The Sons

By Franz Kafka

From one of the greatest writers of the twentieth century, the author of The Trial: Three stories he published in his lifetime, including his best-known tale, “The Metamorphosis.”

I have only one request," Kafka wrote to his publisher Kurt Wolff in 1913. "'The Stoker,' 'The Metamorphosis,' and 'The Judgment' belong together, both inwardly and outwardly. There is an obvious connection among the three, and, even more important, a secret one, for which reason I would be reluctant to forego the chance of having them published together in a book, which might be called The Sons."

• Language: English
• Publisher: Random House Publishing Group
• Release date: Jan 16, 2009
• ISBN: 9780307497970

Franz Kafka

Born in Prague in 1883, the son of a self-made Jewish merchant, Franz Kafka trained as a lawyer and worked in insurance. He published little during his lifetime and lived his life in relative obscurity. He was forced to retire from work in 1917 after being diagnosed with tuberculosis, a debilitating illness which dogged his final years. When he died in 1924 he bequeathed the – mainly unfinished – manuscripts of his novels, stories, letters and diaries to his friend the writer Max Brod with the strict instruction that they should be destroyed. Brod ignored Kafka’s wishes and organised the publication of his work, including The Trial, which appeared in 1925. It is through Brod’s efforts that Kafka is now regarded as one of the greatest novelists of the twentieth century.

Reviews for The Sons

[figre · Rating: 3 out of 5 stars]

Let’s begin with the fact that any collection containing “The Metamorphosis” has to be good. There are very good reasons why this is a classic. For those of you who haven’t heard, a man wakes up to find he has turned into a cockroach. For those of you who have heard but not bothered (or read at such speed – as required by some instructor or other authority figure – that you missed the nuance), it is not so much about the transformation into a cockroach as it is a study of the man and his family. This is a story you want to take the time to read, and you want to take the time to absorb it.But, on to the rest of the collection. Apparently, Kafka had a desire that these three stories (“The Judgment” about a son who is heading toward marriage but finds he has not lived up to his father’s expectations, “The Stoker” about a son who has been forced to leave his family and, after landing in America, finds more than one authority figure replacement, and the previously mentioned “The Metamorphosis” about a son who turns into…well, we’ve already been there) be brought together in one collection to help present his overarching theme about sons, fathers, and families. Collecting them this way does indeed help strengthen that theme. And this is enhanced by the inclusion of “Letter to His Father”, a “critique” written by Kafka about his father and the life Kafka wound up living.However, compared to “The Metamorphosis”, everything else is just interesting – not bad, but just interesting. Two hints about reading this specific collection. Read “Letter” first as it does provide insights into the thoughts that made up the short stories. And save the introduction for later (at least after reading “The Judgment) as there is a spoiler. Maybe a minor spoiler, but a spoiler nonetheless.