The Curious Case of Kafka’s “Odradek”:
Franz Kafka’s “The Cares of a Family Man” is a narrative riddle that has created an interpretive frenzy. Central to the discussion of the short story is Odradek, a wooden bobbin, which veers between being human and nonhuman. The transgression of identity is informed by an assemblage that makes Odra...
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
ULAB Press
2015-08-01
|
| Series: | Crossings |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://journals.ulab.edu.bd/index.php/crossings/article/view/215 |
| _version_ | 1797659675853848576 |
|---|---|
| author | Shamsad Mortuza |
| author_facet | Shamsad Mortuza |
| author_sort | Shamsad Mortuza |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description |
Franz Kafka’s “The Cares of a Family Man” is a narrative riddle that has created an interpretive frenzy. Central to the discussion of the short story is Odradek, a wooden bobbin, which veers between being human and nonhuman. The transgression of identity is informed by an assemblage that makes Odradek a character that is both social and anti-social. Kafka presents this character as a bricolage between the sacred and the profane. More importantly, it is connected to some threads which can be identified as a metaphor for narrative. This paper considers various interpretations of Odradek and compares it with the culture hero, the trickster. AlthoughOdradek is a modernist figure that responds to the angst of the Europe after the Great War, I shall argue that it can be considered as a marginal figure trickster that continuously asserts the need for continuance and survival.
|
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T18:18:36Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-e1563d7be3a74390994d0c31f5af9dac |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2071-1107 2958-3179 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T18:18:36Z |
| publishDate | 2015-08-01 |
| publisher | ULAB Press |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Crossings |
| spelling | doaj.art-e1563d7be3a74390994d0c31f5af9dac2023-10-16T04:22:38ZengULAB PressCrossings2071-11072958-31792015-08-016110.59817/cjes.v6i.215The Curious Case of Kafka’s “Odradek”:Shamsad Mortuza0Professor, Department of English, University of Dhaka and Advisor, Department of English and Humanities, University of Liberal Arts Bangladesh Franz Kafka’s “The Cares of a Family Man” is a narrative riddle that has created an interpretive frenzy. Central to the discussion of the short story is Odradek, a wooden bobbin, which veers between being human and nonhuman. The transgression of identity is informed by an assemblage that makes Odradek a character that is both social and anti-social. Kafka presents this character as a bricolage between the sacred and the profane. More importantly, it is connected to some threads which can be identified as a metaphor for narrative. This paper considers various interpretations of Odradek and compares it with the culture hero, the trickster. AlthoughOdradek is a modernist figure that responds to the angst of the Europe after the Great War, I shall argue that it can be considered as a marginal figure trickster that continuously asserts the need for continuance and survival. https://journals.ulab.edu.bd/index.php/crossings/article/view/215Kafkaanimalsacredprofanetricksterassemblage |
| spellingShingle | Shamsad Mortuza The Curious Case of Kafka’s “Odradek”: Crossings Kafka animal sacred profane trickster assemblage |
| title | The Curious Case of Kafka’s “Odradek”: |
| title_full | The Curious Case of Kafka’s “Odradek”: |
| title_fullStr | The Curious Case of Kafka’s “Odradek”: |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Curious Case of Kafka’s “Odradek”: |
| title_short | The Curious Case of Kafka’s “Odradek”: |
| title_sort | curious case of kafka s odradek |
| topic | Kafka animal sacred profane trickster assemblage |
| url | https://journals.ulab.edu.bd/index.php/crossings/article/view/215 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT shamsadmortuza thecuriouscaseofkafkasodradek AT shamsadmortuza curiouscaseofkafkasodradek |