Like a Fish, Like a Dog
Kafka and the Shame of Being Human
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21814/2i.7023Keywords:
Kafka, shame, animality, ethics, The Trial, Primo LeviAbstract
This article explores shame as a central ethical, existential, and political concept in Kafka’s life and writings. Beginning with Kafka’s remark to the fishes in Berlin’s aquarium, the article shows how shame emerges in the exchange of gazes between humans and nonhuman animals, functioning as an ethical call to responsibility. Through Kafka’s letters, The Trial, and related criticism, the article distinguishes between destructive, internalized shame – linked to ontological inadequacy – and a constructive, moral shame that prompts transformation. The animal figures of the fish and the dog frame this duality: the fish evokes a shame that broadens the moral community, while the dog symbolizes degradation and human cruelty. Drawing on Primo Levi’s interpretation, the article argues that Josef K.’s final shame is not personal guilt but shame for humanity’s inhumanity. The article concludes by proposing that the shame surviving Josef K. is carried by those who witness injustice, opening the possibility for solidarity, political action, and hope.
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