This new edition restores the variegated richness – and, at times,
the tedium – of the diaries: an account of a trip to the theatre might
be followed by a story draft, a gnomic half-sentence, the description of
a prostitute, time spent watching a ski-jumping competition,
relationship problems, dreams of a writing career in Berlin, a list of
mistakes made by Napoleon in the Russian campaign, thoughts on the size
of a fellow train traveller’s trouser bulge. The muddled presentation of
all these elements, contextualised by thorough notes, gives the sense
of Kafka not just as “the representative genius of the modern age”, as
Benjamin describes him, but also a youngish man finding his way, hungry
for experience and inspiration, venting his frustrations and following
his interests. Here Kafka seems both genius and ingenue, and the
contradiction brings him closer to us. Chris Power, The Guardian
Diaries by Franz Kafka is published by Penguin Classics
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