#12: Franz Kafka (July 3, 1883 – June 3, 1924)
Franz Kafka was a German-speaking writer from Prague who worked in insurance by day. He authored influential works such as The Metamorphosis (1912), exploring themes of alienation and bureaucracy. Although he requested his unpublished manuscripts be destroyed, they were published posthumously and include classics like The Trial. Kafka’s writing introduced a distinctive style that profoundly shaped 20th-century literature.
