"based on writtings by Franz Kafka" "K. arrived late one evening." "Good evening." "Could I have a room?" "The landlord did not have any rooms to rent." "But, disturbed by this stranger, he offered him to sleep on a straw mattress." "K. agreed." "Sorry for waking you up." "I'm the Castle manager's son." "You need a permit to sleep here." "You either don't have it or didn't show one." "What's this village?" "Is there a castle here?" "Apparently!" "Good." "I'll go find that paper." "Now?" "At midnight?" "!" "Isn't that possible?" "Why did you wake me up then?" "To tell you that you have to leave the Castle grounds." "You are pushing it, young man." "I will lodge a complaint tomorrow." "These gentlemen are witnesses." "I am the surveyor in service of the Castle." "My assistants and equipment will be here tomorrow." "Good night gentlemen." "Hello?" "Good evening, Schwarzer here." "Schwarzer said he located K." "and that he finds him suspicious, because he claimed to be a surveyor engaged by the Castle." "Yes." "Yes." "I will wait." "Yes!" "Thank you!" "Just as I said!" "No trace of a surveyor!" "A vulgar vagrant!" "A liar!" "As if that is not bad enough!" "The office boss himself?" "Surprising ..." "How to tell it to Mr. Surveyor?" "The Castle appointed him as the surveyor." "K. was close to the church, the school was just behind." "The children and the teacher were coming out." "From afar, K. had noticed this man with narrow shoulders." "K. saluted him first." "The children quieted down." " Can you see the Castle?" " Yes." "I'm not from here." "I arrived yesterday." "Don't you like it?" "Excuse me?" "Do I like the Castle?" "Why wouldn't I like it?" "It is pleasing for foreigners." " Do you know the Count?" " No." "You don't know the Count?" "How could I?" "And the teacher added, whispering in French:" "Mind these innocent ears!" "I will rest for a while." "Can I come to see you later?" "I live next to the butcher's." "Good, I will come by." "The teacher confirmed and set off with his class screaming again." "K. was distracted and irritated by this conversation." "For the first time he felt tired." "For the state that he was in, just forcing himself to reach the Castle entrance, would have been enough." "The street did not go to the Castle, it was coming close, and then it turned and, without moving away, it did not approach the Castle anymore." "Can I enter?" "I am very tired." "But he is drunk!" "Who are you?" "What is he doing here?" "I am the surveyor." "Ah, this is the surveyor." "You know me?" "Of course." "You cannot stay here." "I did not want to stay, just to rest a little." "Who are you?" "A girl from the Castle." "We don't need any visitors." "Who are you?" "Lasemann, the tanner." "Who are you?" " Your assistants." " These are the assistants." "What?" "My assistants that had to rejoin me?" "Yes!" "They saluted." "Remembering the good old days of his military service, K. laughed." "It is good." "Good that you are here." "But you are late, you are negligent!" "It's a long way." "Where is the equipment?" "We do not have it." "The stuff that I entrusted to you?" " Don't have it ..." " Don't have it." "Do you know the job?" "No." "If you were my assistants, you would know the job." "How can I tell you apart?" "It's just for your names, otherwise, you look alike." "Like two snakes." "Usually, we are recognized!" "I will call you both by the same name:" "Arthur." "One of you is definitely named Arthur?" "You?" "No, I am Jeremias." "Good." "Doesn't matter." "Both of you will be Arthur." "If I give an order, it applies to both of you." "That is very unpleasant." "But that's how it is." "I'll go to sleep now." "We already lost a day." "Tomorrow we'll start early." "Find me a sled and be here at 6 am." "Good." "Good!" "You know that's impossible!" "He's right." "If it's for the Castle, he'll need a permit" "Where do you get one?" "I do not know." "Maybe from the manager?" "Then call the manager!" "They complied, ran to the phone and asked if K. could come to the Castle tomorrow." "It was refused." "K. heard it from his table." "And he added:" "Neither tomorrow nor ever!" "I'll call myself." "The peasants made a circle around K." "A majority thought that K. would not get any response." "K. had to tell them to be quiet." "The line was awful:" "K. had never heard such noise." "It was as if voices of innumerable children, strangely formed a single strong and high-pitched voice." "A messenger is looking for you." " Bugger off!" " Oswald here." "Yes?" "Yes?" "I am an assistant of the surveyor." " Which one?" " Joseph." "Joseph?" "His assistants