In the Penal Colony - Franz Kafka

“In the Penal Colony,” by Franz Kafka, we have a story about a soldier who is to be punished for not following orders. An outsider is brought into this penal colony to see the practices that are employed when it comes to punishment. We have four characters: The Officer, The Soldier, The Explorer and The Condemned man. The explorer is a visitor to the colony and is sent by the Commandant to watch the execution of the accused man, while the officer eagerly describes the apparatus designed for execution.

Through this discussion I will talk a little about the following: the apparatus, judicial procedure, justice and judgement, suffering, and tradition.

The Apparatus:
It was designed by the Commandant to write a commandment on the body of the condemned man. This is very complicated and illegible. The commandment ‘written’ on the condemned’s body is the one he is guilty of, and it is inscribed by a slow rotation of the body against various needle. This is designed to “enlighten” the prisoner, who slowly feels the commandment being etched in his skin.

Judicial Procedure:
In our society today we have a set judicial procedure for those accused of a crime. In the United States we have set standards that our government has to follow when dealing with criminals, and these are set forth by our Constitution. In the penal colony, the accused is not aware of his sentence beforehand, and his is not given a trial in order to defend the charges against him. In the penal colony, it is presumed that the condemned is guilty. In our story, The Condemned Man was accused of insubordination, and without trial he will have “Honor Thy Superiors” written on his back.
In the U.S., according to the 5th Amendment:

No person shall be held to answer for any capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

All persons are presumed innocent until proven guilty, and shall not be deprived of life, liberty, or property without the due process of the law. We can not deprive a person of these things, unless, a person is found guilty. We also have the 6th Amendment as follows:

In all criminal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district where in the crime shall have been committed, which district shall have been previously ascertained by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the accusation; to be confronted with the witnesses against him; to have compulsory process for obtaining witnesses in his favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defense.

The 6th amendment guarantees us the right to a trial by an impartial jury, and to be informed of the accusation against us.

When it came time for executions in the penal colony, children were allowed to watch. At an execution in this day in age, there is no way that any child would be allowed to watch it. I believe it is just the family of the accused, and the family of the victim, plus various lawyers and doctors that are allowed to be.

Here is a picture that depicts children watching an execution in the penal colony:




Justice and Judgement:
This sort of relates back to our judicial procedure. “In the Penal Colony,” there is a rather unique idea of justice and punishment. It is based on the idea that “guilt is never to be doubted.” The accused are not given an opportunity to defend themselves, and often times do not know what they have done wrong. Instead, they are put through a tortuous, 12 hour long, ordeal where they inevitably die. The Explorer wholeheartedly finds the execution process as unjust and inhumane. Yet, the officer reveres it as the highest kind of justice.

Suffering:

The apparatus designed for execution is designed to inflict pain and suffering of the accused. As the machine slowly writes the punishment on the body of the accused, they are said to have this ‘enlightenment,’ to learn something from through the pain he otherwise could not learn. I do not know if I would go as far as saying the accused is enlightened. Rather that he has this sense of defeat, which he realizes there is no opportunity for escape and that death is inevitable.

Traditions and customs:

In this story, the officer is strongly attached to tradition, and in particular, to the execution of justice, which has been established by the old Commandant. As the colony leaves behind the traditions set forth by the old Commandant, the officer continues to hold onto them and is soon the only one left defending them. In an attempt to win over the opinion of the Explorer, who is a foreigner to the colony, he realizes that the tradition needs to end. The traditional justice system is seen as barbaric and inhumane.



Throughout the story, we learn about this penal colony that was founded by an old Commandant. As rules were set, the whole colony stood behind them. Throughout the years, the members of the colony shied away from the traditions, perhaps they realized how unjust and inhumane they were. As time goes on, there is only one person who truly believes that the whole justice system is right and just and that there is no need to change it. It is not until he gets an outsider’s view that he realizes that the old ways are dying out.

As with any sort of justice system, there is a beginning. We start with an idea, and as we progress as a society, we can recognize what is working and what is not. The greatest challenge is to not only be able to recognize what is not working, but being able to accept it and try to change it, instead of trying to hold onto the old ways simply because that is the traditional way.

Source:
"In the Penal Colony." Schmoop. http://www.shmoop.com/penal-colony/