The Trial · Chapter
Chapter Three: In the empty Courtroom—The Student—The Offices explained
K.
What happens
K. returns to the courtroom on the following Sunday, expecting another hearing, but finds it empty. He speaks with the court usher's wife, who reveals that the student who harassed her is acting on the examining judge's orders. The student carries her off, and K. follows the usher to the attic offices, where he sees other accused men waiting in a corridor.
Themes in this chapter
Bureaucracy and Absurdity
The empty courtroom, the usher's living quarters in the court, and the attic offices highlight the irrational and oppressive nature of the court system.
Power and Corruption
The student's abuse of power over the usher's wife and the examining judge's manipulation exemplify corruption within the court.
Alienation and Isolation
K. feels disconnected from the proceedings and the other accused, who appear dispirited and isolated in the corridor.
Characters to notice
- Josef K.
Returns to the courtroom expecting a hearing, confronts the student, and explores the court offices.
- The Usher
Court usher whose wife is harassed by the student; he shows K. the offices.
- The Student
A student who carries off the usher's wife on the examining judge's orders, provoking K.
- The Examining Judge
Referenced as the one who sent the student for the usher's wife.
Key passages
“There's no session today.”
The court is not in session today.
The usher's wife informs K. that no hearing is taking place.
“It's not so much the room that surprises me, it's your being married that shocks me.”
I am not surprised by the room, but I am shocked to learn you are married.
K. expresses surprise at the usher's wife's marital status given her earlier behavior.
“He shouldn't have been allowed to move about so freely, that was a mistake.”
He should not have been permitted to move around so freely; it was an error.
The student criticizes the court's decision not to detain K. between hearings.