In the Penal Colony / In der Strafkolonie: Bilingual Edition: English - German / Zweisprachige Ausgabe: Englisch - Deutsch

By Franz Kafka

This edition contains the English translation and the original text in German.

"In the Penal Colony" ("In der Strafkolonie") (also translated as "In the Penal Settlement") is a short story by Franz Kafka written in German in October 1914, revised in November 1918, and first published in October 1919. The story is set in an unnamed penal colony. Internal clues and the setting on an island suggest Octave Mirbeau's The Torture Garden as an influence. As in some of Kafka's other writings, the narrator in this story seems detached from, or perhaps numbed by, events that one would normally expect to be registered with horror. "In the Penal Colony" describes the last use of an elaborate torture and execution device that carves the sentence of the condemned prisoner on his skin before letting him die, all in the course of twelve hours. As the plot unfolds, the reader learns more and more about the machine, including its origin and original justification.

"In der Strafkolonie" ist eine Erzählung von Franz Kafka, die im Oktober 1914 entstand und 1919 veröffentlicht wurde. Einem Forschungsreisenden wird das Rechtssystem einer Strafkolonie vorgeführt. Es besteht darin, dass jeder Angeklagte unabhängig von seiner Schuld oder Unschuld von einem Apparat in minutiösem Ablauf stundenlang gefoltert und dann getötet wird. Den Apparat beschreibt Kafka als überdimensionalen Parlographen in der Funktionsweise eines Phonographen mit vibrierender Metallplatte und Nadel. Dieser Apparat ist der Hauptgegenstand der Erzählung, er repräsentiert die "Einheit von Schrift und Tod, von Ekstase und Thanatos".

• Language: English
• Publisher: BookRix
• Release date: Jun 15, 2017
• ISBN: 9783736839267

Franz Kafka

Franz Kafka (1883-1924) was a primarily German-speaking Bohemian author, known for his impressive fusion of realism and fantasy in his work. Despite his commendable writing abilities, Kafka worked as a lawyer for most of his life and wrote in his free time. Though most of Kafka’s literary acclaim was gained postmortem, he earned a respected legacy and now is regarded as a major literary figure of the 20th century.

Reviews for In the Penal Colony / In der Strafkolonie

[pocketmermaid · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

I read this because I was assigned to read "The Metamorphosis" for my World Lit II class, and when I was finished I was so taken with Kafka and I couldn't get enough. I downloaded this ebook and began reading it immediately after I was done with my assignment. I enjoyed it (though not as much as "The Metamorphosis") and I'm completely in love with Kafka's writing.

[goddamn_phony · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Guilt, fear, punishment, retribution. The desperation of the common man in the face of power. All were tattooed into Kafka's psyche and are recurrent themes in everything he wrote. In this grim little book, crimes are literally tattooed onto the skin of convicts until they experience enlightenment, and then they die.