How Did Metamorphosis Change At The End Of Gregor's Life

In the article, written by Walter H. Sokel, he goes into depth about how Franz Kafka’s life is reflected in the book The Metamorphosis and his other writings. Sokel ties together multiple aspects of the novel and their importance to Gregor and his family dynamic as a whole. Many of the points made in the article address the absurdity of the situation the novel presents and the underlying meaning in the actions of the characters. The premise of the article is pointing to the facts that Gregor's predicament is Kafka inserting his own life frustrations into his literary works. In each passage of the article another part of Gregor's life is laid bare. Sokel’s many inferences that the fault is in Gregor's own doing and not his situation in life, create a complex maze of cause and effect.

At this point in the story Gregor is completely captivated with Grete, which is an unexpected consequence in her plan of manipulation. Grete began to practice her violin to show her parents just how classy she was even though she was able to take care of Gregor. While entertaining guests and playing the violin Grete captivated Gregor with the sweet sound of music. “On hearing all this, his sister would break out in tears of emotion, and Gregor would climb up to her shoulder and kiss her neck, which, since she had been going out to work, she had keep free without any necklace or collar.” Gregor also feels bad about what has happened with his sister. Due to Gregor’s situation Grete has to work and this is keeping her from wearing her beautiful necklaces. Grete has effectively manipulated her parents and Gregor. In the final paragraph of the novella it talks of Grete and how highly her parents think of her. The novella ends with one final dehumanization of Gregor. The last sentence shows Grete stretching her young body after Gregor has died with a horrid

He supported his mother, father and Grete. Now that he cannot work, his family is desperate for money. The father decides to go back to work to bring home money. To make some more money on the side, they rent their apartment out to three lodgers. One night while the lodgers were there, Gregor was seen, which made the lodgers freak out and leave. This marks a turning point in how Grete feels about Gregor. She comes to realize that he has no humanity left. The reader sees this when Grete explains to her father, “It has to go,’ cried his sister. ‘That’s the only answer, Father. You just have to try to get rid of the idea that it’s Gregor. Believing it for so long, that is our real misfortune” (Kafka 1107). Grete no longer thinks of him as Gregor, but refers to him as “it”, showing that she really has no regards for him. This ultimately adds to the decision that they should get rid of

The narration “Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka, when examined through the feminist lens, shows society’s confining expectations towards both sexes in which conformity to the patriarchal structure is inescapable. The modern feminist movement created a need for inquiry into feminist issues; thus, as Gardner et al. outlined the objectives of feminist criticism, an unnatural confinement by a patriarchal society of both genders into preconceived roles becomes exposed (1269). The protagonist, Gregor Samsa, becomes a frightening example of what might happen to somebody who fails to adapt to this strict arrangement, while his sister Grete seizes the chance to empower herself within the narrow confines of her family, which mirror the rules of society. Her brother, unable to cope, ends up cornered and dehumanized as a complete “misfit” in the eyes of society. For a short while, at her brother’s expense, Grete develops and thrives, but her future is foreshadowed. She will subsequently adhere to society’s expectations, get married, and follow the typical life cycle of a patronized female. Franz Kafka’s “Metamorphosis,” then, allows the critical reader of feminist issues valuable insight to the workings of patriarchal oppression and gender stereotypes by presenting the affected characters’ actions and attitudes.

Gregor Samsa's metamorphosis occurs one morning when he wakes up from unsettling dreams and finds himself changed into a monstrous vermin.  This change makes Gregor dependent on his family members and reverses his previous situation in which his family was dependent on him.  As a bug, Gregor is useless to his family and can no longer perform simple human tasks, let alone support his father, mother, and sister.

Franz Kafka’s clear isolation of Gregor underlines the families’ separation from society. In The Metamorphosis, Kafka emphasizes Gregor’s seclusion from his family. However, Gregor’s separation is involuntary unlike the family who isolates themselves by the choices they make. Each family member has characteristics separating them from society. These characteristics become more unraveling than Gregor, displaying the true isolation contained in The Metamorphosis.

Aayus Patel Mrs. Nunnally AP Lang Period 3 11 May 2015 RJ 1 Level 1: 1. What is Gregor’s role in his family? 2. What role does the picture of the lady in the gilt frame play?

