The creation of identity is complicated, and it is difficult to definitively call Kafka Czech. To start, the term Czech has at least two meanings: one connected to ethnicity and the other to nationality. These terms are distinct from one another, as ethnicity refers to a common culture, heritage, practices, norms, language, and many other defining factors which could be influential in defining ethnicity such as religion, race, shared experience, shared ancestry, to name a few.[1] Ethnicity is an incredibly difficult term to properly define, as it is a socially constructed term whose definition comes from the perception of society rather than any dictionary definition.[2] In other words, what determines ethnicity is blocks of people who create ideas of common belonging with each other defining an ethnic grouping, which exists because of the collective meaning making processes in the society.[2] Nationality, on the other hand, has a much simpler definition; nationality is a legal term which refers to the homeland of a person, based on the legal definition of the given country; the term is closely related to citizenship (further reading on this is provided).[3] Therefore, Czechness could be defined through nationality as simply all Czech citizens. Alternatively, if defined through the lens of ethnicity, the Czech identity may not apply to all citizens of Czechia and may also be applied to people who are not citizens of Czechia. The distinction between nationality and ethnicity becomes clearer in explicitly multi-ethnic states, where identities are held both based on the country of citizenship as well as the ethnicity of the person. An example of such states are the former Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, Czechoslovakia, or Kafka’s place of birth: the Austro-Hungarian empire.
As discussed in the previous section, Kafka has become a symbol of Prague, and has been memorialized throughout the city. To assign him an identity that is not Czech could seem hypocritical, considering his place in contemporary Prague. A survey conducted by the Pew Research Center, which asked Czechs questions about belonging in the country, only 51% of respondents were accepting of Jews, and 55% of people claimed that Czech culture, which includes the Czech language, was superior to others. In addition, 66% percent of respondents said that having a family background in the country was important to belong.[4] With this in mind, a significant portion of Czech people would not consider Kafka a Czech writer given his family history and religion. With that said, these statements were generalized and it is possible that people would have different opinions towards Kafka specifically, given his status and memorialization in Prague.
As was implied in the survey, religion and culture/language are major parts of defining identity. This was also evident from our visit to the Czech Literature Museum, where the emphasis on what described Czech literature was the Czech language.[5] For Kafka, a Jewish German-speaking writer, he does not seem to fit any of these prerequisites for identity. Ethnic identity however is an incredibly difficult concept to define, which makes the question “is Kafka Czech?” answerable perhaps only by Kafka himself or other members who are considered to be part of the Czech community. To make claims on their behalf carries no weight in the truth of the matter, as ethnic communities are socially constructed by the members that make them up, and external people are not able to determine what is needed to be a part of said community. In the case of the Czech identity, this is no different.
Could Kafka be considered Czech? Maybe…
[1] Brubaker, Rogers. “Ethnicity, Race, and Nationalism.” Annual Review of Sociology, vol. 35, 2009, pp. 21–42. JSTOR, http://www.jstor.org/stable/27800067.
[2] Blakemore, Erin. “Race and ethnicity facts and information.” National Geographic, 22 February 2019, https://www.nationalgeographic.com/culture/article/race-ethnicity.
[3] S.W.L. “What is the difference between nationality and citizenship?” The Economist, 10 July 2017, https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2017/07/09/what-is-the-difference-between-nationality-and-citizenship.
[4] Kelsey Jo Starr. “Once the Same Nation, the Czech Republic and Slovakia Now Look Very Different Religiously.” Pew Research Center, Pew Research Center, 31 May 2020, https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/01/02/once-the-same-nation-the-czech-republic-and-slovakia-look-very-different-religiously/.
[5] “Museum of Czech Literature.” Museum of Czech Literature - Památník Národního Písemnictví, https://www.en.pamatniknarodnihopisemnictvi.cz/1568-museum-of-czech-literature/ . Accessed 9 May 2023.