After struggling from the first half of Kafka, I'm starting to get a clearer (or less clear...) grasp on the text. Although I am sure more educated and more informed individuals will have an alternate take on the story, I think that the confusion and disorientation of the character parallels the confusion and disorientation of the reader.
When I read, I try to get a feel for the purpose and function of character roles. This is something that I feel is a mark of a good writer- the ability to create a character that is not only realistic and relate-able, but can take it to the next level in figuring this individual as a symbolic or metaphorical function to the whole of the text. Kafka's characters, other than Josef K, are not given a name, but rather described in terms of their occupation. In the first half of the text, we meet several members of the bureaucratic society, who occupy stereotypical types, and are almost indeterminate from each other.
The most notable characters, in my opinion, are that of the court usher's wife, and the student. As a student, I feel empowered by the respect and potential that the story bestows on that particular character; the wife and Josef must respond with respect to this character because he represents the future of society. This is a fairly idealistic school of thought, as these days students are often seen as unreliable, unpredictable, and inexperienced. Secondly, the wife is written as an object, passed from man to man. She, like Josef, is a victim of the system run by powerful men. However, unlike Josef, she chooses to remain a victim, and does not question her role within the greater scheme of things.
I intend to finish this text off for next week, as I feel unqualified to comment on the story as a whole until I can get a final perspective. I seem to learn more and more, clarifying information with each successive chapter.