are Arthur and Jeremias." " These are the new assistants." " No, the old ones." "No, the new ones." "But I am the old one, I arrived today." "No." "What am I then?" "You are a former assistant." "What do you want?" "When do we enter the Castle?" "Never." "Good." "Who are you?" "I am Barnabas, the messenger." "Under the orders of the Mayor," "I will keep an eye on you." "The messenger Barnabas, who brought this letter, will come to see what you need, and will pass it to me." "I strive to make my workers happy." "I can't read the signature." " What is the name of your boss?" " Klamm." "Give my thanks to Mr. Klamm for his warm welcome." "I appreciate it." "I need to produce my credentials." "I'll do everything as agreed." "I have no demands." " Should I repeat?" " Go ahead." "Thanks Mr. Klamm." "I appreciate your friendly welcome, even as I have not yet produced my evidence." "I will do absolutely as said." "I have nothing to ask." "Barnabas!" "I am here." "His voice was weak, distant." "Barnabas is not here anymore." "Come back!" "This way!" "K. called him while running towards him." "They met each other outside of the view from the inn." "Barnabas, I wanted to say something to you ." "I think it's not going to work if I have to wait for you to take my messages to the Castle." "Had I not found you, who knows how much time I would have waited for you?" "You can ask the Boss to confirm that I come regularly just as you set it up." "That's not good enough." "I could have nothing to say for a year, then have an urgent message, and you might have just left." "OK, should I tell to the Boss, that you want to communicate with him in a different way?" "No, no, absolutely not." "Let's go back to the inn so that you can tell me what is my new mission?" "The people there bother me." "This is not necessary." "I'll come with you for a bit." "Let me take your arm." "You are firmer on your feet." "And K. took his arm." "They walked, but K. did not know where to." "He couldn't recognize anything, even though they already passed the church." "Judging by the road condition, they were still on the main road." "K. resolved not to let anythig stop him." "By day, the Castle appeared within reach, and Barnabas knew the way." "What's this?" " We are at the house." " At the house?" "Careful not to slip, master." " The path slopes down." " Slopes" "It is just a few steps." "Who is with you, Barnabas?" "The surveyor." "The surveyor!" "K. was greeted." "He was introduced to everyone:" "to parents and to sisters Olga and Amalia." "K. hardly looked at them." "They took his coat to dry it." "K. let them do it." "Why come here?" "Is this a part of the Castle?" "The Castle, this?" "!" "Did we go to the Castle?" "No, master." "I go to the Castle in the morning, I don't sleep there." "Why didn't you say so!" "You did not ask." "You wanted to give me a message, but not at the inn." "Then I thought that you could do it here, at my parents' place." "If you want, they can leave us alone." "If it is more convenient, you could sleep here." "Haven't I done it already?" "It was a misunderstanding, banal and trivial, and K. had a lot of those." "These people expected him to greet them." "But he could not speak." "He would have preferred to leave again." "Take a seat please." "There is bread and bacon." "I'll bring beer." " Where are you going?" " To the inn." "I'll come too!" "I've some business there." "I'm going to another one, Gentlemen's Inn." "It's fine with me." "As you want." "Straight to the bar!" "Sure, he's just kept my company." "I am looking for a room." "Alas, that is not possible." "This is for the Gentlemen of the Castle." "That is the rule, but given my relations with the Castle," "I can just as well sleep in a corner." "I know that, I know." "Are there any Gentlemen here tonight?" "It's rather favourable:" "there is just one here." " And who is he?" " Klamm." "You known Mr. Klamm?" " Would you like to see Mr. Klamm?" " Indeed." "You could look through this hole." "What about all these people?" "The peasants surrounded Olga." "While she danced, they made turns taking her by the hips and making her twirl." "Frieda came towards K." "and pulled him softly." "I can't see if he has the files." "The files are over there." "The peasants had hoarse voices and could only scream." "You known Mr. Klamm?" "Yes, very well!" "I am his mistress." "Do you go to the Castle?" "Isn't it good enough just to be here?" "That is true." "I worked at the stable of The Bridge Lodge." "With these soft hands?" "Olga, letting herself loose, passed from hand to hand." "What do you want from