Will Self's Kafka Journey: A Prague Walking Tour
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- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 18 มิ.ย. 2015
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Will Self visits Prague for a walking tour in search of Franz Kafka’s genius loci. In the film, Will visits several Kafka sights as part of his research for a digital essay for the LRB looking at Kafka's short story, 'The Country Doctor': thespace.lrb.co.uk/
Directed, filmed and edited by Ian Potts.
The project was supported by the Arts Council/BBC Space project.
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Since 1979, the London Review of Books has stood up for the tradition of the literary and intellectual essay in English. Each issue contains up to 15 long reviews and essays by academics, writers and journalists. There are also shorter art and film reviews, as well as poems and a lively letters page.
A typical issue moves through political commentary to science or ancient history by way of literary criticism and social anthropology. So, for example, an issue can open with a piece on the rhetoric of war, move on to reassessing the reputation of Pythagoras, follow that with articles on the situation in Iraq, the 19th-century super-rich, Nabokov’s unpublished novel, how saints got to be saints, the life and work of William Empson, and an assessment of the poetry of Alice Oswald.
How can you not like this? A tall, lanky Brit reads you excerpts from Kafka while sitting in a stairwell, waiting for a chamber maid to complete her task, her duty cart sits, idle outside Kafka's former office. It's superb!
It is,ahem, Kafkaesque.
get out@@vandolmatzis8146
so bloody English.
Lanky is tall in the british language. Love your comment.
Mr. Self makes me happy.
You need to do all Kafka's Audio Books. I would buy them.
Amazing work. I am very happy to see this video-digital essay of Franz Kafka. Congratulation to Will Self
This is fantastic! Informing and quite moving in parts. Also, because it's Will Self, occasionally very very funny.
hannah hume
The key word in that sentence being ‘occasionally.’
@@kelman727 I would say, 'rarely'.
VIDEO: Will Self's Kafka Journey:
Will Self visits Prague in search of Franz Kafka’s genius loci, researching a digital essay for the LRB looking at Kafka's short story, 'The Country Doctor'. Read the essay here: thespace.lrb.co.uk/
LRB: Thank you so much for Will Self's Kafka Journey. Kafka one of my very favorite writer. His sad life make me cry. His book "The trial" bring me bad memories...Thanks again. Cheers from New Orleans the city of jazz. USA.
Re: The house where Kafka wrote the Judgment, the Metamorphosis and America (now Hotel Intercontinental is located there). Mr Self pointed out that the house has now gone. Incidentally, this building was destroyed in the last months of World War II. In fact, it was the ONLY Prague Old Town building to be destroyed in the war. Thus Hotel Intercontinental built on this estate is still the only modern building in the Old Town. Check out Harald Salfellners insightful book on „Franz Kafka und Prag“ (Vitalis 2011), pp. 137-146.
A Prague tour guide confirmed this background of the building to me. I have no way of telling whether his other story is true, though: He said that the pilots were supposed to bomb Dresden that night but had mistaken Prague for Dresden.
Well... It’s true with the house, NOT true with Dresden...
"with inexorable logic, our first stop...........................kafkas place of birth" i loved that!!! i was hooked from there
Why?
Brilliant! I'm not a fan of Self's non-fiction writing, I can find it a bit obfuscating but this is informative, entertaining and Will is great company.
That was quite an enjoyable walk round the main sites...and very thoughtful about the historical backdrop... always terrible the memory of the camps.. great writer, Mr Kafka and choice of quotes quite well thought out in terms of the walk...
2:20 Will loses his wallet.
Will's exchange with the tourists is the reason i love will .
He's a tourist.
@@ricardocima He is a pilgrim
Can’t stand him. So self-important!
@@kelman727isn’t he wordy!
@@kelman727no - he is engrossed in his subject, enchanted even. Slow deliberate speech, in contrast to what is the norm - too fast - draws one into the enchantment.
A brilliant job Will!
Will has taught me many words, but I must teach him that it's "Götterdämmerung" and not "Göttendämmerung".
and oovre not urvre.
@@lindafleming3907 Nah. It's ur-vre. As in oeuf.
sheesh u guys,splitting heirs.
@@silverapples75 Œuvre.
I was a Maoist intellectual
KAFKA ❤❤❤ WILL SELF
There was a Salvador Dali exhibition in the town square, I would have popped in there for a while
37:16 - the groan of an old man's bones.
Best part of this is that Will Self nearly fell!!
Just been to Prague, sorry I missed Britains gloomiest man talking about Pragues gloomiest man. I love this, absolutely Brilliant
Long live Kafka. If youre a weirdo, start writing. Give the world YOUR world.
