Passers-by By Franz Kafka (1883-1924)

Passers-by

By Franz Kafka (1883-1924)

            When you go walking at night up a street and a man, visible a long way off – for the street goes uphill and there is a full moon – comes running toward you, well, you don’t catch hold of him as he passes.  You let him run on even if he is a feeble old man, even if someone is chasing him and yelling at him.

            For it is night, and you can’t help it if the street goes uphill in the moonlight.  And besides, these two have maybe started a chase to amuse themselves, or perhaps they are both chasing a third person, or perhaps the first is an innocent man and the second wants to murder him and so you would become an accessory, or they are merely running separately home to bed, or perhaps the first has a gun.

            And anyhow, haven’t you a right to be tired; haven’t you been drinking a lot of wine?  You’re thankful they are now both long out of sight.