me?" "To take me to Klamm?" "You guessed it:" "I want you for a mistress." "Look what they send to us!" " Who are these people?" " Klamm's servants." "I don't know more than I say." "Mister Surveyor, sorry if it was mean." "It's the fault of these, most repugnant people!" "In the name of Klamm, go to the stables!" "In the name of Klamm!" "she yelled, to the stables, all to the stables!" "To K.'s amazement, without resistance the men rolled towards the exit." "The first ones pushed the door, and, in an instant, disapeared with Frieda who chased them to the stables." "But in this sudden silence, K. heard the steps in the hallway." "He jumped behind the counter, the only possible hiding place." "Even without doing anything wrong, he preferred not to be seen, if he wanted to sleep there." "Frieda!" "Fortunately, Frieda returned, saying that Klamm's people, and not K. are a bunch of pigs, even though she herself was often nice to Klamm." "But over there, he couldn't hear any of it." "And where is the Surveyor?" "The Surveyor?" "I forgot!" "No doubt he's already left." "I didn't see him while I was in the hallway." "But he is not here." "Has he hiden himself?" "To me he appears capable of anything." "He wouldn't have the nerve." "Is he maybe over there?" "No, he's not." "Not knowing whether he left is very upseting." "But you are the one who is in charge of the bar." "I will go look elsewhere." "Good night." "Sleep well." "Before the innkeeper left," "Frieda turned off the light and joined K. under the bar." "My dear!" ""My darling!" "My sweet darling!" she whispered, without touching K." "They were laying on their backs, with outstretched arms, not singing, but rather moaning a little tune." "Seeing K. all pensive, she jumped with surprise and shaked him as a child." "They embraced and rolled around the room, bumped into Klamm's door, and walowed in the pools of beer and dirt that covered the ground." "Hours passed, hours of mixed breaths, of unison hearts, hours during which K. felt that he lost himself or was in a foreign land like no man before him." "In a land where even the air one breaths was nothing like back home, a strangely stiffling air, which left one incapable of anything except following and falling lower." "Frieda!" "Frieda!" "I don't want to go there!" "I will never go back again!" "K. wanted to protest, to incite rejoining Klamm, he picked up the remains of his shirt, but he didn't know what to say, too happy to have Frieda next to him, too happy and too anxious" "for it seemed to him that if Frieda left, he wouldn't have anything anymore." "I am with the Surveyor!" "I am with the Surveyor!" "What are you doing here?" "We are both lost." "I am lost." "But I earned to have you." "Stay calm." "But look at them laughing!" "Who?" "What do you want?" " We looked for you." " We spent the night here." "Why didn't you bring me back?" "Because of this girl?" "We can leave now." "Frieda drew contempt from peasants because of the way she treated them." "One of them even took a stick and pretended to make her jump over it." "She brushed it aside." "When K. woke up, the patron was knitting to his bedside." "I've waited for a long time." "What do you plan to do with Frieda, Mr. Surveyor?" "She is very much troubled by happiness and misfortune." "Why are you concerned with that?" "Out of affection, and concern." "Can we talk about it after I see the Mayor?" "This appointment is important to me." "You talk about work." "I am concerned about a human being." "Madam, then I can tell you, that I plan to marry Frieda, and very soon." "Frieda trusts you, so I can't be against it, but you are not from here, we don't know anything about you, we need assurances." "Of course, I will talk with Klamm about it." "That is impossible." "You, get out!" "What an idea!" "If I can't do it, you got to go there." "Madam, look what he wants!" " You exaggerate." " Why?" "I'll tell you." "I told you: get out!" "What do you have against them, dear?" "No need to hide anything from them, they are loyal." "Loyal!" "They are spying on me!" "Why is it impossible?" "Frieda turned away from K." "Mr. Klamm is from the Castle." "You are not from the Castle nor from the village." "You are nothing else but, alas!" "a foreigner, always an odd number, and in our way, a man of unknown intentions, a man that seduced our dear little Frieda, who we have to allow him to marry." "You want to speak with Klamm, he doesn't even speak with villagers." "Klamm doesn't want to hear about me any more." "It's not your fault, dear." "You've nothing to do with it." "But I believe that it