless trial that is senseless and merciless. The arrest of the main character do not accidentally falls on his birthday: Josef K. lives the last year of his life deep in the prosecution, not knowing why he is accused. He is guilty simply because each person in this life can be somewhat to blame, and that is enough for bureaucratic organization to deliver a judgment. It is important to emphasize that the whole life of the protagonist before the trial was riddled with bureaucracy. He works as chief cashier in the bank, and one of its visitors once said he considers Mr.K as nearly a lawyer. That is definitely true since Josef K. has boring work, where he makes people wait for a meeting with him and some decisions. In one of the chapters it is described by one of the Josef`s working days when he has to meet visitors. He is so occupied by thinking of his trial that he makes visitors wait for a long time in order to talk to him and then when he is leaving for personal reasons, he asks them to come another day, or to leave their requests in writing. So Josef K. treat his visitors in the same way, as all the lawyers, judges, investigators and other people associated with the trial treat him. And since Josef K. is also part of the bureaucratic system, he cannot fight against it. The readers can see that in the beginning he is trying to find out why he is accused and prove his innocence then in the final Josef K. gives up, not even trying to resist his executioners.
Work cited
Kafka, Franz. The Trial. Hollywood, FL: Simon & Brown, 2010. Print.
