51 quotes
The indestructible is one thing; at one and the same time it is each individual, and it is something common to all; hence the uniquely indissoluble connection among mankind.
The Zürau Aphorisms (1931)
Germany has declared war on Russia. Swimming in the afternoon.
The Diaries of Franz Kafka 1910-1923 (1948)
The Messiah will come only when he is no longer necessary; he will come only on the day after his arrival; he will come, not on the last day, but on the very last day.
Parables and Paradoxes (1946)
One tells as few lies as possible only by telling as few lies as possible, and not by having the least possible opportunity to do so.
What a fate: to be condemned to work for a firm where the slightest negligence at once gave rise to the gravest suspicion!
The Metamorphosis (1915)
Self-control is something for which I do not strive. Self-control means wanting to be effective at some random point in the infinite radiations of my spiritual existence.
Aphorisms (1918)
So long as you have food in your mouth, you have solved all questions for the time being.
The Complete Stories (1971)
The right understanding of any matter and a misunderstanding of the same matter do not wholly exclude each other.
The Trial (1920)
One must fight to get to the top, especially if one starts at the bottom.
The Castle (1926)
How about if I sleep a little bit longer and forget all this nonsense.
The Metamorphosis (1915)
Idleness is the beginning of all vice, the crown of all virtues.
The Blue Octavo Notebooks (1954)
Someone must have been telling lies about Joseph K., for without having done anything wrong he was arrested one fine morning. His landlady's cook, who always brought him his breakfast at eight o'clock, failed to appear on this occasion. That had never happened before.
The Trial (1920)
The thornbush is old obstacle in the road. It must catch fire if you want to go further.
The Blue Octavo Notebooks (1954)
There was once a community of scoundrels, that is to say, they were not scoundrels, but ordinary people.
The Blue Octavo Notebooks (1954)
The whole visible world is perhaps nothing more than the rationalization of a man who wants to find peace for a moment. An attempt to falsify the actuality of knowledge, to regard knowledge as a goal still to be reached.
Parables and Paradoxes (1946)
'...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.In the Cathedral
The Trial (1920)
Religions get lost as people do.
The Blue Octavo Notebooks (1954)
Was he an animal, that music could move him so? He felt as if the way to the unknown nourishment he longed for were coming to light.
The Metamorphosis (1915)
I cannot make you understand. I cannot make anyone understand what is happening inside me. I cannot even explain it to myself.
The Metamorphosis (1915)
Eternal childhood. Life calls again.
It is entirely conceivable that life’s splendour forever lies in wait about each one of us in all its fullness, but veiled from view, deep down, invisible, far off. It is there, though, not hostile, not reluctant, not deaf. If you summon it by the right word, by its right name, it will come. This is the essence of magic, which does not create but summons.
The Diaries of Franz Kafka 1910-1923 (1948)