The Language of the Law: A Review of The Trial by Franz Kafka

"It is not necessary to accept everything as true; one must only accept it as necessary.' 'A melancholy conclusion,' said K. 'It turns lying into a universal principle." The Trial by Franz Kafka is one of his most famous written works. It is a complex web of characters and stories which signify the exclusion a man can face inside a totalitarian system. This paper analyses the relationship between the law and how Kafka has intricately used language to display what can happen if the limits of the law are not defined. An attempt to show how deceit and lies from the fulcrum of the legal system are also done. This review showcases how the legal and bureaucratic system can be misused by the powers that be to destroy the lives of ordinary citizens. The Trial serves as a critique of the Austro-Hungarian system and serves as a warning bell against despotic and tyrannous regimes.