Unfinished works give rise to conjecture. How would Kafka intend to end this novel? Did he get tired of it? Did he avoid concocting an ending? K, a professional surveyor, arrives in a village during a winter storm. He is summoned by a Count whose castle overlooks that village. As might be expected in any Kafka story, K will not find the earl or perform any specific work. The castle of the title is not what you would expect, it is certainly not what the disappointed K expected to see, it is not even an old fortress or a new mansion, but a shady complex of countless small buildings close to each other. Swarms of crows circulate around the tower. It is clear that K's presence in the village is the result of a bureaucratic error. A surveyor had actually been requested by the Count some time ago, but the order had been canceled long before. Only Kafka would be able to explain why K does not leave the village - and only he would know how (or if) he intended to finish this unfinished masterpiece.
Review of The Castle
