Rebell oder Terrorist? Beides trifft wohl auf Kohlhaas zu. ( )

Não esperava encontro mais estranho. A primeira cena desse livro tem a burocracia, a extorsão e as leis enervantes que levam ao Kafka, e o cenário medieval de cavaleiros e fidalgos em plena mudança que leva às histórias de fantasia conflitantes do Sapkwoski. Eu achei que estava vendo coisa onde não tem, até que olhei as imagens da adaptação para o cinema "Michael Kohlhaas — Justiça e Honra". Ufa.

Há, aliás, a mesma cena do salvo-conduto (adaptada para aquele mundo de fantasia, é claro) em um dos três primeiros livros de Witcher (não lembro qual especificamente, mas a cena está lá, tenho certeza).

Mais por vir. Caiu ouro em minhas mãos.

Set sometime in the early Renaissance, Michael Kohlhaas is a horse trader who finds himself unfairly (he believes) required to pay a toll. When he contests the toll, his horses are confiscated, and things go from bad to worse as Kohlhaas goes to further and further extremes to seek justice, to the extent that soon the whole country is up in arms.

The book has been described as a portrait of a man "in the Hell of unsatisfied vengeance," beset by "bureaucratic obstacles and governmental corruptions," and is said to have influenced Kafka. Its story illustrates how all out combat can result from the most petty of personal disputes in a fanatical quest for justice.

Even though the book was short, I did not find it an easy read. The backs and forths of the machinations of both sides were not always so easy to follow, though the frustrations experienced by Kohlhaas are clearly conveyed. Read it if you are trying to check some books off the 1001 list, but although it is highly critically praised as being extremely influential, it is not a book I would categorize as "must read."

3 stars ( )

Early Kafka, but (even) more comedic and severe (in the sense that these innumerable functionaries actually exist), though tarnished by a "magic Gypsy" subplot and the narrative imperfection which brings back those schwarz horses in our final scene. ( )

On the surface this is a story of Michael Kohlhaas's run in with the political characters of his country. He is first taken advantage of and when he seeks justice he receives anything but justice. The other level that this is written from is regarding Napoleon and it is written in this veiled manner to avoid persecution for his writing. The story is basically realistic until toward then end when he has a piece of paper from a gypsy character that reportedly has a prophecy against one of Kohlhaas's tormentors which the man wants to get his hands on. It is a bit of supernatural with all the harsh realism that gives some home to a very harsh ending. ( )