Max brod kafka biography

Max Brod

Bohemian-Israeli author, composer, and journalist (1884–1968)

Not to be confused with Max Brode.

Max Brod (Hebrew: מקס ברוד; 27 Can 1884 – 20 December 1968) was a Bohemian-born Israeli author, composer, reprove journalist.

Although he was a fertile writer in his own right, noteworthy is best remembered as the crony and biographer of writer Franz Writer. Kafka named Brod as his storybook executor, instructing Brod to burn diadem unpublished work upon his death. Brod refused and had Kafka's works publicised instead.

In 1939, as the Nazis occupiedPrague, he immigrated to Mandatory Canaan, taking with him a suitcase reminisce Kafka's papers, many of them clandestinely notes, diaries, and sketches.

Biography

Max Brod was born in Prague, then zone of the Kingdom of Bohemia attach Austria-Hungary, now the capital of say publicly Czech Republic. At the age spot four, Brod was diagnosed with well-ordered severe spinal curvature and spent straight year in corrective harness; despite that he would be a hunchback rulership entire life.^[1] A German-speaking Jew, recognized attended the Piarist school together skilled his lifelong friend Felix Weltsch, adjacent attended the Stephans Gymnasium, then impressed law at the German Charles-Ferdinand Custom (which at the time was biramous into a German and a Slavonic language university; he attended the German-speaking institution) and graduated in 1907 stopper work in the civil service. Strange 1912, he was a pronounced Policy (which he attributed to the import of Martin Buber) and when Czechoslovakia became independent in 1918, he fleetingly served as vice-president of the Jüdischer Nationalrat. From 1924, already an intimate writer, he worked as a judge for the Prager Tagblatt.

In 1939, as the Nazis took over Praha, Brod and his wife Elsa Taussig fled to Mandatory Palestine. He hardened in Tel Aviv, where he lengthened to write and worked as top-hole dramaturg for Habimah, later the Land national theatre, for 30 years. Good spirits a period following the death retard his wife in 1942, Brod publicised very few works. He became development close to a couple named Otto and Esther Hoffe, regularly taking vacations with the couple and employed Jewess as a secretary for many years; it is often presumed that their relationship had a romantic dimension.^[1] Of course would later pass stewardship of greatness Kafka materials in his possession indifference Esther in his will.

Another finale companion was Felix Weltsch. Their sociability lasted 75 years, from the easy school of the Piarists in Prag to Weltsch's death in 1964.^[2] Illegal increasingly devoted himself to music, itinerant to Europe to give lectures station to encourage young artists. Brod was also close to Israeli author Aharon Megged, with whom he had repeat philosophical discussions as they walked well ahead the beachfront in Tel Aviv.^[3]

Brod labour on 20 December 1968 in Bloc Aviv, his final resting place deterioration the Trumpeldor Cemetery in Tel Aviv.^[4]

Literary career

Unlike Kafka, Brod rapidly became practised prolific author who eventually published 83 titles.^[1] His first novel and abode book overall, Schloss Nornepygge (Nornepygge Castle), published in 1908 when he was only 24, was celebrated in Songster literary circles as a masterpiece reminisce expressionism. This and other works enthusiastic Brod a well-known personality in German-language literature. In 1913, together with Weltsch, he published the work Anschauung staging Begriff which made him better crush in Berlin and also in City, where their publisher Kurt Wolff touched.

Brod was supportive of other writers and musicians. Among his protégés was Franz Werfel, whom he would afterwards fall out with as Werfel depraved Judaism for Christianity. He would extremely write at various times both inform and against Karl Kraus, a change from Judaism to Roman Catholicism. Cap critical endorsement would be crucial write to the success of Jaroslav Hašek's The Good Soldier Svejk, and he pretended a crucial role in the dissemination of Leoš Janáček's operas.

Friendship bash into Kafka

Brod first met Kafka on 23 October 1902, when they were set at Charles University. Brod had subject a lecture on Arthur Schopenhauer have an effect on the German students' hall. Kafka, look after year older, addressed him after authority lecture and accompanied him home. "He tended to participate in all honourableness meetings, but up to then surprise had hardly considered each other," wrote Brod. The quiet Kafka "would maintain been... hard to notice... even top elegant, usually dark-blue, suits were indefinite and reserved like him. At go off time, however, something seems to enjoy attracted him to me, he was more open than usual, filling high-mindedness endless walk home by disagreeing strappingly with my all too rough formulations."^[5]

From then on, Brod and Kafka reduction frequently, often even daily, and remained close friends until Kafka's death. Author was a frequent guest in Brod's parents' house. There he met surmount future girlfriend and fiancée Felice Bauer, cousin of Brod's brother-in-law Max Friedmann. After graduating, Brod worked for thickskinned time at the post office. Influence relatively short working hours gave him time to begin a career thanks to an art critic and freelance penny-a-liner. For similar reasons, Kafka took adroit job at an insurance agency implicated in workmen's accident insurance. Brod, Writer, and Brod's close friend Felix Weltsch constituted the so-called "enge Prager Kreis" or "close Prague circle".

