Waiters

Walser has the most to say about waiters (the activity of waiting not the job). Talking about masters and workers he notes that bosses routinely keep us waiting as it is he/she, the boss, who answers all requests. But Walser offers hope for waiters; after all we are free to think about other things while waiting; but he notes that creative waiting can be a problem for the boss (2 creative waiters are Rokesmith or Jeeves); passive waiting is preferred. Walser's waiting differs to Kafka's: the assistants have to wait; they seem to have no existence before they deliver their message and are condemned to wait, forever, for the next request; certainly no opportunity to reflect-while-waiting exists as it does for Walser. Hence Benjamin defines Kafka's assistants as unfinished and belonging to an in-between world; paradoxically the inability to reflect offers them a form of hope. There is a family of Kafka activities which includes fasting, waiting, passing messages and studying. These activities are related to Gombrowicz's idea of the 'face' ie the grimace'; even if assistants cannot reflect they can use their faces: they can grimace.