Islamic Culture and Relations Organization Spektrum Iran 0934-358X 32 1 2019 03 01 The Autobiographical Element in the Works of Franz Kafka The Autobiographical Element in the Works of Franz Kafka 95 108 223886 10.22034/spektrum.2019.223886 DE Saeid Rezvani Shahid Beheshti University ; Iran Journal Article 2025 06 30 Franz Kafka’s works can be considered as the epitome of interpretability in the modern fiction. Abandoning the search for the one and only correct meaning of Kafka’s stories makes it possible to gain access to the meanings beneath the surface. The attempt to understand his stories brings out possible interpretations and discovers elements on which the stories are based. One part of Kafka’s literary effort is certainly the processing of concrete events and circumstances of his life; therefore, this article tries to examine the autobiographical element of his stories. Although the biography of the author does not fully unlock the meaning of his texts, it facilitates their partial understanding and development of possible interpretations. As an example, reading Kafka’s novel, The Castle, alongside his autobiographical sources of information (letters and diaries), provides a new interpretation of the fragmented text. Franz Kafka’s works can be considered as the epitome of interpretability in the modern fiction. Abandoning the search for the one and only correct meaning of Kafka’s stories makes it possible to gain access to the meanings beneath the surface. The attempt to understand his stories brings out possible interpretations and discovers elements on which the stories are based. One part of Kafka’s literary effort is certainly the processing of concrete events and circumstances of his life; therefore, this article tries to examine the autobiographical element of his stories. Although the biography of the author does not fully unlock the meaning of his texts, it facilitates their partial understanding and development of possible interpretations. As an example, reading Kafka’s novel, The Castle, alongside his autobiographical sources of information (letters and diaries), provides a new interpretation of the fragmented text. https://www.spektrumiran.com/article_223886_41fa10ca75d0c1981fc7361e6196b854.pdf