Kafkaesque
English meaning: Nightmarishly complex and bureaucratic (from Kafka)
German Definition
(Deutsch)Beschreibt Situationen, die surreal unterdrückend, bürokratisch absurd oder alptraumhaft komplex sind — abgeleitet von den Werken des tschechisch-deutschen Autors Franz Kafka.
English Definition
Describing situations that are surreally oppressive, bureaucratically absurd, or nightmarishly complex — derived from Czech-German author Franz Kafka's works. 'The Trial' and 'The Metamorphosis' depict individuals trapped in incomprehensible, dehumanizing systems. The term is now used globally to describe bureaucratic nightmares and institutional absurdity.
Example
“Das bürokratische Labyrinth des Amtes fühlte sich geradezu kafkaesk an.”
In English: “The bureaucratic labyrinth of the office felt positively Kafkaesque.”
Synonyms
- absurd
- surreal
- bürokratisch
Antonyms / Opposites
- transparent
- unkompliziert
Literary Heritage
“Als Gregor Samsa eines Morgens aus unruhigen Träumen erwachte, fand er sich in seinem Bett zu einem ungeheueren Ungeziefer verwandelt.”
“When Gregor Samsa woke one morning from troubled dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into a monstrous insect.”
Images
CC-licensed · free to useVideo
Language information
- Language
- Deutsch
- German
- Script
- Latin
- Family
- Germanic
- Speakers
- 135M