The Trial - Franz Kafka / 14+

THE TRIAL
Franz Kafka
Adapted by Bettina Rehm and Cornelius Edlefsen

On his thirtieth birthday, Josef K., senior clerk at a major bank, is arrested - without being told of any crime and without being taken into custody. He is simply expected to continue living as before. Yet the information that might explain his situation remains hidden from him, and in his search for answers, he is drawn deeper and deeper into the labyrinth of an impenetrable bureaucracy. In the end comes his death - without judgment, without proven guilt.

Kafka's unfinished novel (1883-1924) is simultaneously a surreal nightmare, a crime story, and a densely crafted work of art that resists any single interpretation. In an era when justice and legal systems worldwide are faltering and law increasingly becomes a matter of those in power's interpretation, this material takes on new urgency.

For people aged 14 and up who wish to grapple with questions of law and justice and sharpen their critical perspective on the present day.