was because of him that we found ourselves under the bar." "Blessed, and not cursed, be this hour!" "If this is so, no reason to fear talking to Klamm." "You barely arrived here, and you pretend to know more than the locals!" "You are as ungrateful and stubborn as a child!" "Frieda sacrificed herself..." "I gave you a roof..." "Excuse me?" "!" "Young man, if I kick you out, good luck trying to find a place to stay in this town, even a nook!" " A roof, this rathole?" " No, dear!" "Know that I can leave this rathole and find a much better place to stay!" " Which one, if I may ask?" " With Barnabas!" "Look where Mister will hang out!" "With Barnabas!" "Like he didn't stay there!" "But where were you?" "My assistants are not yours, nor caretakers'!" "Do not talk to them that way!" "I don't have to talk to you!" "Don't get upset." "You got Frieda into such a frenzy that she is ready to give everything to happily share in your misery, and you are boasting how you will go sleep at Barnabas'!" "Are you playing important in front of me?" "If you slept over there, you'd be leaving my house pretty darn quick!" "I am not aware of Barnabas' sin." "You have your reasons, just as I had mine when I asked you to leave Frieda and me alone." "As for your 'roof'," "I will inform the police chief about what you gave to us and, once in a new place," "I'll be more relieved than you'd know!" "Mr. Surveyor!" "I beg you, don't try to talk with Klamm!" "Are you afraid of Klamm?" "If I didn't make any measurements, it will be because of your delays." "I thought you've already given up." "But you were so kind to come and see me." "I have to tell you the truth, as unpleasant as it may be:" "We don't need a surveyor." "Someone engaged me as a surveyor." "You wouldn't have anything to do!" "The property lines are all fixed, everything is well registered, and changes are rare." "Why would we need a surveyor?" "That is really surprising." "I can only hope that it's a misunderstanding." "Alas, no." "It is just as I told you." "But I didn't travel so far only to be sent back!" "This matter is not under my jurisdiction." "But I can explain to you how this misunderstanding was possible." "A really old by-law, by I don't know which service, created a post of surveyor." "That did not concern you, because that was years ago." "I would have forgotten, if..." "Mizzi!" "Look in the cabinet to see if the old by-law is there." "It was when I just started." "I still keep it all." "It must be at the bottom!" "This is just a little part of a mountain of work." "A bigger part is in a barn, a lot has been lost, but the rest is not bad." "Have you found the by-law?" "This is a file marked 'Surveyor' and underlined in blue." "It's too dark here." "My wife helps me a lot, but one can't get out of trouble, there are delays, and it ends up in the cabinet." "With my sickness, this is irrecoverable." "Could I help your wife?" "I do not keep any state secrets, but to let you go through the files, this is too much to ask." "Where were we?" "It is so cold outside!" " Who are they?" " These are my assistants." "Don't know what to do - it's freezing outside, but they bother me here." "They don't bother me:" "I know them!" "They bother me." "Help us find a file marked 'Surveyor' and underlined in blue." "So, these assistants are a burden for you." "Nevertheless they are yours." "They were affected to me here." "You mean - assigned." "As if by chance:" "absurd allocation!" "With us, nothing is absurd." "What about my assignement?" "It was conceived after much reflection, but it got complicated." "I'll show you when I find the file." "Except that it can't be found!" "What?" "Mizzi, please hurry up!" "I can do without the file." "We responded to the by-law by saying that we didn't need a surveyor, but, by error, our letter was delivered to a wrong service, and, in addition, the file was incomplete:" "the file folder was empty." "So, that service requested us to complete it." "Now, in the meanwhile months had passed, maybe even years, our memories were vague, and our response was that we were unaware of a such nomination, and didn't have any need for a surveyor." "The response was deemed insufficient." "A long exchange of letters ensued, there was surprise that we suddenly don't want a surveyor." "We responded that it was not our idea but the service's, while forgetting that this wasn't the same service, demanded from us the original, that was lost with the file." "They started visiting the inn, questioning prominent citizens, mostly about me, some flinched, suspecting secret deals, injustices, and