Franz Kafka (1883–1924) was a German-language writer of novels and
short stories, and is regarded as one of the most influential authors of
the 20th century. His works, such as "Die Verwandlung" ("The
Metamorphosis"), Der Process (The Trial), and Das Schloss (The Castle),
are filled with themes and archetypes of alienation, brutality,
parent–child conflict, and mystical transformations. Kafka was born
into a middle-class Jewish family in Prague, then part of the Austro-
Hungarian Empire. He trained as a lawyer and worked for an insurance
company, writing in his spare time – he complained all his life about
his lack of time to write. Kafka wrote hundreds of letters to family and
close female friends, including his fiancée Felice Bauer. Only a few of
Kafka's stories appeared during his lifetime in story collections and
literary magazines. His novels and other unfinished works were published
posthumously, mostly by his friend Max Brod, who ignored his wish to
have the manuscripts destroyed. Albert Camus and Jean-Paul Sartre are
among the writers influenced by Kafka's work; the term Kafkaesque has
entered the English language to describe surreal situations like those
in his writing.
Read more: <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Franz_Kafka>
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1844:
The last known pair of Great Auks (specimens pictured), the
only modern species in the genus Pinguinus, were killed in Eldey, off
the coast of Iceland.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Auk>
1863:
Pickett's Charge, a futile Confederate infantry assault against
Union Army positions, occurred during the final and bloodiest day of
fighting in the Battle of Gettysburg, marking a turning point in the
American Civil War.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pickett%27s_Charge>
1970:
The Troubles: The British Army imposed the Falls Curfew on
Belfast, Northern Ireland, which only resulted in greater Irish
republican resistance.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Falls_Curfew>
1988:
United States Navy warship USS Vincennes shot down Iran Air
Flight 655 over the Persian Gulf, killing all 290 people aboard.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran_Air_Flight_655>
2005:
Same-sex marriage became legal in Spain.
<https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Same-sex_marriage_in_Spain>
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Wiktionary's word of the day:
Panglossian:
1. (pejorative) Naively or unreasonably optimistic.
2. (pejorative) Of or relating to the view that this is the best of all
possible worlds.
<https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Panglossian>
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Wikiquote quote of the day:
What is this life if, full of care, We have no time to stand and
stare.
--William Henry Davies
<https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/William_Henry_Davies>