Grete has to work closely with her parents in order to overcome the changes throughout the book. In doing this, she and her parents develop a stronger alliance. All three of them try to become acquainted with Gregor in the bug form, especially Grete; instead they all go against him which causes them all to become closer. In the “Clinical Social Work Journal,” Alexandra says “In the end, what appears to be a stable sibling-parent triangle has been established”(Kivowitz 38). Alexandra then

But, as time goes on his sister Grete, who had been the one to care for him the most, begins to lose faith in his humanness. She says to her parents, "You must just try to get rid of the idea that this is Gregor. The fact that we've believed it for so long is the root of all our trouble." This same idea is reiterated when Gregor finally dies and his mother says, "Well, now thanks be to God." His family was convinced after a short while that it wasn't even their own Gregor underneath that hard exoskeleton.

Grete undergoes a change in perspective to such a degree that by the end of the novella it is she who declares, “we must get rid of it” (84). This change in perspective shows how Kafka believes that members of society often stop sympathizing with the isolated group when it becomes inconvenient for them to continue doing so. Gregor’s mother reacts in an initial manner somewhere between the father and sister since when first seeing him she “went two steps toward Gregor and collapsed right in the middle of her skirts” (23). These conflicting desires continue through the novella, such as when Mr. Samsa tries to kill Gregor, “she begged him to spare Gregor’s life” (65) but at the same time she is repulsed by him. This illustrates how she wants to help him and tries to think of him the same way she did before his transformation, yet is unable to. This resembles the idealists in society who theoretically support the alienated person but often succumb to social pressures when they are forced to face the problem. These three reactions to Gregor’s transformation as a result of the initiation of his isolation by the manager demonstrate the spectrum of reactions. From the immediate acceptance of the hierarchy represented by Mr. Samsa, to the true compassion of Grete and the idealism of Mrs. Samsa, Kafka shows how a wide variety of reactions is expected from society, and how people often change their opinions.

He was the son, the sole breadwinner of the family. Before Gregor’s transformation Grete really had no place in the family. Now since Gregor was unable to help the family Grete became important, needed and most of all appreciated. “He often heard them expressing their appreciation of his sister’s activities, whereas formerly they had frequently scolded her for being a somewhat useless daughter”(99). Now Grete’s parents need her for something. Grete by making herself responsible for Gregor gains a certain power over her parents. This however in not presented to the reader clearly because Gregor is unable to grasp the fact that his sister might have ulterior motives.

Furthermore, Gregor’s descent into social and physical abjection then forces his family to change radically in order to support themselves. In the beginning, Gregor starts off as the provider for his family. He hates his job, but he still goes above and beyond the call of duty to give his family a more comfortable life, even indulging the expensive endeavour of his sisters’ dream of studying the violin. However, after the metamorphosis, he is thrust into the role of a dependant – forcing his family to take responsibility and support themselves. His sister steps up to the plate in the beginning, giving him a selection of foodstuffs to find what he likes and even cleaning up after him. His parents are still in denial at this point, so much so that they refuse to see him at all. But as time goes by, his family begins to accept the situation and even try to help Grete out. His father produces some money from his previous failed business venture and his mother and sister try to make life more comfortable for Gregor. Grete in particular changes the most noticeably; Gregor himself notes at the beginning that her life up till that point had been “enviable”, consisting of “wearing nice

Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis (1915) is a novella about protagonist Gregor, a hard-working traveling salesman transforms into some a vermin overnight and struggles to adjust to his startling change. Kafka characterizes Gregor as a selfless individual whose profound love for his family misleads him about their genuine disposition. As he adjusts to his new change, he undergoes great difficulty to determine his identity and humanity. Gregor has deceived himself into believing that his family will love him despite his repulsive appearance. In The Metamorphosis, Kafka uses characterization and third-person narrative to demonstrate Gregor’s self-deception and self-awareness regarding his family and circumstances to establish the theme of identity.

Grete, like her mother, obviously cares very much for Gregor and is also terrified by his new transformation, but unlike her mother, she tries very hard to hide her fear in order to keep feeding and tending to Gregor’s room;

Loses compassion throughout the story; and is constantly reminded of her plight through work. Detail #1-Grete’s patient attitude towards her brother’s demanding condition, depicts her as a compassionate character towards the beginning of The Metamorphosis. After noticing Gregor’s untouched bowl of milk, she thoughtfully replaces it with scraps to appease him. Besides feeding him, Grete makes sure to alter his room to open up space for him to crawl and continues to clean his room throughout the story.