He is known for his uniquely dark, disorienting, and surreal writing style.

他以其獨特地黑暗、曲折、超現實的寫作風格而聞名。

A style and quality still particular to him that anything that resembles it has come to be known and referred to as Kafkaesque.

這種風格和特質仍是他所獨有，其他與他相似都被稱作或當作卡夫卡式。

To understand his writing in the qualities of Kafkaesque,

如要理解卡夫卡的寫作特質，

it is helpful to understand his early life.

先理解他早年的生活或許有幫助。

Kafka was born in Prague in 1883 to a man named Hermann and a woman named Julie.

卡夫卡出生於 1883 年的布拉格，由 Hermann 和 Julie 所生。

His father was a highly successful well-to-do business man who, through sheer force of will and a brash aggressive personality,

父親 Hermann 是個極為成功且富有的商人，完全靠著意志力和傲慢強烈的性格，

managed to rise from the working-class, build a successful business, marry a well-educated woman and become a member of higher middle society.

成功從工人階級晉升並建立成功的事業，娶了受過教育的女人後成為了高中產階級的一分子。

As parents tend to do, Hermann hoped for a child that would measure up to his ideal stature of a person.

就像每個為人父母一樣，Hermann 希望他的孩子可以成為有一定聲望的人。

Franz Kafka was not that.

但法蘭茲·卡夫卡不是這樣的人。

Franz was born a small, anxious, and sickly boy and he mostly remained that way.

他一出生就很嬌小、緊張且多病的男孩，而且長大後仍是這樣。

As a result through no fault of his own, Franz would become a great source of disappointment for his father,

雖然這完全不是他的錯，但法蘭茲變成了他父親深感失望情緒的來源，

and a sort of psychological punching bag for him as he attempted to mold Franz into who he wished he was, but could never be.

像一個心理上的出氣筒一樣，他的父親仍不斷試著將法蘭茲塑造成一個他所希望，卻永遠不可能成為的樣子。

Throughout his adolescence Franz developed an urge to write as a means of dealing with his increasing sense of anxiety, guilt, and self-hatred.

青春期時，法蘭茲有了寫作的衝動，把寫作當作對付與日俱增的焦慮、愧疚和自我厭惡的方法。

Of course, his father did not allow him to pursue writing,

理所當然的，他的父親並不准許他繼續寫作，

and ultimately defined the borders around Kafka's life, forcing him to pursue law as a profession.

最後甚至強行限制了卡夫卡的人生走向，逼他讀法律當做他的專業。

During his time studying law in college, Kafka continued writing and met one of his only real friends, Max Brod, another writer who would eventually convince Kafka to publish his first 3 collections of work.

他在大學攻讀法律期間，卡夫卡持續寫作，並認識了他唯一真正的朋友：馬克斯·布羅德。他也是一名作家，最終說服了卡夫卡出版他讀前三部作品。

These pieces sold very poorly however, and essentially went unnoticed.

然而這些作品賣得非常不好，基本上沒人注意到。

After college Kafka would go on to work in a law office and then for an insurance company.

大學畢業後，卡夫卡到律師事業所工作，然後再到一間保險公司上班。

Here, Kafka would become subject to long hours, unpaid overtime,

此時，卡夫卡遭到高工時、無加班費，

massive amounts of paperwork, and absurd, complex bureaucratic systems.

大量文書工作和荒謬且複雜的官僚體系的壓榨。

Kafka was understandably miserable.

卡夫卡可說是過得相當悽慘。

While working at the insurance company, Kafka continued writing on the side,

在保險公司上班時，卡夫卡持續利用空擋寫作，

producing some of his most notable pieces including "The Trial", "The Castle," and "America."

寫出了一些很有名的作品，包含《審判》、《城堡》和《美國》。

He did not attempt to publish any of these at the time, however,

然而當時他並沒有試著出版任何作品，

and even left much of his work unfinished believing it to be unworthy.

甚至留下許多未完成作品，覺得它們沒什麼價值。

Kafka continued working at the insurance company for the majority of his remaining short life while continuing to write around his work schedule.

在他剩下的短暫人生裡，大多時候卡夫卡持續在保險公司上班，並在工作之餘寫作不輟。

In 1924, he died of tuberculosis at age 41.

在 1924 年，他因為肺結核而病逝，年僅 41 歲。

Kafka never went on to publish any more of his writing, nor did he ever personally receive any success or recognition for the small amount he did.

