"What sort of acquittal you want":
the limits of farce, tragedy and satire in The Process
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.26512/cerrados.v27i47.19734Keywords:
Kafka. Satire. Alienation. realismAbstract
Not only is the reader of The Process unable to believe in what is said by the characters, including the protagonist, but they should also distrust their actions, comical and farcical. What is said by the narrator is also suspect, not deserving credit. Yet the reader perceives that there is a purpose in it. The disconnect is not there as a supernatural or diabolical order. It is all "on this side" (diesseitig), as observed by Lukács in comparing Kafka to Hoffman. The disconnect, not being unintentional, requires interpretation. The comedy in which Joseph K. wants to take part in acquires tragic dimensions due to the absence of a way out to the character, but it achieves a satirical force that I pretend to emphasize.
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