In “The Metamorphosis” By Franz Kafka, the style enhances the nightmarish quality of the work in many ways. This quote from line 304-306 can be used to illustrate this when Gregor says, “I’ll open up immediately, just a moment. I’m slightly unwell, an attack of dizziness. I haven’t been able to get up.” These lines from the text show that Kafka describes this nightmare in a simple style. Gregor has completely transformed from a human into a vermin yet he treats the situation as if it could happen to anyone, and he still attempts to complete his normal responsibilities. Gregor thinks his transformation is simply a cold, and Kafka describes it very blankly, leaving it open to interpretation by the reader which in turn shows how horrifying the…
The straightforward style of The Metamorphosis gives the story a nightmarish quality. Throughout the chapter, he struggles with the task of getting out of bed as an unidentified bug. In chapter 1 paragraph 14, it reads, “Should he really call for help though, even apart from the fact that all the doors were locked? Despite all the difficulty he was in, he could not suppress a smile at this thought” (ch1 paragraph 14). Gregor is in a serious situation, but his alarming new appearance doesn’t seem to faze him at all. His startlingly calm reaction to this bizarre situation gives the reader the sense that Gregor is emotionally detached. Gregor’s reaction is opposite of how we think he should reacted, he smiles instead of panicking. The strangeness…
The father was starting to get very concerned. His son, Gregor, refused to open the door and go to work. Gregor needed to provide for the family and so he must go to work. Suddenly, the door opened and something appeared. The father was startled by the vermit that emerged from the door. It appeared that Gregor had underwent a metamorphosis into a large bug. However, the vermit went directly toward the manager and realizing he was in no danger, the father stopped to observe the situation. The manager ran in an irregular path, one Gregor’s father would have never run back in his youth, because of its effectiveness. The father looked into the parlor and saw his wife packing on the breakfast table. This sight was enough to make the father realize…
The Metamorphosis is a representation of people's alienation from society and their inability to have autonomous power over their lives. Kafka, like other writers of his time, was going through an existential crisis. He questions the meaning of life, and the futility of being just a cog in a wheel. In 1963, activist Roger Garaudy said at a convention:…
Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis is a masterfully written novella about Gregor Samsa, a man who devotes his life to his family and work, for nothing in return. Only when he is transformed into a helpless beetle does he begin to develop a self-identity and understand the relationships around him. The underlying theme of The Metamorphosis is an existential one that says that any given choice will govern the later course of a person’s life and that a person has ultimate will over making choices. In this case, Gregor’s choices of his part in society cause him to have a lack of identity that has made him to be numb to everything around him.…
Suffering and death of one person rarely leads to the joy of others outside of the literary world. Reminiscent of the story of Jesus Christ in the Christian tradition or Dionysus in Greco-Roman mythology where a figure’s death becomes one of the most significant contributions that they make to society, Gregor comes to a similar fate in Kafka’s Metamorphosis. Having lived a mainly inconsequential life as a traveling salesman, Gregor begins the story seemingly transformed into an insect with little hope for a future. Under his new circumstance, Gregor comes to the decision that the most meaningful contribution he can make to his family is to die and thereby free his family from his influence.…
Metamorphosis refers to a change in the form, appearance or structure of a being or creature. In Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, change is one of the major themes that are explored by the author. An analysis of this literature work shows that there is an important relationship between theme of change and the novel’s title. Gregor, the main character of the story goes through a series of physical changes that causes his family also to change. This essay explores the theme of change and transformation in the novel and gives an insight of its significance throughout the story.…
One of the great novella’s of the twentieth century, Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” demonstrates the plight of our protagonist Gregor Samsa and his transformation into a beetle and his response to such adversity. As a traveling salesman, Gregor must work not only to support himself but the rest of family as well. To understand the density of the novella we must employ the use of literary theories. The literary theories that aided in my understanding of the work include biographical, Marxist, and deconstruction theories.…
Kafka uses Gregory, Grete, and their parents to show varying degrees of transformation. We see several occurrences of transformation in today’s society through nature, people, and money.…
Franz Kafka writes “The Metamorphosis” to display a grey area between the actions of respect and support – and perhaps, love. It also served as a reflection of his personal life, for he had a vision of human beings trapped in a hopeless world. Presenting an impossible situation, the story’s foundation was built almost realistically without a sense of being in a dream, therefore, Kafka creates a meaning that is beyond mysterious to simplify among his…
Although a clear understanding of Kafka as a man is beneficial and ultimately necessary for the literary analysis of “The Metamorphosis”, Kafka wrote it with out the knowledge that one day his words would be interpreted on a level beyond the intelligence of the commonly educated man or woman. This fact allows anyone to enter the world of Gregor Samsa completely blind to the forensics behind the story, and still be able to proceed with out restraint (Gray 86). “The Metamorphosis” is fueled with compassion, and built on the basic aspects of life that cause pain and incite fear in humans; change, rejection, paralysis (which is technically the loss of control of one’s self), failure, loneliness, and death.…
Argument: A person’s will to live is strongly linked to the opinions of loved ones have of that person.…
Everyone interprets Kafka in a unique way. Metamorphosis is of no exception. I consider this novel to be a reflection of one’s thoughts and perspectives. After some contemplation and introspection, it became clear that Metamorphosis depicts the irrationality and absurdity of reality. Only in an irrational world could a man wake up one morning to realize he has transformed into an insect, and proceed to worry about arriving to work on time. Only in an absurd reality could a family continue with its daily life, without once questioning how or why their beloved relative has suddenly taken the shape of a vermin. And yet, this is what happened.…
Metamorphosis refers to a change in the form, appearance or structure of a being or creature. In Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, change is one of the major themes that are explored by the author. An analysis of this literature work shows that there is an important relationship between theme of change and the novel’s title. Gregor, the main character of the story goes through a series of physical changes that causes his family also to change. This essay explores the theme of change and transformation in the novel and gives an insight of its significance throughout the story.…
Kafka, Franz. “The Metamorphosis.” Trans. John Siscoe. Literature An Introduction to Fiction, Poetry, and Drama. Ed. X.J. Kennedy and Dana Gioia. New York: Pearson, 2005. 336-370.…