卡夫卡從來沒有出版更多其他作品，本人也沒有因為他出版的少量作品而獲得任何成功和賞識。

He died believing that his work wasn't any good.

他過世時仍相信他的作品並沒有多好。

On his deathbed, he even instructed Max Brod to burn all of his unpublished manuscripts following his death.

在病榻前，他甚至請馬克斯·布羅德將所有未出版的手稿在他死後全部燒掉。

Obviously, Brod did not follow Kafka's instructions, because here we are 100 years later talking about him.

很顯然地，布羅德並沒有遵照卡夫卡的指示，因為一百年後的我們仍在這邊討論著卡夫卡。

After Kafka died, Brod spent the following year or so working to organize and publish his notes and manuscripts.

卡夫卡過世後，布羅德花了接下來大概一年的時間，努力整理並出版他的筆記和手稿。

Over the decade following, Kafka would become one of the most prominent literary and philosophical figures of the 20th century.

在接下來的十年間，卡夫卡成為二十世紀最重要的文學和哲學人物之一。

In other words,

也就是說，

one of the greatest writers and thinkers of the century lived his life with his work buried in some drawer,

這一世紀最偉大的作家和思想家在他有生之年，將自己的作品埋沒在某個抽屜裡，

aware, unaware or indifferent to the fact that he was sitting on some of the most significant works in recent history.

似無所見，又非視而不見，他似乎對於自己坐擁一些近代最重要的文學作品一點興趣也沒有。

He lived his life in the eyes of his father: an inadequate disappointment.

他活在他父親給他的評價底下：一個沒路用、讓人失望的孩子。

And yet in the eyes of history, he's an immensely important individual.

但綜觀歷史，他是極為重要的人物。

One can only wonder how many individuals like Kafka have and continue to walk this earth, completely disconnected or restricted from ever seeing who they really are or could be.

我們只能妄想還有多少像卡夫卡一樣的人，曾經或仍然活在世界上，完全與客觀的評價脫節或被他人所蒙蔽了，沒有看出自己真正的價值。

How many Kafkas have lived and died without ever sharing their voice with the world whose voice would have changed it forever?

多少個卡夫卡來到世上又悄悄走了，從來沒有和這世界分享他們或許能改變世界的聲音？

How many people never know who they'll be after they're gone?

多少人在生前不知道自己能有什麼成就，直到死後才被發掘？

Fortunately for everyone other than Kafka, his work was saved and an entirely new genre of thinking and writing developed in his name: Kafkaesque.

幸運的是，對於除了卡夫卡之外的人來說，他的作品被保存下來，且一個全新的思想和寫作風格因為他的名字而生：卡夫卡式。

Generally, the term Kafkaesque tends to refer to the bureaucratic nature of capitalistic, judiciary, and government systems.

大體來說，卡夫卡式這個詞傾向於形容資本主義、司法制度和政府體系的官僚主義。

The sort of complex, unclear processes in which no one individual ever really has a comprehensive grasp on what is going on, and the system doesn't really care.

那是種複雜且不透明的程序，沒有任何人真的全面理解過程中發生了什麼，而這個體系本身也並不在乎。

But the quality of Kafkaesque also seems to extend much further than this.

但卡夫卡式的特質似乎比這樣的描寫還要更加深入。

It is not necessarily exemplified merely by what these systems are,

不能只因為僅從描繪的體系去定義是否為卡夫卡式，

but rather the reaction of the individuals subjected to them and what it might represent.

而是要看個體對於這些體系的反應，並思考這些反應所代表的意義。

And one of his most famous novels, "The Trial," the protagonist, Joseph K., is suddenly arrested at his home one morning.

在他其中一部最為著名的小說《審判》中，主人公 Joseph K. 某天早晨突然在自家被逮補。

The officers do not inform K why is being arrested, though.

但警官並沒有告知 K. 被逮補的原因。

And he's then forced through a long absurd trial in which nothing is ever really explained or makes much sense.

他接者被迫經歷一段冗長荒謬的審判，過程中並沒有解釋任何事情，也非常不合理。

The trial is riddled with corruption and disorderliness, and by the end of the novel after having meandered the entire thing,

審判充滿貪污和混亂，在小說終章漫無目的的審判結束後，

K. is never told why he was arrested, and yet he remains guilty of his final conviction.

K 雖然從來沒被告知逮補的原因，但最後卻仍被判有罪。

In another one of his more popular stories, "Metamorphosis,"

在他另一部廣受歡迎的小說《變形記》中，

the protagonist, Gregor Samsa, awakes into having suddenly been turned into an insect with no clear explanation.

