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| A Distant Conversation in 1919——A Comparison between Lu Xun's “How do We Play the Role of Father Nowadays” and Franz Kafka's “To My Father” |
| Zeng Yanbing1,2 |
| (1.College of Arts， Tianjin Normal University， Tianjin 300387； 2.College of Arts， Renmin University of China， Beijing 100872) |
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Abstract Lu Xun and Franz Kafka were both concerned with the relationship between fathers and sons in 1919. Lu Xun wrote one article titled “How do We Play the Role of Father Nowadays” in October 1919. Kafka， who was far away in Austro-Hungarian empire in Europe， wrote his famous letter “To My Father” in the November of the same year. By comparing and analyzing Lu Xun's and Kafka's views and discourses， it seems to be a dialogue between the different qualities of Chinese and Western cultures. Lu Xun's article is no less than a diatribe criticizing feudalism， while Kafka's is merely a family letter aspiring for reconciliation between father and son. Lu Xun is more concerned with how to be a father， while Kafka is more concerned with how to be a son. Lu Xun's essay is clear in its thesis， though rich in meaning and infinite in its implications； Kafka's letter is ambiguous in its meaning and wandering in its viewpoints， and the author's intentions are difficult to capture and grasp. Lu Xun and Kafka are both writers worthy of our “long gaze”， who belong to the same era and “can be interpreted in parallel”.
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Received: 08 December 2023
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2023, Vol. 62 
