Kafka - Before the Law

Kafka’s Before the Law

In the “Before the Law”, Kafka tells a parable about a man who tries to pass the doors to reach the “Law”. Since he believes that law should be accessible by everyone, he patiently waits to enter even the first doorkeeper continuously disallow him while the doorkeeper gives hope that in the future he may enter. So, he spends his whole life and everything he has to his aim without knowing that the door is there only for him, after his dead the door will be closed. He learns this fact right before his dead.

 My first interpretation is law is something that should be same for everybody, that is why he thinks that he can reach the “Law”. The man has this notion however some people who are described as doorkeepers by frightening him try to bring him under the control and prevent him to reach the law or justice. Since these doors and doorkeepers are there only for the man, I thought that they maybe the rulers who are there only because we vote. So basically we create the doorkeepers by expecting that they will apply the law. On the contrary, like in this case, selection of wrong doorkeepers cause giving bribery which causes corruption, and spending a life by waiting that doorkeepers do their jobs and apply the law.

My second interpretation is quite different than the first one. I thought that it can be also about setting goals and creating obstacles in the mind. In the parable the man sets a goal which is reaching the “Law”. He makes an attempt to fulfill his goal but first obstacle he encounters intimidate him. He does everything except taking an action to pass the door. He feeds his own obstacle by giving “bribery”. Until he gives up, he cannot realize that these obstacles are not real.