A Report to an Academy is a short story written by Franz Kafka. Released in 1917 (alongside the short story Jackals and Arabs), it tells of an ape that learns to become human.
A Report to an Academy was reprinted in the short story collection A Country Doctor, being the final story in that volume.
Characters[]
- "Red Peter"
Plot summary[]
The titular report was given by an ape, who is only known by the name "Red Peter", on his early life and progress into gaining humanity.
Originally, Red Peter was a simple ape from the "Gold Coast" (now Ghana) before he was accidentally shot by a hunting expedition from the firm of Hagenback. Red Peter has largely forgiven the firm, saying that he has drank with the leader of the expedition. One scar from this shooting gave the ape the name "Red Peter", a name that he disdains.
After being shot, Red Peter was shoved into a cage on a ship. To escape from the cage, Red Peter decided to become (at least in spirit) human. This started with Red Peter smoking a pipe before (with the help of a human teacher) he began drinking liquor - overcoming his hatred of the fumes - and learned to speak English.
Once off the boat, Red Peter became a travelling showman (seeing a life in a "Zoological Garden" nothing more than a return to the cage) with the help of countless teachers. Red Peter closes his report with his current life - he has taken on a nigh-human life with a half-trained ape (which he views as having the look of a "bewildered half-broken animal" in her eyes) and his current manager.
References[]
Nonfiction[]
to be added
Fiction[]
- Ceridwen Dovey's short story Red Peter's Little Lady (printed in the anthology Only the Animals) serves as a sequel of sorts to this short story.
- J.M. Coetzee's novel Elizabeth Costello features a lengthy speech on this story.
See also[]
- The Mentality of Apes by Wolfgang Köhler
Sources[]
- Wikipedia