主角 Gregor Samsa 醒來後發現自己無緣無故地被變成了一隻昆蟲。

The first and recurring issues Gregor faces throughout the novel, are the problems of getting to work, dealing with his boss, and providing financially for his inconsiderately needy family.

而 Gregor 面對的第一個，也是整篇小說不斷重提的問題是，他該怎麼去工作和面對他的老闆，並在經濟上支持他那自私貪婪的家庭。

Gregor, of course, cannot do this. He is a bug.

Gregor 當然無法做到。他只是一隻蟲。

And so he experiences increased dread trying to deal with his situation, while becoming a useless nuisance to his family.

因此他對於自己的處境感到越來越害怕，與此同時變成了家庭終無用的累贅。

In both stories, the protagonists are faced with sudden absurd circumstances.

在這兩個故事中，主人公都面對了突如其來且荒謬的狀況。

There are no explanations and in the end there's no real chance of overcoming them.

故事沒有給予任何解釋，最後也沒有戰勝挑戰的機會。

They're outmatched by the arbitrary senseless obstacles they face, in part because they can't understand or control any of what is happening.

他們被眼前虛無而愚蠢的障礙擊垮。在某個程度上，這是因為他們不懂，或無法控制眼前正在發生的事。

The crux of Kafka's style and work seems to be carried by this confrontation with the absurd.

卡夫卡的風格和作品的核心似乎是由對抗人生中的荒謬所承載。

A conflict in which a character's efforts, reasoning, and sense of the world are met with inescapable parameters of senselessness.

書中充滿著矛盾，其中人物的努力、推理和對世界的感知，最終會遇上必然的荒蕪。

Wherein success is both impossible and, in the end, ultimately pointless.

成功是不可能的，而且最終毫無意義。

And yet, they try anyway.

然而，他們仍然會嘗試。

It's fair to argue that one interpretation is that these circumstances are emblematic of Kafka's take on the human condition.

有一個合理的詮釋是這些情境象徵了卡夫卡對人類處境的看法。

Specifically, the unyielding desire for answers and conquest over the existential problems of anxiety, guilt, absurdity, and suffering.

特別是對追求答案的堅定渴望，以及對現存問題的征服，像是焦慮、內疚、荒謬和痛苦。

Paired with an inability to ever really understand or control the source of the problems and effectively overcome them.

再加上無法真正理解或控制問題的根源，也無法有效地克服它們。

But the kicker, and perhaps most important part, is even in the face of absurd despairing circumstances, Kafka's characters don't give up.

但最重要的一點是卡夫卡筆下的人物即使面臨荒唐絕望的情況也不會放棄。

At least initially, they continue on and fight against their situations, trying to reason, understand, or work their way out of the senselessness.

至少在一開始，他們會持續與自己的處境抗爭，試圖透過推理、理解或努力，擺脫毫無意義的狀態。

But in the end, it is ultimately to no avail.

但最終這些都是徒勞無功的。

Perhaps in this, Kafka is suggesting that the struggle to find solace and understanding is both inescapable and impossible.

也許卡夫卡是在暗示，尋求慰藉和理解的掙扎雖不可避免但終究無法成功。

As conscious rational beings, we fight against the absurdity, trying to resolve the discrepancy between us and the universe.

作為有意識的理性存在，我們對抗荒誕，試圖解決我們與宇宙之間的差異性。

But ironically, we only serve to self-perpetuate the very struggle we are trying to resolve by trying to resolve the unresolvable.

但諷刺的是，我們自己延續了這種掙扎。我們試圖透過無法解決的問題來解決問題。

And in this sense, on some level, we almost want the struggle.

從這個意義上看，我們在某種程度上幾乎是希望能夠掙扎。

Of course, this is just one interpretation.

當然，這只是其中一種詮釋。

Ultimately, because of its vague, surreal, and inexplicable quality, Kafka's work lends itself to nearly as many interpretations as readers.

最終，由於其模糊、超現實和難以言喻的特質，每一位讀者對卡夫卡的作品的解讀幾乎都不同。

Perhaps the idea is that we should accept our absurd condition,

也許其中心思想是，我們應該接受我們荒謬的處境。

and not take it so seriously.

