THE INFLUENCE OF FRANZ KAFKA ON TA DUY ANH’S WORKS

Abstract

Franz Kafka has influenced many writers worldwide, including Ta Duy Anh- one of the representative writers of the innovation trend in Vietnamese literature after 1986. Kafka's influence on contemporary writers has become a trending research topic, attracting the attention of scholars in many countries. Based on the approaches of text analysis and comparative literary studies, the article affirms Kafka's influence on Ta Duy Anh in two important aspects including constructing lonely characters and the art of creating mazes. The analysis shows similarities in the works of Kafka and Ta Duy Anh. Both authors depict lonely characters on a journey to find their identities, surrounded by absurd, chaotic situations, like being trapped in a maze. Kafka and Ta Duy Anh’s characters on the journey to find their true selves must accept facing loneliness, states of alienation, and situations of absurdity and uncertainty. That raises the issue of the diminished status of individuals in modern society. These influences have created a unique beauty in the ideology and artistry of Ta Duy Anh’s works.