Franz Kafka's "A Report to an Academy"

In the short story published by the celebrated Franz Kafka in 1917, we are narrated to by a "post-ape", or an ape that has broken from his old ways, named Red Peter. The post-ape details his origins in the jungle where he came from, how hunters attacked him in his habitat and took him away, and what he did to forsake his ape-ish ways. Red Peter ends up in Europe with to choices: either go to the zoo and be a caged animal again, or go on to perform by showing his "humans" acts. Knowing that the cage was a horrible destiny, Red Peter goes to perform and grows to be more human. He garners much fame from his act, hence why the academy asks him to deliver his report. Red Peter explains that it was not difficult to become "human", but actually very easy. 

   

Throughout this story, Kafka draws parallels betwen humans and apes by showing that the two groups are closer than people typically believe. When describing his encounter with the hunters in the jungle, Red Peter reveals how he got his name. The hunters that shot Red Peter grazed him on his cheek, causing blood to run on his face. Because of this red color, they named him "Red Peter" in honor of a famous ape in Europe known as Peter. This displays the simple thinking that humans sometimes have which is comparabe to an ape, which even Red Peter comments on. 

Red Peter also criticizes the human idea of freedom, explaining that he never wanted freedom, only to be out of his cage. Red Peter states that he possibly knew what freedom was in its human sense when he was still a wild ape in the jungle. Red Peter says that humans delude themselves into thinking they know what freedom is, when, in reality, many of the Europeans at this time were not necessarily free. 

Red Peter analyzes the way the men on the ship acted and noted that they also seemed like wild beasts. He discussed how they would spit wherever they wanted, drank much, laughed loudly, etc., acting very primitive. Though Red Peter was an ape in their midst, he was still able to understand that these men were simple creatures. Even after leaving his ape-ish ways, Red Peter states that he would never want to be in a party with these kind of men because they are uncultured like apes. 

After everything that has happened to him Red Peter is indifferent about who he has become. By seeing this, I believe that Kafka wrote this story to explain to humans around him that when people take animals away from their habitats and use them as things of entertainment, we strip them of their freedom. Animals no longer function as they would in the wild, but live in a way to avoid being hurt more than they already have. Red Peter reveals that he never wanted to mimic humans for fun, but to possibly be out of his cage. We train animals to do tricks and entertain, much like Red Peter, but none of that makes them free animals. Humans are strange in that they want to be free like wild animals are free, yet we capture wild animals and take their freedom away.