Dr Ian Ellison Appears on Past Present Future Podcast

Date Published: 02.09.2025

Check out this discussion of Franz Kafka’s 'The Trial'.

The new episode of the Past Present Future podcast features Wadham post-doctoral researcher, Dr Ian Ellison talking about "the most famous trial in literature that never actually takes place." Check out their discussion of Franz Kafka’s The Trial, first published in 1925.

The episode covers questions like "What is the meaning of a book about a legal process that never happens? How was it inspired by Kafka’s failed love life? Why has it given rise to so many different understandings of what makes our world Kafkaesque? And how did a work of fiction that is full of weird and wonderful ideas get associated with mindless bureaucracy?"