Obsession and Desire
Although Franz Kafka’s short story “The Village Schoolmaster” is often subtitled “The Giant Mole,” the titular oversized mole, whose appearance briefly catches the attention of a small village, never actually appears in the story. Instead Kafka focuses on a provincial schoolmaster’s mission to prove the existence of the abnormal creature—and the narrator’s deepening obsession with proving the schoolmaster’s credibility. As both men spiral into obsession over the mole episode—an episode that the…
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Misunderstanding and Miscommunication
In “The Village Schoolmaster,” the schoolmaster and the narrator are allegedly allies in a common cause: the schoolmaster sets out to prove to the world that a freakishly enormous mole exists, while the narrator vows to prove the schoolmaster’s honesty. But at nearly every stage, this partnership goes awry. From the beginning, the two men have inadequate information—indeed, almost no information—to carry out their missions: neither has even seen this mole, the narrator tries to…
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The Futility of Pride and Ambition
“The Village Schoolmaster” is the story of two men wasting their energy on quests they fail to complete. The schoolmaster wants to win fame and fortune by proving to the world that an enormous mole exists, while the narrator wants to prove that the schoolmaster is credible. Both tasks are impossible, both men make fools of themselves, and throughout their labors, they both seem to have an inkling that what they’re doing is futile. By…
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