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 ongoing significance of the work. Though it may have been born from production, few productions of "Fratricide Punished" have been undertaken since its discovery. In 1924, William Poel, a British actor and theater manager who had staged a production of Q1 Hamlet in 1881, mounted a production of the play in Oxford, England at the New Oxford Theatre. His promptbook, later published, contends that the audience met the characters with a derision and laughter far removed from the typical experience of "Hamlet" audiences. Joe Falocco argues that, by choosing to perform both Q1 and "Fratricide Punished," Poel was demonstrating a