1.
The Judgement- about an interlude between Georg Bendemann, a young businessman, and his father - with a sudden twist of an ending (Goerg kills himself).
2. The Stoker: A Fragment
- a characterization of a stoker aboard a ship as he interacts with Karl Rossmann. The stoker feels he is disliked by the captain, who, it is hinted, has him "done away with" at the end.
3. In The Penal Colony
- an interesting description of a contraption used for death sentencing. The conflict takes a turn halfway through the story, and the ending resolves the conflict, brings a denouement, in an interesting fashion - the contraption turns on the executioner, killing him instead!
4. A Country Doctor
- a brief account of a doctor "trapped" at a patient's village, unable to make an escape
5. An Old Leaf
- first person account of being taken over by nomads in a country whose defense and well-being are being neglected
6. A Hunger Artist
- depiction of a man who depicts hunger as art. "In the end, ...hunger can be described as an existential art...death as the abrupt and absurd end of life."
7. Josephine the Singer, or The Mouse People
- examines the power play between a singer and the public
8. Before the Law
- another Kafkaesque look at Law. Here a man tries to enter the halls of Justice, dies trying, and is told that they were built for him only!