不要把一切看得太嚴重。

Perhaps the ideas that we should and must struggle against it. Or perhaps the idea is that we can't know what the idea is.

又也許是我們應該而且必須與之抗爭。又也許是我們無從得知其中心思想。

In truth, only Kafka will ever have known exactly what his work meant, and it's fair to speculate that in some sense, perhaps not even him.

事實上，只有卡夫卡知道他的作品的意義，這種推測是合理的甚至連他自己也不知道。

What is undeniable though is that Kafka's work has left a lasting impact on literature, philosophy, and humanity at large.

但不可否認的是，卡夫卡的作品對文學、哲學和人性都產生了深遠的影響。

It has helped readers around the world feel less alone in their own hunches of truth and moments of Kafkaesque experiences.

它幫助了世界各地的讀者，讓他們對自己的直覺和面對卡夫卡式經歷時，不再感到那麼孤獨。

Kafka's own story is not necessarily unusual—his father, although cruel, his life, although sad, neither were, nor are, all that uncommon.

卡夫卡本人的故事不一定不尋常：他的父親雖然殘酷他的人生雖然悲傷，但兩者皆並非不尋常。

To be born into a faulty family, bad place in the world, or a weak body or brain.

生於缺陷的家庭、生於世界上不好的地方或生來身體和頭腦不好。

To live and die having never recognized one's full potential; to have been stuck in a bureaucratic cog of a business organization or government system.

從生到死都沒有意識到自己的全部潛力；被困在官僚化的商業組織或政府體系之中。

To have felt that guilt and anxiety of existence for no clear reason: We've all, at least at times, experienced the Kafkaesque.

無緣無故地感到內疚和存在的焦慮：我們或多或少都體驗過卡夫卡式的經歷。

Kafka's work is not considered great because it describes something profoundly unique, but because it describes something mundanely common in a profound way.

卡夫卡的作品之所以偉大，不是因為他描述了深刻而獨特的東西，而是因為他深刻地描述了平凡無奇的東西。

An encapsulation of an often indescribable experience, a part of life that touches us all.

囊括一段難以言喻、觸動所有人的經歷。

When referring to Kafka, writer Anne Rice once said that his work helped her realize the following approach in her own work.

作家 Anne Rice 在提到卡夫卡時說過，卡夫卡的作品幫助她在自己的作品中實現了以下幾點。

"Don't bend, don't water it down, don't try to make it logical, don't edit your own soul according to the fashion."

「不要屈服、不要淡化、不要試圖讓它合乎邏輯、不要根據潮流而改變自己的靈魂。」

"Rather, follow your most intense obsessions mercilessly."

「相反的，狠狠地追隨你最熱切的渴望。」

Kafka's works sought not to alleviate the soul through remedies of false hope or delusion but rather through the direct confrontation with the darker aspects of self.

卡夫卡的作品追求的不是透過虛假的希望和錯覺舒緩靈魂，而是直接對抗自身的黑暗面。

By distorting reality to map more accurately onto his own sense of human experience,

透過扭曲現實，更準確地投射他自己對人類經驗的感知。

he revealed a certain remedy of unhindered self-examination,

他揭示了不受阻礙的自我反省療癒法。

and carved out a place in the world for others to do the same.

並在世界上開闢了一個天地，讓其他人也能夠這麼做。

"I think we ought to read only the kind of books that wound or stab us."

「我認為我們應該只讀會傷害我們的書。」

"If the book we're reading doesn't wake us up with a blow to the head, what are we reading for? So that it will make us happy? Good Lord, we would be happy precisely if we had no books,"

「倘若我們讀的書不能給我們當頭棒喝，那何必讀呢？為了取悅自己嗎？天啊，沒有書我們照樣可以過得很快樂。」

wrote Kafka in a letter to a friend.

卡夫卡在給朋友的信中寫道。

Although you might not have shared this explicitly, Kafka's work embodies and reminds us not that we wish to give up but that — despite all the absurdities and problems — we wish to continue.

儘管你可能沒有對此產生共鳴。卡夫卡的作品體現的內涵，不是我們希望放棄，而是儘管面對各種荒謬和問題我們仍希望繼續努力。

We wish to struggle against the universe and forge our own way.

我們希望與宇宙抗爭，開闢自己的道路。

We wish to find and connect over honesty, however hard it may be.

我們希望誠實地發現和發展關係，無論多麼困難。