Metamorphosis
Ripples of Metamorphoses
Butterflies are not the only creatures that are subject to experience metamorphosis. All beings, including humans, experience certain changes throughout their lives. Interconnectedness between individuals reveals even a single change cannot go undetected. Metamorphosis is an important motif in Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis, which symbolizes not only Gregor’s transformation, but also the change in the Samsa family as a whole, as well as Grete in particular.
Gregor’s metamorphosis is the main symbol of metamorphosis in the story. His transfiguration into a bug changes him not only physically, but also mentally. At first, he is hopeful his physical state is only a momentary medical condition. The concern Gregor’s family initially portray supports Gregor’s belief that he is only temporarily a bug. Kafka describes Gregor’s confidence, “The positive certainty with which these first measures had been taken comforted him. He felt himself drawn once more into the human circle and hoped for great and remarkable results…”(Kafka 155). At this point Gregor is still hopeful and optimistic. He asserts to the chief clerk, “I have to provide for my parents and my sister. I 'm in great difficulties, but I 'll get out of them again” (156). Although Gregor is in no condition to work he exclaims, “But what’s the use of lying idle in bed” (149). By supporting his family financially, Gregor is essential to the Samsas and feels needed. Without the ability to provide for his family, Gregor is no longer a valuable asset to the Samsas.
As time progresses, Gregor’s optimism and high spirits dwindle. He loses interest in things that once brought him joy, staring out of the window in “some recollection of the sense of freedom that looking out of a window always used to give him” (166). Formerly having a strong appetite, Gregor begins to lose “any interest he had ever taken in food, so that for mere recreation he had formed the habit of crawling crisscross over the
Butterflies are not the only creatures that are subject to experience metamorphosis. All beings, including humans, experience certain changes throughout their lives. Interconnectedness between individuals reveals even a single change cannot go undetected. Metamorphosis is an important motif in Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis, which symbolizes not only Gregor’s transformation, but also the change in the Samsa family as a whole, as well as Grete in particular.
Gregor’s metamorphosis is the main symbol of metamorphosis in the story. His transfiguration into a bug changes him not only physically, but also mentally. At first, he is hopeful his physical state is only a momentary medical condition. The concern Gregor’s family initially portray supports Gregor’s belief that he is only temporarily a bug. Kafka describes Gregor’s confidence, “The positive certainty with which these first measures had been taken comforted him. He felt himself drawn once more into the human circle and hoped for great and remarkable results…”(Kafka 155). At this point Gregor is still hopeful and optimistic. He asserts to the chief clerk, “I have to provide for my parents and my sister. I 'm in great difficulties, but I 'll get out of them again” (156). Although Gregor is in no condition to work he exclaims, “But what’s the use of lying idle in bed” (149). By supporting his family financially, Gregor is essential to the Samsas and feels needed. Without the ability to provide for his family, Gregor is no longer a valuable asset to the Samsas.
As time progresses, Gregor’s optimism and high spirits dwindle. He loses interest in things that once brought him joy, staring out of the window in “some recollection of the sense of freedom that looking out of a window always used to give him” (166). Formerly having a strong appetite, Gregor begins to lose “any interest he had ever taken in food, so that for mere recreation he had formed the habit of crawling crisscross over the
Cited: Kafka, Franz. The Metamorphosis. Kennedy and Gioia. 146-89. Print.