suddenly the need to engage a surveyor was swept under the rug." "Brunswick particulary stepped forward." "He is a fool, a poor speaker, but loud, which some appreciate." "You do not know him:" "Lasemann's brother-in-law." " Tanner's?" " Yes." "I did see him." "Middle aged, brown." " With a beard?" " Yes, that's him." "I know his wife." "That is possible." "She's beautiful, but rather pale and sickly." "Does she come to the Castle?" "Don't you go anywhere but your office?" "Yes, but it is them that are important." "In short, Brunswick's demands obliged me to consult the town council that, unanimously of course, rejected the surveyor idea." "That also goes years back." "Brunswick held well." "In the meantime a service controller discovered that, we, in fact, did formerly reply to the first service that we didn't need a surveyor." "We confirmed our response, and all seemed to be in order." "Imagine my disappointment, Mr. Surveyor, when I saw you arrive!" "This whole affair started anew!" "I couldn't tolerate something like that, as you would understand." "I will know how to defend myself." "Whatever you do, have confidence in me." "You always speak of my future assignement, but I already am engaged" "Here is Klamm's letter." "This letter has weight, the signature of Klamm appears authentic, but otherwise..." "I don't dare say it..." "Mizzi?" "What are you doing?" "File untracable." "But you already know the story, in fact, we don't need the file anymore." "As with a lot of files it will, without doubt, be found by the teacher." "Come close with the lamp Mizzi, and read this letter to me." "Hurray!" "Hurray!" "Mizzi shares my opinion, that's not an official document, but a private letter." "It doesn't say than you were named surveyor, it just mentiones you working for the Castle." "Further, for more information it refers you to me, your direct superior." "Do you known Schwarzer?" "No." "Do you know him, Mizzi?" "You neither." "No, we do not see." "Interesting!" "It's the son of one of the Castle assistants." "Dear Mr. Surveyor, how could I know the sons of all assistants?" "Well, believe me, Schwarzer is a one of a kind." "The evening I arrived, I had a painful scene with him." "He phoned Fritz, an assistant who told him that I was indeed named a surveyor." "Who told you about that?" "It's very simple." "There is no real direct line to the Castle, nor any telephone switchboard." "When one calls someone from here, it rings with all subordinates." "Actually, it would ring everywhere, if the buzzers were not cut." "But sometimes, especially in the evenings, a bored employee might pick up the receiver, and you get through." "However, such response is only a joke." "Look, at my place, there is no telephone!" "Overall, this is all very obscure and inextricable, except for the fact that I am being thrown out." "No one would dare throwing you out," "Mr. Surveyor!" "In this delicate matter, you will have every respect." "no one will keep you, but no one will throw you out either!" "I'll tell you what is bothering me:" "my sacrifice of leaving home, my difficult voyage, my lack of money, no work back home, and my fiancée, who is from here." "Ah yes, Frieda." "I know." "But Frieda would follow you anywhere." "For the rest, I'll report to the Castle." "I'll call you if a decision is made, eh?" "No." "I am claiming my duty, not a favour." "Mizzi!" "My leg is hurting again." "The bandage needs to be changed." "I will excuse myself." "There's too much draft." "Mr. Surveyor, I'd like to talk to you." "I don't have the time." "Listen!" "It's urgent!" "Leave me alone, Madam!" "Polish the shoes, quickly!" "Wait!" "Brush the jacket too!" "In a moment!" "The pants too!" "Hurry up!" "I will iron them." "What's this about?" "Excuse me," "I have to visit someone and must be immaculate." "Given my finances, I have to relly on cleanliness." "I come from the Mayor." "You spoke with him harshly." "Has he complained about me?" "The Mayor cannot press the Castle on your case." "For the moment, he's offering you the school factotum position." "What?" "That position is as useless as the surveyor's, as I emphasised to the Mayor, but he wants to help you." "Save your concerns for you." "I refuse that post." "Perfect." "You refuse without hesitation." "Perfect." "Have a good day!" "Come back, please!" "Come, dear." "Please!" "Just come for a moment." "What is it?" "I am cold." " You do not want the post?" " No..." "We can't stay here." "Your shirt is not ironed, Madam wanted to talk to me." "You've hurt that woman." "She's even attempted to intervene on our behalf." "Now, it