At the Café Louvre

Together with his friends Max Brod, Hugo Bergmann, and Felix Weltsch, Kafka belonged to a philosophical circle which met in the Café Louvre at 20 Ferdinandstraße (Národní Street today). The group was mainly concerned with the works of the leading philosopher in Prague at the time, Franz Brentano. These meetings ended in the year 1905 when Max Brod was excluded from the group – he had been disrespectful to the master in his novella Twin Souls (Zwillingspaar von Seelen). The friends admittedly still continued to frequent the Café Louvre quite happily. 

This café has an interesting life and clientele. Everything that is part of the finest Czech society, everything relating to art, literature, and science is concentrated here. The man of the world takes his “café noir” here, the man of letters meets his acquaintances here, the actor meets his colleagues, and you’ll see many well-known and famous names here for a snack. 

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With K. in the Café Louvre, we are reading Laforgue. Lovely, gentle hours, during which I feel perfectly secure.

Max Brod