People are complaining that Self won't shut up and let the tour guide shine; do they think this is a Travel Video of some kind...? Do they think the LRB would present a video *about* a tour guide? Well, I'm sure she's a nice tour guide but...
Well, not even that... She is extremely weak from the start, and I think that’s why the dude quickly realized they need to be improvising if they wanna come back with some usable material
seems to me its more about will than franz
"The Suicide 'Approach' " - how perfect, because 'Bridge' assumes 'leaving one place and getting to another': The Zeno motion paradox Hoffman felt permeated Kafka's work.
Will, that rucksack, seriously.
Yes Sir , on Kafka's Prague ....asta era si in 1985 ....tot deschisa ....si in 1991 ....o parere doar ...alte sunt problemele la cehi ....o parere doar ....k i t ...👍
Will Self, the BBC'S idea of Danger-Man.
I watched a documentary on Joy Division 10 years ago and came across the term 'The Datable Man'. Reminded me of 'Representive Man' - the name given to Kafka by his first bigrapher. Rewatched the same doc yesterday and nowehere does it mention 'The Datable Man'. Is this something I dreamed or has anyone else heard this term? Gouing slightly mad here.
What year was this filmed?
That was one dignified honeless guy..
2:20 what was that?! Was it some kind of cohertion from local people?!
Pressure of Czech Nationalism?
I love the way Will Self makes the interpreter look a bit redundant, i didn't hear her say anything other than the kind of crap they usually have to tell tourists who want to hear banal facts. I noticed she left after the first hour or so, I think he'd be a better tour guide if he spoke the language 😆
He's got Jerry Seinfeld's taste in the 'everyday' types of irony!
re: "several Kafka sights "
Surely that is supposed to be "sites"?
It is sights, as in sight-seeing.
Could be either. Kafka sight seeing or he might have laboured on a few building sites
2:18 Watch out!
38:09 - A supremely plebeian builder's crack moment, when Self reveals his true identity. Thank me later.
That finished it off for me. Very clearly reveals what he thinks of us, the audience.
Will Self, an extraordinary intellect
very funny.
Will could make anything interesting.
Why doesn't he, then?
Except his novels.
42:57 ... hehe.
Lol
I find Mr.Self very condescending towards the Czech.
close your eyes and you'll hear the voice of Sacha Baron Cohen.
😂😂😂
so true! lmao
Who knows why he engaged a guide, he never lets her get a word in. He tells her everything, which she probably knows anyway. He never shuts up. Pompous know-it-all. Self self self.
I suspect he warned her beforehand how the proceedings would turn out. And, to be fair, he does know his stuff Kafka-wise. Has to make it an entertaining as well as informative piece and the know-it-all attitude and constant shutting down of the guide is likely all part of Self's 'comedy', him being a vaguely comical writer and that. Not that your complaint is at all unjustified.
The guide is there to show him around Prague and interpret for him, I very much doubt that she knows much about Kafka beyond the basic biographical facts and the associated buildings. Will Self clearly knows his stuff about Kafka, and the docu is for the benefit of the people watching it, not for his guide. In any case, she is getting paid for her trouble, so why do you care?
jolena auvuya Fuck Will and your dumb Dad.
the directing is very good. of course we watch this to hear the opinions of Will Self rather than the local guide.
I imagine Will Self reads lots of books.
I have read Mr Men books.
I have read adult books but I find it hard to understand any books aimed at the age of 12 years old or more.
Oh my G_d! Smother me and suffocate my senses no more! Allow me to breath! Allow me to think! Self is in Prague to lord his knowledge over this poor woman and TH-cam viewers? I thought she was going to guide us through the city, pointing out places of interest in Kafka's life. I was misinformed! The title of this video ought to have been, "Will Self Goes On and On (and On) About His Own Interpretation of Kafka's Life and Stifling Your Ability To Think Otherwise".
he wrote and directed it. it is his show so....
dodododatdatdat ... youre...
Not so. It's not a travelogue, a personal journey by Mr Self. The guide is sounding board for his narrative and provides an anchor to the walk. It's a visual reference which allows the documentary to progress.
In preparation for his lecture. His.
You turd
This prurient trip has no bearing on 'research' to enhance an essay on Kafka - - it's self indulgent to call it research at all. Way to trivialise psychogeography, Will. I remember Jonathan Miller lamenting the facile fashion in documetaries now to have their hosts walk the streets of any city tangentially connected with the subject, wasting the budget by avoiding real research. Miller was lamenting it in voice-over as the BBC had him walking the streets of a city as a condition of screening his documentary in the first place. This documentary is a shallow documentary on Prague with the word 'Kafka' dropped in periodically like a nonsense word.
