Analysis Of Franz Kafka's 'The Metamorphosis'

Everyone has people they depend on. People that he or she knows will always be there when they’re needed. But what happens when those people just don’t show up or just all of a sudden stop caring? The feeling of loneliness can break down a person’s character and reduce him to a shell, or in this case and exoskeleton, of who he once was. We can see this in The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka. When Gregor Samsa finds himself transformed into a giant beetle-like creature, what he needs more than anything is the love and support of his family, but he disgusts them. They shut him up in his room so that no one can see him. They are ashamed of him, and quickly forget that he was part of their own flesh and blood. All that they can see is the monster that appears on the on the outside. Gregor’s sister and parents betray his love for them and leave him feeling lonely in the most terrifying and desperate time of his life.

One example of an outsider would be Gregor in the famous story “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka. In this story, there are numerous examples of Gregor being misjudged and Gregor feeling misunderstood. The first example is how people view Gregor as a traveling salesman. “People don't like traveling salesmen. I know that. People think they earn pots of money and thus lead a fine life. People don't even have any special reason to think through this judgment more clearly” (Kafka, 148). In this quote, you can clearly see that people are misjudging Gregor because he is a traveling salesman. In the text, Gregor feels that he is misunderstood because none of these people know that Gregor has to work as a traveling salesman not because he wants to, but because he has to pay off his family's debt. Another example is how Gregor’s family assumes things about what he would or would not do. “But how can it be Gregor? If it

At some point in time, everyone has experienced an event where they have been left out or ignored. While this may happen on rare occasions for some individuals, there are people in the world who live their entire lives being excluded from society. The people who encounter this day to day are known as outsiders. Outsiders are those who do not belong to a specific social group, abide by modern social standards, or, in some cases, are misunderstood. Although outsiders may be seen as strange, it is not proper, in any case, to exclude people from society because of the way they look or how they present themselves. Furthermore, living in such isolation and being deprived of social interaction, can lead to many negative effects on the lives of outsiders. Thirdly, the bizarre ideas that some of them think of can be improved and have relevant meaning that will further enhance the world if they are accepted by everyone. No matter what a person does or how different they are, they would greatly benefit from becoming integrated into society.

In the metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, there are significant actions and transformations which make the story sad, and strange with a happy ending. Explanations that are dramatic events that intensify the excitement of all these actions. Reality and reflection play an important role in this story because the events that happened could be applied and assimilated with modern society.

The first reason why “outsiders” are misjudged is because others judge them on where they live, who their parents are, and their social status. Ever since humans have been on earth, we place each other into a socioeconomic status. Certain people might live in a terrible, broken down house in a dangerous part of town, due to not making enough money. Others might be rich, living in a ginormous mansion, and living like a king. The poorer and less fortunate can't often help that they don’t have a lot of money. Yet, some richer people judge these poorer people on things like where they live or how they might dress. This happens a lot more in high schools, although some adults could do this too. Others might judge the “outsider” because of who raised them. The “outsider’s” parents might have had a “troubled past” in the eyes of some people and they might judge the outsider for being their child. It could also be the exact opposite and others could judge the outsider due to their parents being “wealthy” or “snobbish.” People are judged all the time based on lives that they can’t control. An outsider might want to try and create a better life for themselves

Growing up, Franz Kafka questioned his father’s use of power not only at home but also in the workplace. Kafka’s father referred to his employees as “paid enemies.” Upon noticing “the submissiveness expected of [workers] toward their superiors” in his own asbestos factory, Kafka found this true for not only his father but also most of the upper class (Speirs and Sandberg 7). Disappointed by this class hierarchy, Kafka attended anarchist meetings and referenced communist writers in his diaries (Cohn). These meetings led him to develop a similar ideology to Karl Marx, who attributed “all… [of] history [to] class struggles.” In The Metamorphosis, Kafka channels a Marxist viewpoint through Gregor Samsa’s life before his metamorphosis and his family’s life after the metamorphosis.

When people hear the word “outsider” it typically doesn’t reflect positivity and joy. Usually it is used to point out how different the other party is from the social norm or standard already set. There are numerous ways a person can be pegged as an outsider, either by the way they dress, their thoughts and their actions. These thoughts and actions can have negative outcomes in terms of social acceptance because of how strange these people seem or act compared to the ordinary. With this in mind Kafka’s work The Metamorphosis can be introduced. In this short story, Gregor Samsa, the main character, has undergone a change that makes him into an outcast. This metamorphosis is not by choice, but nonetheless it leads to negative reactions from those around him. Equally, the related video dealing not only with Kafka's work, but also with the idea of changing as a human being can also used to tie in the idea of being different from the crowd. In addition, my own experiences of feeling isolated and different show how being an outcast is not a foreign idea. Due to this it can be said that outsiders are simply people who are misjudged or misunderstood and to emphasize this The Metamorphosis can be used as the first source of support.

