Metamorphosis Literary Analysis

Alejandra Cervantes
AP Literature Period5
Duenas
September 28, 2015
S.O.A.P.S.Tone on Demand Essay: The Metamorphosis
Prompt: Analyze The Metamorphosis using three topics from S.O.A.P.S.Tone. The book entitled, The Metamorphosis, discusses the life of a family oriented man named Gregor Samsa. Gregor Samsa lead a life dedicated to supporting his family, maintaining a job he does not enjoy. One morning, Samsa awoke to find he was no longer a man, but a bug. This sudden transformation opened his eyes and allowed him to realize the lie of a life he’s been living. Not only was he underappreciated by his undeserving family, but constantly taken advantage of. This awakening resulted in malnutrition and soon after death. The Metamorphosis
is told from a third person limited perspective. Thus, a speaker is never profoundly introduced; however, the story heavily focuses on Gregor’s perspective of events. Because a speaker is not acknowledged it is fairly difficult to assume any information, however, one can infer that the speaker comes from a higher middle class based on the characters lifestyle, such as the presence of a maid. Perhaps one can also assume the narrator is male due to. Of course, many would probably disagree with this assertion that a speaker is never clearly addressed, and thus may assume that that the speaker is Gregor himself. And though on one hand, I may agree that Gregor is indeed the speaker, I still insist that the speaker is simply a narrator. Why? I believe by making the speaker a narrator, it makes any argument or statement the speaker wishes to portray more credible. A third person perspective allows the audience to better understand all the characters, or at least feel as though they understand all the characters. The Metamorphosis may be written in third person perspective, but it tends to greatly focus on Gregor and his feelings causing the audience to feel great sympathy for Gregor instead of any other character.
I’d like to change the subject to something that not yet been addressed, the subject.
The subject of the book seems to be the grand “metamorphosis” that is experienced. We as an audience not only experience the physical transformation from Gregor Samsa as a human to Gregor Samsa as a bug, but we get to see the aftermath and how it affects each of the characters directly. These “metamorphoses” are illustrated throughout the plot with the help of the third person limited perspective. Grete Samsa, Gregor’s sister experiences her own transformation from being a girl at the beginning of the book to becoming a woman. She does not just grow physically, but she matures emotionally, but taking on adult duties not required of her before her brother’s transformation. Gregor’s father also undergoes his own transformation. He goes from a man with no pride or motivation to a man who takes great pride in his work and becomes heavily invested in money. Lastly, Gregor’s family as a whole undergoes a separate transformation. At the beginning of the book, the Samsa family is hopeless and feels as though their sorrows will have no end, but as time continues they slowly begin to take on more responsibility until completely free from, Gregor. Their separation from Gregor completes their metamorphosis allowing them to feel relieved, secure, and optimistic once
again.
The author, Franz Kafka articulates a nonchalant attitude about the transformation that has occurred. This attitude is expresses through the characterization used throughout the book. For example the Gregor’s character can illustrate the nonchalant tone of the story through his perceptions of his current situation. When Gregor is first transformed into a bug he isn’t very distraught or worried, but indifferent. He is only worried about being able to continue in his daily activities and as time continues, Gregor seems to slowly lose interest in becoming “normal” once again thus, expressing Franz Kafka’s feelings toward social acceptance and isolation. To a large extent, the entirety of the book appears to be extremely absurd and ironic in that Gregor’s transformation though appears a great burden to all, helped released Gregor of all the pressures of daily life. The metamorphosis saved Gregor from his unwanted job and forced Gregor to trade positions with his family in that they now where in charge of caring for him and everything else they owned.
In conclusion, The Metamorphosis, does not simply tell the story of a naïve man who turned into a bug, was betrayed by his family, and died.
No. The Metamorphosis, I believe is a metaphor something other than just transformation. I believe in plain context The Metamorphosis, tells the story of an average man, who soon wakes ups and finds he lives a life he is not proud of. This man now see the world in a new light and feels isolated from all those who once understood him. He no longer has the same motivation and feels as though he is a burden to all those he loves resulting in suicide. My point is this: The Metamorphosis entails the story of a typical depressed man. Because the book is told from a third person point of view we see the “burden” Gregor has caused. However, this idea is not necessarily certain. So it is fairly simple to assume that he was never truly a burden, but delusional as any clinically depressed person would
be.