Das Urteil: reading level, length and free edition
Das Urteil by Franz Kafka is a short story in German. Our team rates it B1. It runs to 4,060 words with 1,293 different word forms, about 20–41 min of reading at 200 to 100 words per minute, and it is free from Project Gutenberg.
- Author
- Franz Kafka
- Language
- German
- Level
- B1
- Form
- short story
- Words
- 4,060
- Different word forms
- 1,293
- Forms for 95% / 98%
- 1,090 / 1,212
- Reading time
- 20–41 min
- Free edition
- Project Gutenberg
Ein Vater-Sohn-Konflikt endet in einer unerwarteten Katastrophe.
Is Das Urteil right for your level?
To recognise 95% of the running words in Das Urteil, you need its 1,090 most frequent word forms; for 98%, the share at which most readers manage a novel without a dictionary, 1,212. The median German B1 book in our table needs 1,456 forms for 95%, so by this measure the book is easier than most for its level: number 2 of 4, easiest first.
A word form is any spelling that appears in the text, so “walk” and “walked” count twice, and names count too. These numbers are a guide to how much vocabulary the book asks for, not a test. The level itself was set by hand by our team. Before you commit, read one page of the free edition and count the words you do not know: the one-page test takes two minutes.
How does it begin?
Gedruckt bei E. Haberland in Leipzig-R. September 1916 als vierunddreißigster Band der Bücherei »Der jüngste Tag«
From the Project Gutenberg edition, which is in the public domain. If this paragraph already feels slow, try a book one level lower.
How long does it take to read?
| Words | 100 wpm | 150 wpm | 200 wpm | 250 wpm |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4,060 | under 1 h | under 1 h | under 1 h | under 1 h |
Learners reading a book at their level often manage 100 to 150 words per minute, and readers in their first language 200 to 250. Where these speeds come from, and a calculator for your own: How long does it take to read a book?
Where can you read it for free?
The free edition is Project Gutenberg eBook #21593. Project Gutenberg publishes books that are in the public domain in the United States, as EPUB, Kindle and plain text, free and without an account. Copyright terms differ by country: if you live outside the United States, check that the book is out of copyright where you are before you download it.
To read it with a translation over every word you tap, open it in Readlang Mobile on iPhone or iPad.
What to read next at B1
German books at the same level that ask for a similar amount of vocabulary:
- In der Strafkolonie, Franz Kafka: 10,321 words, 1,822 forms for 95%
- Der Struwwelpeter, Heinrich Hoffmann: 2,988 words, 966 forms for 95%
- Immensee, Theodor Storm: 9,744 words, 1,976 forms for 95%
See also all German books by level and books at B1 in all five languages.