Everyone knows that one person from school who does not fit in. These people are known to us as strange, weird, and different from the standards set by the majorities of society. In the article, “Isn’t Everyone a Little Bit Weird?” at the beginning of Unit 2 in the My Perspectives textbook, the reading describes how even the most remarkable individuals how some hidden unexpected traits. “The Metamorphosis” is a short story by Frank Kafka. Gregor, the main character, wakes up to realize that he has turned into a bug. Throughout the story, we see how his life is slowly falling apart as his family suffers from his transformation. Overall, outsiders are not those who are misjudged or misunderstood because everyone is weird in some way, even as they attempt to fit in, people never take time and are quick to create judgements of others, and society wants all identities to be equal in order to avoid the fear of change.

Outsiders are based on first appearances, if they were not then they would not be an outsider because you would have contact with them more often and they would be in your social group. For example, if you walk into class and somebody was wearing shorts in the middle of winter and has a plastic bag as a backpack with greasy hair you would label them as being on the poor side, like the boy from the blind side movie. It turns out that he was actually wound up becoming a football player and a popular rich guy. Boycott the idea of feeling bad, you have simply made the mistake of misjudging him based on appearance. Or in Gregor's case in the short story “The Metamorphosis”, he is misjudged because of how

In the story “Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka. The story tells about of a man who wakes up one day as some sort of bug like vermin and his family sees him as a bug. Are outsiders simply those who are misjudged or misunderstood? Yes, outsiders are misunderstood and misjudged because they're too afraid to get out there.

Many views of existentialism are exposed in Kafka's Metamorphosis. One of these main views is alienation or estrangement which is demonstrated by Gregor's relationship with his family, his social life, and the way he lives his life after the metamorphosis. Namely, it suggests that man is reduced to an insect by the modern world and his family; human nature is completely self absorbed. Kafka reflects a belief that the more generous and selfless one is, the worse one is treated. This view is in direct conflict with the way things should be; man, specifically Gregor should be treated in accordance to his actions. Gregor should be greatly beloved by his family regardless of his state. This idea is displayed in three separate themes. First,

Kafka was critical in bringing the new outlook on modern culture and particularly on modern man. Franz Kafka studied the modern man in the face of contemporary culture, and how he was steadfast in retaining his spirituality and identity, and gravitate towards authenticity and happiness. However, Kafka saw how the dehumanizing forces of industrialization and capitalism in the post- the WWI Europe posed a challenge to the modern man. Modern culture can be viewed tolerating and open to all. To Franz Kafka, modern culture coupled with technology is fast changing, and man has to maintain his self-consciousness in order not lose his spirituality and identity amidst these changes (Wintle pp. 708-710). Hence, as modern culture changes with the changing technology, religions are poised to change too, which presents fears to a man about losing his spirituality and identity upon embracing the modern culture. Interestingly, Kafka was mystical in his writings, with a keen interest in themes such as metamorphosis, existential and identity. If we look at “The Metamorphosis,” we can view the idea of how the dehumanizing effects of capitalism and industrialism are indicated within the writings. Kafka contends we become dehumanized with buying power and working too much. The transformation of Gregor seems to indicate a denial of responsibility to the changing forms of society’s conventions and values.

1. Gregor’s initial reaction to his transformation, more specifically his worrying about missing the train and dwelling on the hardships of his job, reveals the extent to which Gregor’s own self-identity and way of life is dependent on his work. While most people would probably be horrified to find themselves transformed into a bug, Gregor instantly thinks of his job because that is what comprises Gregor’s identify and without his job he has no purpose or worth in his society. As Gregor contemplates his future, he thinks to himself, “Well, there’s still some hope; once I’ve got the money together to pay off my parents’ debt to him [his boss] – another five or six years I suppose – that’s definitely what I’ll do. That’s when I’ll make the big change” (Kafka 8).

Kafka is ranked among the most important writers of the twentieth century for works that express modern humanity 's loss of personal and collective order. His writing describes the situations of psychological, social, political, and physical instability and confusion that defy logical explanation and which typify Kafka 's conception of humanity 's absurd relationship with the universe (Kafka, 2013).

Do you after wonder what would it be like to be an insect? Getting transformed and having to run for your own life, while getting apples thrown at you? Reading The Metamorphosis by Fanz Kafka made me see what can really happen in a dysfunctional family after reading the short story. I will be writing a visual analysis paper, analyzing The Metamorphosis on the visual context plus the images that is going on in the shorty story.