''Parables and Paradoxes'' (''Parabeln und Paradoxe'') is a bilingual edition of selected writings by

Franz Kafka Franz Kafka (3 July 1883 – 3 June 1924) was a German-speaking Bohemian novelist and short-story writer, widely regarded as one of the major figures of 20th-century literature. His work fuses elements of realism and the fantastic. It ...

edited by

Nahum N. Glatzer Nahum Norbert Glatzer (March 25, 1903 – February 27, 1990) was a scholar of Jewish history and philosophy from antiquity to mid 20th century. Life Glatzer was born in Lemberg, then part of the Austria-Hungary, Austro-Hungarian Empire (now ...

(

Schocken Books Schocken Books is a book publishing imprint of Penguin Random House that specializes in Jewish literary works. Originally established in 1931 by Salman Schocken as Schocken Verlag in Berlin, the company later moved to Palestine and then the Uni ...

, 1961). In this volume of collected pieces, Kafka re-examines and rewrites some basic mythical tales of

Ancient Israel The history of ancient Israel and Judah begins in the Southern Levant during the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age. "Israel" as a people or tribal confederation (see Israelites) appears for the first time in the Merneptah Stele, an inscripti ...

, Hellas, the

Far East The ''Far East'' was a European term to refer to the geographical regions that includes East and Southeast Asia as well as the Russian Far East to a lesser extent. South Asia is sometimes also included for economic and cultural reasons. The ter ...

, and the

West West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...

, as well as creations of his own imagination. The material in the book is drawn from Kafka's notebooks, diaries, letters, short fictional works and the novel ''

The Trial ''The Trial'' (german: Der Process, link=no, previously , and ) is a novel written by Franz Kafka in 1914 and 1915 and published posthumously on 26 April 1925. One of his best known works, it tells the story of Josef K., a man arrested and pr ...

''. An earlier version of the collection appeared under the title ''Parables'', and included a smaller selection of works.

On Parables "On Parables" (German: "Von den Gleichnissen") is a short story fragment by Franz Kafka. It was not published until 1931, seven years after his death. Max Brod selected stories and published them in the collection ''Beim Bau der Chinesischen Mauer' ...

:I * An Imperial Message * Pekin and the Emperor * The News of the Building of the Wall: a Fragment * The Great wall and the Tower of Babel :II * Paradise * The Tower of Babel * The Pit of Babel *

The City Coat of Arms "The City Coat of Arms" (German: "Das Stadtwappen") is a short story by Franz Kafka. It was published posthumously in ''Beim Bau der Chinesischen Mauer'' (Berlin, 1931). The first English translation by Willa and Edwin Muir was published by Martin ...

* Abraham * Mount Sinai * The Building of the Temple * The Animal in the Synagogue *

Before the Law "Before the Law" (German: "Vor dem Gesetz") is a parable contained in the novel ''The Trial'' (german: Der Prozess), by Franz Kafka. "Before the Law" was published twice in Kafka's lifetime, first in the 1915 New Year's edition of the independent J ...

* The Watchman * The Coming of the Messiah :III *

Prometheus In Greek mythology, Prometheus (; , , possibly meaning "forethought")Smith"Prometheus". is a Titan god of fire. Prometheus is best known for defying the gods by stealing fire from them and giving it to humanity in the form of technology, know ...

Poseidon Poseidon (; grc-gre, Ποσειδῶν) was one of the Twelve Olympians in ancient Greek religion and myth, god of the sea, storms, earthquakes and horses.Burkert 1985pp. 136–139 In pre-Olympian Bronze Age Greece, he was venerated as a ch ...

The Silence of the Sirens "The Silence of the Sirens" (German: "Das Schweigen der Sirenen") is a short story by Franz Kafka. It was not published until 1931, seven years after his death. Max Brod selected stories and published them in the collection '' Beim Bau der Chinesis ...

* The Sirens * Leopards in the Temple * Alexander the Great * Diogenes * The New Attorney :IV * The Building of a City * The Imperial Colonel * The Emperor * In the Caravanary * The Cell * The Invention of the Devil * The Savages *

The Hunter Gracchus "The Hunter Gracchus" (German: "Der Jäger Gracchus") is a short story by Franz Kafka. The story presents a boat carrying the long-dead Hunter Gracchus as it arrives at a port. The mayor of Riva meets Gracchus, who gives him an account of his death ...

+ Fragment * The Vulture * The Green Dragon * The Tiger *

The Problem of Our Laws "The Problem of Our Laws" (German: "Zur Frage der Gesetze") is a short parable by Franz Kafka was published posthumously in ''Beim Bau der Chinesischen Mauer'' (Berlin, 1931). The first English translation by Willa and Edwin Muir was published by ...

The Refusal "The Refusal" (German: "Die Abweisung"), also known as "Unser Städtchen liegt …", is a short story by Franz Kafka. Written in the autumn of 1920, it was not published in Kafka's lifetime. Overview The story of "Die Abweisung" involves the narr ...

* Couriers * A Chinese Puzzle *

The Truth about Sancho Panza "The Truth about Sancho Panza" (German: "Die Wahrheit über Sancho Pansa") is a short story by Franz Kafka. It was published in 1931, seven years after the death of Kafka. Max Brod selected stories and published them in the collection ''Beim Bau ...

* The Test * Robinson Crusoe * The Spring * The Hunger Strike * My Destination

Translations

''Parables and Paradoxes'' brings together short texts from the wide variety of Kafka's works. Since different texts were handled by different translators this volume allows readers to compare the various ways Kafka's works have been rendered into English. The translators included are: *

Clement Greenberg Clement Greenberg () (January 16, 1909 – May 7, 1994), occasionally writing under the pseudonym K. Hardesh, was an American essayist known mainly as an art critic closely associated with American modern art of the mid-20th century and a formali ...

* Ernst Kaiser and Eithne Wilkins * Willa and Edwin Muir * Tania and James Stern Short story collections by Franz Kafka 1961 short story collections Books published posthumously Books with cover art by Paul Bacon Schocken Books books {{1960s-story-collection-stub

Contents

Translations