is ruined." "She says I should stay and that you'll make me suffer." "I'll follow you anywhere, through ice and snow, but Mayor's offer will help us for the moment and if the final decision is unfavourable, we will leave." "Nothing is keeping us here, but while waiting, accept this offer, my dear," "I will bring him back, and you just tell him "I agree", and we'll settle in the school." "Let's wait until afternoon." "I will know some more by then." "Let's respond vaguely to him." "I will find where to stay." " ... with B. if need be." " Don't say that!" "If you want so, we'll refuse." "I'll stay here if you want." "I'll do as you want." "But if you don't get anything from the Castle today, you won't have a place to stay, nor a bed worthy of your future wife." "Would you rather I sleep in a warm place, while you wander in the cold and night?" "Do you know where I want to go?" "Yes." "And you aren't preventing me?" "You face so many obstacles, whatever I say doesn't matter!" "Come!" " We are accepting the postion." " It was offered to him." "I want to hear it from him." "Of course he's accepting it, isn't that right, K.?" "Yes." "Good evening." "Ah, Mr. Surveyor." "My name is Pepi." "Good evening, Pepi." "I've been her since Frieda left, they needed someone." "Before, I cleaned the rooms," "Didn't profit from the change." "Frieda liked being here very much ." "How is she?" "Will she return soon?" "Evenings here are difficult." "It's not surprising that Frieda gave up." "Frieda is my fiancée." "I know." "You want a beer?" "Yes." "Her dress was ridiculous and her protests pretentious, nevertheless, K. thought that by finding Pepi instead of Frieda, she must have links with the Castle." "If that was true, he'll try to wrest away her secret just as he had to do with Frieda." "What do you want?" "Frieda's things?" "Yes." "A white tablecloth." "There is no tablecloth." "If I knew no one is here," "I would take it." "There is nobody." "Klamm takes this room often." "Klamm is not here." "He will leave." "His sled is in the courtyard." "The coachman was one of the peasants who had harassed Olga." "Good evening." "K.'s greetings were not returned." "It was bitter cold." "Arriving at the inn at twilight," "K. found himself in the dark again." "And Klamm did not come." "That could take a while." "What could take long?" "This is where they leave from." "K. didn't understand the coachman, but didn't ask any more questions." "Would you like some cognac?" "Yes." "Open the door." "The bottles are inside." "Drink and pass it to me." "K. opened the coach door and could have taken the bottle that was sitting in the car door, but in front of an open door, he couldn't resist climbing to sit there just for a moment." "The heat was stifling even with the door open." "The idea that it'd be better if Klamm didn't find him there did not even occur to him." "What the hell!" "Fortunately, it wasn't Klamm." "Or unfortunately?" "What are you doing there?" "It was the man who had seen K. come to the inn." "Come with me." "I'm waiting for someone here." "Come." "But I will mess it up!" "You'll mess it up in any case." "You don't know who I am:" "Momus, the secretary of Klamm." "I need you for my files." "I am waiting for Klamm!" "Unhitch the horses!" "...obvious that the Surveyor doesn't like Frieda but is not leaving her hoping to profit from it." "He thinks that by taking his mistress from Mr. Klamm and holding her hostage, he will gain..." "I've come to inform the Services of your acts and intentions make sure that you never stay at my place again." "I have to go back home." "Oh yes, you are the factotum." "But, I need a few moments." "I don't want any of it." "In the name of Klamm, I have a few questions for you." "In the name of Klamm?" "Will he see the report?" " What for?" " Not tonight!" "Halt!" "Sir!" "Stop!" "Mister Klamm!" "Please!" "Stop!" "Mr. Surveyor!" "Is that you?" "We looked for you everywhere!" "Not knowing why, K. was disappointed to see his assistants obviously sent to him by Frieda." "They were not alone," "Barnabas was with them." " Barnabas, are you looking for me?" " Yes!" " I have a letter from Klamm." " A letter from Klamm?" "The letter was difficult to unfold." "Give me some light!" "To Mr. Surveyor, Bridge Lodge." "I am pleased with the surveying work that you have done." "I am also satisfied with the work of your assistants." "This is a misunderstanding." "Mr. Klamm is misinformed." "I didn't survey anything." "As for the assistants, you see what they are worth!" "I will tell him." "And also that, what you told me the other time."