Franz Kafka
July 3rd, 1883 - June 3rd, 1924
Czech novelist Franz Kafka was a man whose deliberate use of language would come to define key aspects of his life. Having known German, Czech, and Hebrew, these three represented the continuous struggle for identity he faced up until his death. Through examining the context of his use of these languages, we can see just how significant each one was to him.
In late nineteenth/early twentieth-century Prague, antisemitism was a very real concern for Jewish families. Many, including Kafka’s family, lived on the very edge of social acceptance, being considered “assimilated Jews”. Being born of a bilingual (Czech and German) family, his parents, as with other middle-class families, sent their children to German-speaking schools. This was an example of attempts from 'assimilated' families to give their children more social acceptance in the broader Austro-Hungarian empire. As a result, the German language would become the most prolific in Kafka’s life.
Kafka would describe the use of German among Jews as a connection between them and the “frightful inner predicament of this generation.” It makes sense, then, that he would write all his most famous works in German, commenting on antisemitism in Europe through the choice of language alone. He would also describe his own assimilation of the German language through a stark parallel: “…a gypsy literature which had stolen the German child out of its cradle and in haste put it through some kind of training, for someone has to dance the tightrope.” (Kafka 289) It is through his own observations that his pessimism on the subject presents itself.
In contrast, although he grew up in a household that also spoke Czech, he very rarely wrote in the language. Much of this can be attributed to the aforementioned German-oriented education Kafka received as well as his belief that the Czech language was "affectionate,” implying his reluctance to write it in anything but the most personal of his works. And indeed he did, for the only instance of Kafka’s Czech writing that survives is in his letters to Milena, his third and last lover. He bore his heart bare to her, even encouraging her to write him in her native Czech instead of German. This shows a desire for Kafka to have Milena shed her adopted use of German in order to understand her character more clearly; perhaps a projection unto Milena of Franz’s own linguistic insecurities.
Since Kafka’s parents were largely non-practicing Jews, he would become estranged from religion at a young age. However, after discovering Yiddish theatre in 1911, he would become motivated to reconnect and rediscover his religious roots. Alongside his lifelong friend Max Brod, he would work for the first Jewish elementary school in Prague as well as study Jewish history. Ultimately, the idea of Zionism would lead him to learn Hebrew in 1917. The concept of language was very important to Kafka, so his efforts in learning a new one signified the importance that religion had on him. It is well known that he began learning Hebrew while suffering from tuberculosis; perhaps he found a religious solace in learning the language as he foresaw his death.
Kafka’s life was full of twists and turns, and his use of language was no exception. His work and his persona would become examples of the impact linguistics can have on one’s culture and societal development. It also allows purveyors of Kafka’s work to analyze it with a new perspective: his use of language to convey deep-rooted emotions about his contemporary Prague.
Written by Fernando Gomez