I found Kafka in a very unusual way. In the film, The Producers (1967) the characters are trying to find the worst play ever written. Zero Mostel grabs a manuscript and reads "Gregor Samsa awoke one morning to find he had turned into a giant cockroach". He flings the manuscript away saying "Too good" It was many year later that I read it in the Metamorphasis.

my left ear enjoyed this lecture.

@tommyodonovan3883

3 жыл бұрын

Send him some Shekels for a new sound system....or are you saving up to be Scottish....or DUTCH!

Glorious and intense

Dr Henry Abramson is my favorite historian/lecturer/researcher....he is like an old friend. FK is a fascinating subject.

@HenryAbramsonPhD

3 жыл бұрын

Thank you!

Franz Kafka was just amazing. One of the greatest writers of the 2Oth Century. His works are extremely influential. Prague was so important to him. Kafka so very much Jewish & influenced by it. There is so much to say about him. Thank you, Dr.Abramson for your dynamic lecture!

Thank you for making clear here the connections between Kafka's writing and his Jewish heritage. The connection with Emma Goldman is that she didn't just write or talk about justice but she fought for it, which is what Jews are called upon to do more generally, no? It's a religion not based so much on belief but on action (righteous action, moral action, moral leadership). The fascination with Kafka is that instead of accepting or rejecting Judaism, he attempts the possibly impossible task of reconciling an ancient way of life with the modern life though fail he might in this attempt.

@user-yf8xl1vh5h

3 жыл бұрын

1

I read Kafka first in the 1960s, when he became part of the 60s culture; great lecture, Henry. I associate Kafkaesque with bureaucratic alienations.

Thank you Dr. I was just about to scroll through your videos to see a new video and bam! Here is a brand new video for me to indulge in! Thank you so much for your videos and wealth of knowledge.

I enjoyed your talk on Kafka very much. Thank-you for making it available online!

Kafka had a lot of humor and irony in his works which does not seem to translate. I read that he did readings for friends and there was a lot of humor in his presentations. If you consider this, Kafka shows a different side when you read him.

Your eclecticism is a breath of fresh ruah... Shalom

Thank you for this wonderful lecture!

Quite a riveting and well-put together lecture! Franz Kafka, the Jewish patient by Sander Gilman is really interesting further reading on this subject that you might enjoy.

Fantastic lecture. This gives such an insight into his perspective. Truly thank you for making this accessible.

@HenryAbramsonPhD

3 жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it!

Amazing, two questions for you. Is there a list of Kafkaesque stories by Rabbi Nachman that I can look into? Second if the Maharal didn't create the Golem how did it become associated with him? Is the story more rightly associated with someone else, and if so who?

Another E X C E L L E N T lecture by Dr. Henry Abramson!

Yasher Koach Dr Henry I enjoyed listening to your lecture from Melbourne Australia. You mention in your lecture that Franz Kafka had a very good friend who became a Baal Teshuva and eventually became a Belz Chossid. My very good friend Yossi S. ZL told me that Kafka's story ""The Metamorphosis" was really a vivid description of his Kafka's friend who became religious and who to his parents and immediate family had become somewhat of an embarrassment so they thought. Interesting Kafka's friend preferred rural Belz to cosmopolitan Prague!

@markjacobi3537

4 жыл бұрын

PS We have an "oral" tradition in our family that we are descendants of the Maharal of Prague TZL. We can't properly trace it but it's a tradition. Sorry to ask a hard question but I've got stick up for my supposed ancestor (?) . You make brief mention of mention the Maharal TZL made not have helped with G'd's help a Golem. Who says this is correct???

What is the link for the Rabbi Yaakov Trump shiur you mentioned?

Hello. Did I hear you say that you did some research on Emma Gillibrand? I have no idea how to find a biography of her. and I can’t find anything here from you about her. Please help me thank you very much if you can.

This Video seems to be as interested and wonderfull as the rest of them but the Audio is not good. If it's only my case, I do apologize. Signed by a big fan...

Franz Kafka :was a German speaking and educated(Prag University) jew!(he was not religius but had an interest in the jidish theater)!All his works are written in german!

What happened to Serbia on this map??? (11:45)

600 people in Latvia like this video.

His childhood with his father was very abusive...this is an important aspect of his writing...i think not bringing his childhood into the documentary makes it hallow

@nadinewaldmann5890

4 жыл бұрын

Yes! My feelings exactly.

The map of Austria-Hungary presented in this lecture is simply false. For instance Serbia (though smaller than after WWI when it got the province Vojvodina from Hungary) was not part of it, but an independant state (and the conflict between Serbia and Austria-Hungary initiated the war). Moreover Rumania also was an independant state, albiet without the large territory of Siebenbürgen (Transsilvania) which belonged to Hungary until 1919. How could this blunder happen?

no audio

@HenryAbramsonPhD

2 жыл бұрын

At least video

It is also entirely possible to see Kafka's literary work as a very innovative literary creation not necessarily dependent on his Jewishness such as it was. Professor, please do not put Kafka in "mitat Sdom" where everything he wrote must be flowing from his being an educated Jew who was liberated from religion

The stories of Kafka might be similar to the Bresvlev since both have no beginning, end or point.

isnt yiddish the native tung of the european ashkenazis ? maybe it also has also to do about the fact, genereally speaking jews spoke yiddish that is 80% like high german being mutually intelligible between them. Evan their names are germanic origin, genereally speaking, or in some instances slavic.

1.) the important thing with the term "kafkaesque" is that it cannot be defined. 2.) Any other tales, jewish, hasidic or not, cannot enlighten Kafka´s works in reference to that they are enigmatic or absurd. The likeness of Kafka´s works to absurd literature is no explanation at all.3.) Kafka during most of his lifetime was totally negative towards zionism. He actually loathed zionism, and he certainly never approved of Buber´s wretings. --- For further information an all these subjects, and many more, plz read my small book on Kafka and the Kafkaesque (2017)....

My Aunt Shifra said they threw out the baby with the bath water 😢😢

Rene Levesque attacks on the english speakers? lol

@HenryAbramsonPhD

3 жыл бұрын

Je me souviens

the map of austro-ungaria is not correct... the domination of the empire only included transylvania and bukovina seems like your map bites to much land out of the romanian territories...

So what is Ladino not Jewish talk? Give me a break.

This lecturers got some front. No shame at all.

I wish I were jewish, so I could assimilate to a non-jewish culture.

@themaninthehighcastle9906

6 жыл бұрын

thats a funny comment, Stefan ha ha ha

@uncletony6210

6 жыл бұрын

just got my ancestry.com results, and unbeknownst to me I'm 3% Jewish. It also said I'm a quadroon, so I just don't know what to make of me :o/

oh, I've never studied Kafka but got theory that I highly probably used to went for beer to the very same pub 'U Kata' in Old Town when I was younger. There's the best Urquell in Prague....edit-the atmosphere there is like real magic for soul.

@HenryAbramsonPhD

3 ай бұрын

Interesting