The Trial by Franz Kafka and Constitutional Rights

Constitutional Rights – The Trial by Franz Kafka
Introduction
The Trial by Franz Kafka is considered to be a narrative that details the arrest, trial and execution of Joseph K, the protagonist of the novel, who plays the role of the chief clerk of a major bank. The novel prompts contemplation on the correlation between law and justice. Imperatively, laws ought to be equitable and just. In the event that there is an unfair regulation or rule, it is expected that measures will be undertaken to ensure that this is upturned by entreating to higher principles of justice. For instance, inequitable laws such as discrimination and racial exclusion and apartheid were appealed against to greater principles of justice to eradicate such practices, which was attained. In the book, Kafka lays emphasis on the significance of distinctive right when an individual is accused of a trial. The main objective of this research paper is to delineate the rights that are guaranteed to each and every individual under the United States Constitution that were lacking and not perceptible in the novel. The paper will also detail how such rights facilitate a democratic society and how they are necessary in attaining a just social order.
One of the rights guaranteed in the US constitution that were not in the novels is the Fourth Amendment, which specifically disallows unreasoning searches and seizures. Specifically, the law sets the necessities for issuing warrants that are approved by a judge and that include a sensible probable cause and also specifically delineate the place being searched and the individual being seized. This right was not accorded to Joseph K. Notably, devoid of not having committed any wrong deed, K was seized and detained by two undisclosed men (Kafka, p. 5). Furthermore, Joseph K was just informed regarding the arrest devoid of his charges being revealed as well as who the mean arresting him were and what authority they stood for or worked on behalf of (pp 6 – 7). Significantly unlike the normal kind of arrests, this arrest hampered the individual from undertaking his own business. Without a doubt, this right guarantees a free and democratic society. It signifies a fundamental right of an individual that is accused of wrongdoing and transgression from a legal perspective. It helps to protect the rights of the citizens and their sense of privilege, signifying the intelligence of the framers in comprehending that the freedoms and liberties are meaningless if they do not extend to all members of the society, including the ones accused of a certain criminal act (Cornell Law School, 2018).
A second right that is guaranteed in the US constitution and is not perceptible in The Trial, is the Fifth Amendment, which sets out guidelines for prosecution by grand jury, safeguarding the right to due process. In the novel, Joseph K entered into a law dramatic monologue in the presence of the examining magistrate and multitude of audience in a crowded and suffocating upper floor courtroom, where he declared that there was pronounced organization behind his seizure and cross-examination which indicted innocent individuals of guilt (p. 57). The denial of this right is perceptible when Joseph K returns to a vacant courtroom the forthcoming week, solely to discover that books that were on the bench of the examining magistrate that were meant to be legal books, ended up being explicit and lewd novels (p 63 – 65). This indicates that the Fifth Amendment right is clearly denied to Joseph K. This right helps in guaranteeing a free and democratic society owing to the reason that it asserts that no individual in the nation shall be deprived of life, freedom or property, devoid of due process of law (Cornell Law School, 2018).
Other rights within the U.S Constitution that are nowhere to be perceived in the novel are the Sixth and Eighth Amendments. First of all, the Sixth Amendment safeguards the right to a fair and prompt public trial by jury. This also takes into account the right to be informed of the accusations being brought against the individual, to be able to confront the accuser as well as seeking out witnesses and retailing counsel. Secondly, the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution proscribes the extreme and unwarranted amounts for fines and bails in addition to prohibiting harsh and uncommon punishment. In the novel, Joseph K gets a hold of a lawyer named Huld. Specifically, Huld made K. come to the realization that the court system in its entirety was a jumble, whilst the higher officials kept themselves concealed, with the legal records regarding the court case being inaccessible to the individual who is accused of transgressions together with his lawyer (p. 144). Huld makes it known to Joseph K that there barely much that he could do owing to the reason that these aspects could not be revealed (p. 155). It is perceptible that rights to the Sixth and Eighth Amendments of the Constitution are not seen and are denied in the novel.
Without a doubt, these rights help in guaranteeing a free and democratic society. Specifically, the Sixth Amendment affords criminal defendants the right to a quick and public trial by an equitable jury comprising of jurors emanating from the state and district where the crime was purported to have taken place. Furthermore, the jurors have to be fair and unbiased (Cornell Law School, 2018). What is more, the defendants accused of committing a crime ought to be provided with a notification of the nature and cause of the accusations that are lodged against them. This is leads to a democratic society as no individual can be prosecuted and denied freedom devoid of knowing the reasons (Cornell Law School, 2018). In the same manner, the Eight Amendment of the Constitution asserts that there is the proscription against any sort of cruel and unusual punishments that are laid on an individual. This right is even perceived as being denied in the book in the instance where Joseph K finds the unidentified warders beating and punishing a fellow whipper of the court devoid of knowing the reason and also being innocent (p 103 – 104). This calls for a democratic society in the sense that a crime that is committed should be afforded punishment that is suitable to such a crime.
Conclusion
The conception that all human beings are equal and ought to be accorded similar rights and liberties is written down in the United States document. These rules and regulations are what clearly set out a democratic society. The Trial by Franz Kafka presents an allegorical and symbolic perspective on law as well as how the justice system can be bombarded by bureaucracy. In the novel it is perceptible that there are rights denied to the protagonist, Joseph K. These include the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Eight Amendments. Specifically, the protagonist in the novel ends up being arrested and seized and also undergoes a trial, but there lacks precise information concerning the reason for such seizure and also what he is accused of. This indicates in a substantial manner just how the lack of the application of such rights results in a society that is undemocratic failing to guarantee the general public their deserved liberties and privileges.








References
Cornell Law School. (2018). U.S Constitution. New York: Legal Information Institute.
Kafka, F. (2005). The Trial. US: Vintage Books.