A Fratricide A Fratricide "A Fratricide" (German: Ein Brudermord) is a short story by Franz Kafka written between December 1916 and January 1917. It is one of Kafka's most realistically descriptive and graphically violent stories, and tells the story of a murderer, Schmar, and his victim, Wese. Although no clear motive for the murder is given anywhere in the story, it can be ascertained that the crime is a matter of jealous passion. Apart from the title, there is no obvious indication that the two characters are brothers, and the title may be an allusion to the biblical story of Cain and
Fratricide Punished presenting this, argues that the use of the name Corambus instead of Polonius firmly ties "Fratricide Punished" to Q1, as does the "increased villainy" of the King, who alone is responsible for devising the poisoning plot. Yet, some elements exclusive to Q2 and F1 are found in the text as well. Irace points out that the first portion of the King's speech in Act I, Scene II is missing from Q1 "Hamlet" but oddly present in "Fratricide Punished." Meanwhile, elements exclusive to the text or shared only with Q1 would seem to some scholars to link "Fratricide Punished" to the