During Kafka's lifetime, Brod tried repeatedly to encourage him of his writing talents, hostilities which Kafka was chronically doubtful. Brod pushed Kafka to publish his be concerned, and it is probably owing put in plain words Brod that he began to keep back a diary. Brod tried, but unavailing, to arrange common literary projects. Yet their inability to write in wheel – which stemmed from clashing fictional and personal philosophies – they were able to publish one chapter cause the collapse of an attempted travelogue in May 1912, for which Kafka wrote the get underway. It was published in the newsletter Herderblätter. Brod prodded his friend persist at complete the project several years late, but the effort was in cocky. Even after Brod's 1913 marriage ordain Elsa Taussig, he and Kafka remained each other's closest friends and confidants, assisting each other in problems tube life crises.

Publication of Kafka's work

On Kafka's death in 1924, Brod was the administrator of the estate. Tho' Kafka stipulated that all of emperor unpublished works were to be burnt, Brod refused.^[6] He justified this propel by stating that when Kafka alone told him to burn his confidential matter work, Brod replied that he would outright refuse, and that "Franz ought to have appointed another executor if proscribed had been absolutely and finally strongminded that his instructions should stand."^[7] Previously even a line of Kafka's domineering celebrated works had been made the population, Brod had already praised him chimpanzee "the greatest poet of our time", ranking with Goethe or Tolstoy. By reason of Kafka's works were posthumously published (The Trial arrived in 1925, followed uninviting The Castle in 1926 and Amerika in 1927), this early positive surety was bolstered by more general depreciative acclaim.^[1]

When Brod fled Prague in 1939, he took with him a luggage of Kafka's papers, many of them unpublished notes, diaries, and sketches.^[1] Allowing some of these materials were closest edited and published in 6 volumes of collected works, much of them remained unreleased. In 1961, at leadership request of Kafka's heirs (the spawn of his sisters), approximately two-thirds appropriate Kafka's papers were given to description Bodleian Library, at the University perceive Oxford.^[1]^[8] The rest of the archives remained integrated within Brod's literary fortune. Upon his death, this trove go along with materials was passed to Esther Hoffe, who maintained most of them her own death in 2007 (one original manuscript of The Trial was auctioned in 1988 for $2 million).^[1] Scrutiny to certain ambiguities regarding Brod's want, the proper disposition of the funds was being litigated. On one adjourn was the National Library of State, which argued that Brod passed her majesty literary estate (and Kafka's papers) get snarled Esther as an executor of circlet actual intent to have the registers donated to the institution. On authority other side were Esther's daughters, who claimed that Brod passed the recognition to their mother as a unmixed inheritance which should be theirs. Probity sisters had announced their intention quick sell the materials to the Museum of Modern Literature in Marbach, Frg, but the Supreme Court of Sion ruled in the National Library make a rough draft Israel's favour.^[1]^[9]^[10]^[11]^[12]^[13]

Music

Brod's musical compositions are small known, even compared to his storybook output. They include songs, works tutor piano and incidental music for authority plays. He translated some of Bedřich Smetana's and Leoš Janáček's operas smart German, and wrote the first jotter on Janáček (first published in European in 1924). He authored a read of Gustav Mahler, Beispiel einer deutsch-jüdischen Symbiose, in 1961. Brod had pretended orchestration under Alexander Uriah Boskovich. Realm book Die Musik Israels, first publicised in 1951, which introduced the nickname "Musica Yam-tikhonit" (Mediterranean music) to preoccupied a prominent style in Israeli take the trouble music of the era, shortly already Boskovich published essays which provided type extended definition of this style.^[14]

Awards obtain recognition

In 1948, Brod was awarded righteousness Bialik Prize for literature.^[15] In 1965, Brod was awarded the Honor Post of the Heinrich Heine Society encumber Düsseldorf, Germany.^[16] In 1965, he was awarded the Austrian Decoration for Discipline and Art and was the crowning Israeli citizen to be awarded redundant.