The topic isn’t Prague, it’s one writers relationship to another. It’s actually you who’s the pleb in this situation.
Can't get past the way he pronounces Kafka as Kaifka...
Self: ... the sexually-obsessed adolescent mind ....
Guide: (I don't like where this is going ... )
pinstripe jacket and backpack.... looks shit. But he's utterly correct about everything after he dressed himself.
It's The Cement Garden, Will. Cement, not Concrete. Tut.
Surely a good writer in his own right though?
@@deafflylii1
He fucked up.
An exemplary travel document. If you prefer '5 reasons not to visit Prague', then this is not for you.
She has no idea what she’s talking about
1:30
I’m glad he said that. Irritates me when non Jews say this. Not sure I’d call it antisemitism, but there’s something about it that rubs me the wrong way.
+Pygiana. My thoughts exactly lol Not a natural in this field, says I.
What is it about Will Self these days? Something doesn't feel quite right.
In what sense? I'm curious.
His feet have started growing again, in Kafkaesque fashion. He's now up to size 17 and no sign of slowing. He is of course, discombobulated.
The sad result of a writer that eloped with the sound of his own voice.
People here all want to hate on Will Self, you only do it because it makes you feel smart to find anything to enlarge upon, like the guide: does it say Kafka walking tour with unknown Czech translator through Prague? Or Will Self's Kafka Journey? Will Self is a clever man, he knows his stuff, shut up.
Daniel Marshall I'll second this. Well said.
Daniel Marshall
Yes, self is a 'clever' man. Too 'clever' by half some would say...
cquilty1 not really. Well read, inquisitive, seeking truth. You could call him an old school journalist with a grasp of the English language. Right now, the World needs more Will Selfs.
phillip cornrow
Heavens no, phil. There are more than enough, pretentious, self absorbed waffling twats like little willy self in the world. Please...no more.
cquilty1 C'mon, be a bit more generous. I'd also recommend a radio documentary he did, driving a Trabant from London to what was East Germany. No poetry was involved.
There's something very religious about Kaka's writing
+villaparis2 KAKA???
Kaka was great at AC Milan
In Czech, “Kaká” literally means “He is shitting”
Worthy subject, poor guide.
Horrible guide
his voice is what paint drying sounds like...
It's not actually. Have you ever been to Prague, or even Europe?
I love Will Self, and I want to have his baby. Is that slightly weird? ✌️
Seek help.
Deeply.
This is WILF SELFS kafka. Not that I can't appreciate Self.
Did you know that christie lol
Whatever he may say, I never trust a guy with stripe suit.
Ask yourself why he's wearing a 'striped suit'. I'd trust even wearing a Dukla Praha away kit.
群星璀璨的欧罗巴，她给人类带来过巨大的灾难，也为人类指明了进步与文明的方向，感谢上帝！
What a waste - the poor woman could have told us so much more. Instead we get an hour of Self pontificating. I expect she was glad when it was all over.
She didn't seem to know much at all, and her English was only adequate.
This is not a Rick Steve's travelogue. Self was deeply touched and if you know much of his work, this is a tremendously interesting take on Kafka and the German speaking Jewish minority in tumultuous times. Tom Cunliffe .. you haven't a clue.
Will Self is just too annoying
How dull.
Mansplaining. Cringe...
Czech nationalism? Minorities in Prague? Lol. The Austria-Hungary Monarchy was supranational, minority-friendly and multicultural. There were 10 languages spoken and there have been no official language. It worked better than Europe today and the British in particular, who preferred the tool of punitive expeditions to oppress freedom movements within their "Commonwealth".
The people of the Austria-Hungary Monarchy were free to choose their language and culture and could go wherever they wanted to. E.g. Kafka went to Austria where he also died in 1924. The etnicities of this Monarchy have mixed well - as one can see if he takes a look at the many Hungarian and Slavic last names in Austria today. And don't play the Jew-Card mr. SELF, please! Whether Kafka was a Jew or not was irrelevant at his time. Until the UK-/USA-backed NSDAP came to power in Germany, nobody was asking. Kafka died long before the first progrome against Jews happened. By the way, the majority of the Jews in Europe have never integrated. Look at it from todays perspective with the Islam communities and how welcome they are by isolating themselves from the society in which they live.
but they expanded incorrectly and caused WW1
Alfred Mayer Try telling the Italians how the Austrian Hungarian was so wonderful (Friuli Venezia Giulia excepted of course). History played out as it did. Why such revisionism?