"Before the Law" is a short story by Franz Kafka. In the parable, a country man comes to a door behind which is kept the Law. The doorkeeper denies him access, but says that he will let the man in eventually. The man waits his entire life, and on the threshold of death asks why nobody but him has ever begged for admittance. The doorkeeper replies that nobody but the country man would ever be allowed to enter, and as he is about to die, the door will be shut.
The country man is the hero in this minute tragedy; he fails to gain access to the Law, but in his constancy demonstrates its purity and importance.
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