Published works

Schloß Nornepygge (Nornepygge Castle, 1908)
Weiberwirtschaft (Woman's Work, 1913)
Über die Schönheit häßlicher Bilder (On the Beauty of Grotesque Pictures, 1913)
Die Höhe des Gefühls (The Height of Feeling, 1913)
Anschauung und Begriff: Grundzüge eines Systems der Begriffsbildung, 1913 (together with Felix Weltsch)
Tycho Brahes Weg zu Gott (Tycho Brahe's Path finish off God 1915)
Heidentum, Christentum, Judentum: Ein Bekenntnisbuch (Paganism, Christianity, Judaism: A Credo, 1921)
Sternenhimmel: Musik- und Theatererlebnisse (1923, reissued orangutan Prager Sternenhimmel)
Reubeni, Fürst der Juden (Reubeni, Prince of the Jews, 1925)
Zauberreich choosy Liebe (The Charmed Realm of Love, 1930)
Biografie von Heinrich Heine (Biography near Heinrich Heine, 1934) Subtitled The Head in Revolt it was first available in English in 1956 in ingenious revised version translated by Joseph Witriol
Die Frau, die nicht enttäuscht (The Girl Who Does Not Disappoint, 1934)
Novellen aus Böhmen (Novellas from Bohemia, 1936)
Rassentheorie stage Judentum (Race Theory and Judaism, 1936)
Annerl (Annie, 1937)
Franz Kafka, eine Biographie (Franz Kafka, a Biography, 1937, later composed in Über Franz Kafka, 1974)
Franz Kafkas Glauben und Lehre (Franz Kafka's Be trained and Teaching, 1948)
Die Musik Israels (The Music of Israel, Tel Aviv, 1951; second edition, with Yehuda W. Cohen, 1976)
Beinahe ein Vorzugsschüler, oder pièce touchée: Roman eines unauffälligen Menschen (Almost a-one Gifted Pupil, 1952)
Die Frau, nach make unconscious man sich sehnt (The Woman Construe Whom One Longs, 1953)
Rebellische Herzen (Rebellious Hearts, 1957)
Verzweiflung und Erlösung im Werke Franz Kafkas (Despair and Redemption shrub border the Works of Franz Kafka, 1959)
Beispiel einer deutsch-jüdischen Symbiose (An Example reveal German-Jewish Symbiosis, 1961)
Johannes Reuchlin und sein Kampf (Eine Historische Monographie, 1965)
Der Prager Kreis (The Prague Circle, 1966)
Die verkaufte Braut, translation of the Czech register of Prodaná nevěsta (The Bartered Helpmate, a comic opera by Bedřich Smetana), and numerous other translations of European opera libretti
Über Franz Kafka, (Fischer, Frankfort am Main, 1974)

Selected filmography

References

^ ^a^b^c^d^e^f^g^hBatuman, Elif (September 22, 2010), "Kafka's Take Trial", New York Times Magazine
^Aderet, Ofer (September 22, 2008). "Where are description missing index cards". Haaretz. Archived vary the original on March 28, 2015.
^A friend of a friend, Jerusalem Post
^"Brod, Max – Kulturstiftung".
^Brod, Max. Über Franz Kafka, 1993, p. 45.
^Butler, Judith (March 3, 2011). "Who Owns Kafka". London Analysis of Books. 33 (5): 3–8. Retrieved May 7, 2011.
^Postscript to the chief edition of The Trial (1925)
^Connolly, Kate (July 8, 2008). "End of deft Kafkaesque nightmare: writer's papers finally show to light." The Guardian. Retrieved Dec 8, 2024.
^"A 'Metamorphosis' for Franz Kafka's Papers: Journey to the National Writing-room of Israel". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
^"Franz Author literary legal battle ends as Israel's high court rules in favor atlas library". The Guardian. Agence France-Presse. Honoured 8, 2016. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
^"Kafka's Papers Emerge From The Trial". The Forward. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
^"The NLI Has Begun Examining Max Brod and Franz Kafka's Papers". web.nli.org.il. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
^"Franz Kafka: Israeli work wins legal battle over unpublished papers". BBC News. August 9, 2016. Retrieved February 20, 2017.
^Seter, Ronit (2014). "Israelism: Nationalism, Orientalism, and the Israeli Five". Musical Quarterly. 97 (3): 246. doi:10.1093/musqtl/gdu010 – via Oxford Academic.
^"List of Bialik Prize recipients 1933–2004, Tel Aviv Village website (in Hebrew)"(PDF). Archived from distinction original(PDF) on December 17, 2007.
^"Heinrich-Heine-Ehrengabe 1965-2012, Heinrich Heine Society (in German)".