Kafka, Löwy und das jiddische Theater

The encounter with the Yiddish theater, never fully explored, constitutes one of the most significant chapters in Franz Kafka’s life. Guido Massino’s book reconstructs the days of 1911-1912, in which Kafka discovered the unknown and unique dimensions of Eastern Jewish culture in its varied and fascinating theatrical form. It was a particular experience which prompted Kafka to define his identity as a Jew and as a writer. Against the background of “cold Prague” and of “burning Warsaw,” Massino’s Fuoco inestinguibile again evokes the tragic and picaresque epic of the early Yiddish theater and its unforgettable actors and actresses. Above all, this book finally casts a clear light upon the enigmatic figure of Yizchak Löwy, also known as Jaques Levi, Kafka’s “indispensable friend,” who, in time, has become “more a symbol than a real existence” (Claudio Magris). It is important that Löwy’s own writings are here published for the first time.