In many of his stories, Franz Kafka is concerned with the notion of truth. Specifically, Kafka examines various topics that have influence on our notion of truth, such as nature, time, authority, comfort, and even the influence of the mode used to express “truths.”. In the case of nature, the influence it has can be considered in two distinct ways. The first is the influence that our animal ancestry has on all of us as humans, and the second is the influence that our nature as individuals has on us as distinct people. In A Report to the Academy, Kafka discusses the first of these natures through an explicit example of a gorilla coming to terms with how he has “become human”. The character is discussing his transformation from a gorilla in nature to becoming a vaudeville star. There is an obvious allusion made to the way that we as humans are also not impervious to the animalistic tendencies of our own ancestry in the line (pp 76-77).
The effects of nature, and its relation to our idea of truth, are explored further in Researches of a Dog, where a dog, who views the world through the lens of a dog, tries to build his ontology from a dog’s point of view. Because of his limited sense of the world, the researcher makes a few incorrect assumptions and judgements about how certain things work. For example, “we find this food on the ground, but the ground needs our water” (p. 139). In this case the researcher believes that food is generated by dogs peeing on the ground. This assumption is generated by a faulty set of causal conclusions. It is like the assumptions that humans make about spontaneous generation and how flies come from rotting meat. Much like humans, this researcher somewhat overcomes these errors later and deduces that some food comes from above (p. 151), but still holds to the belief that urine is what generates the food. But there are also less “naturalistic” parts of human nature that have a profound effect on how we view the world. From the affect of our lingering sense of worry (Odradek) present in The Worry of the Father of the Family (p. 72), to the effect that our fear of death plays in The Hunter Gracchus (p. 109), there is an implication that there are aspects of life that lay in our subconscious and affect our perceptions of the world.
Probably one of the most known aspects of Kafka’s writings is his discussion of the role that authority plays in how we operate, and how we view truth. In The Judgement, the authority of Georg’s father is so fundamental, that merely the mention of his father’s disapproval is enough to convince Georg to kill himself (p. 12). Likewise, in Kafka’s story In the Penal Colony, the relationship between truth and authority is pervasive. In the story there is a character referred to as the Officer, who for all intents and purposes is the judge, jury, and executioner of judicial proceedings within the colony. Unlike a traditional judicial system, where you are “innocent until proven guilty,” the truth presented by the officer is that under his authority, “guilt is always beyond all doubt” (p. 40). As well, the officer believes that defense testimony is not worth listening to because the person will probably lie or confuse the matter (p. 41). There is an interesting implication here that is like some of the writings of Michel Foucault, in that those who hold power can control what truth means. As far as the penal colony’s judicial system is concerned, the truth of the matter is that all accused are guilty as the one with the power to determine truth has decided it is true. Since this is the case, there is also an undertone throughout that any mistakes, or poor judgements made by those in power, are also forced to be taken seriously like the uniforms (p. 36) the soldiers are forced to wear.
This close-minded nature of purely respecting authority is likewise challenged in the story, The New Lawyer, where Kafka states that Bucephalus can understand the law more deeply than most because he is not just looking at it through the lens of what is used by existing authorities (p. 60). The truth that is born out of Bucephalus’ reading cannot be explored when one just simply accepts an authority as telling “the truth”. In fact, the officer in The Penal Colony is so close minded that he believes his truth, and has faith in the dead commandant so strongly, that he dies for it at the hands of the machine he used to punish so many prisoners with. This strong, single-willed attachment to authority also appears in another short story called, Before the Law, where much like in The Judgement and In the Penal Colony, a character is willing to die waiting in a room just because the person at the door told him to wait. Not only was he willing to let “the law” control him, but he did not even know what it was. The fact that it “should” be given authority was enough to accept it fully. Even in Josephina the Singer of the Mouse People, the mouse people are seemingly led to their demise by just the mention of Josephina’s wish to perform (pp. 105-106). The mouse people discount all criticism (pp. 96-97) and forego all sense of danger (p. 99) to “serve” her wish to perform.
This does bring up another interesting point that Kafka makes about comfort. Throughout the story, Josephina is constantly attributed with providing a sense of comfort. Her squeaking helps people forget their worries and not worry about the truth of the danger they are constantly surrounded by. Likewise, in The Burrow, the inclination to comfort, and avoidance of fear leads the main character to be unable to advance himself effectively. There is a subtle irony in the fact that gaining knowledge is associated with comfort, but the process of gaining knowledge, such as by going outside, is uncomfortable. Additionally, the badger recognizes that there is a lingering sense (silence) of constantly needing to chase knowledge. This theme is present in Researches of a Dog (p. 148), and likewise in The Silence of the Sirens (pp. 127-128). Throughout The Burrow, the badger implies that knowledge and knowing is not only comfortable, but also can give you a sort of protection. Ironically, although knowledge is a major value to him, the badger has a fear of creatures that he has never seen (p. 163). Lastly, there is mention of a darker side of our pursuit of truth in this story. The badger mentions an ascetic practice of banging his head against the wall to see if it is strong (pp. 166-167). This is meant to reflect the self-flagellation some go through, when endeavoring to uncover the truth.
Works cited
Kafka, Franz, and Stanley Corngold. Kafka’s Selected Stories. New York, NY: Norton, 2007.