kafkaesque

“Kafka epitomizes one aspect of this modern mind-set: a sensation of anxiety and shame whose center cannot be located and therefore cannot be placated; a sense of an infinite difficulty within things, impeding every step; a sensitivity acute beyond usefulness, as if the nervous system, flayed of its old hide of social usage and religious belief, must record every touch as pain. In Kafka’s peculiar and highly original case this dreadful quality is mixed with immense tenderness, oddly good humor, and a certain severe and reassuring formality. The combination makes him an artist…”

John Updike’s Forward to Franz Kafka, The Complete Stories

We don’t need to be freed of our anxiety and shame.

We don’t need our times to be perfected.

Odd combinations yield artistry.