What is the author's style in In the Penal Colony by Franz Kafka?

Kafka employs a detached, neutral narrative technique in which each character acts without comment from the narrator. The point of view, though third person, tends to be closely aligned with the explorer's experience.

It is generally agreed that "In the Penal Colony" is a parable with meanings beyond the literal episodes described. Kafka was Jewish, and there is strong consensus among critics for interpreting the story as a commentary on orthodox versus reformed Judaism The officer represents the traditional orthodox wing of Judaism. The former Commandant's guiding plans—"my most precious possessions"—consist of "a labyrinth of lines crossing and recrossing each other" and symbolize the script in which the Commandments were written. The officer does not speak of laws being broken. He speaks of Commandments disobeyed. The number of biblical images that crop up throughout the story makes it impossible to determine a precise allegorical reading. Although the method is very different, the setting and the duration of the execution process certainly invite the reader to think about the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. This comparison is made more compelling by the imagery used—the blood and water being washed into the pit and the rice pap fed to the dying man. Finally, the officer sacrifices himself to the machine, and in doing so causes it to fall apart. By dying he destroys the very symbol of law and order he had purported to conserve.