Kafka's Metamorphosis

In Franz Kafka’s novella, The Metamorphosis, the travelling salesman Gregor Samsa wakes up one morning, in his family’s home, to find “himself changed in his bed into a monstrous vermin” (Kafka 3). While this immediate physical change, supported by ensuing physical imagery, suggests that the “metamorphosis” introduced in the title is purely physical, other interpretations are also possible. When the reader relies upon the extended and embedded metaphors present in this text, he or she may construe Gregor Samsa’s transformation as an emotional, mental, or internal change. It is a combination of both physical and nonphysical interpretations of Gregor Samsa’s metamorphosis, however, which produces a multifaceted,

From the Marxist view, the process of the metamorphosis symbolizes the class struggle of the proletariat to break out of a life of being exploited. Such representation is displayed in the similarity between the causes, natures, and endings of Gregor’s transformation and those of proletarian struggles.

The Metamorphosis, written by Franz Kafka, is a cultivating story about how the life of Gregor Samsa and his family drastically changes. This change causes Gregor’s father and sister to betray him and even Gregor to betray himself. This all starts when one morning Gregor wakes up as a giant bug. This occurrence does not allow Gregor to work anymore and provide for his family. As the novel goes on his sister is the only one to take care of him but this takes a toll on Gregor and the rest of his family. Soon his family is in a financial crisis causing each member of the family to start working. They even had to start renting out a room in their apartment just to make ends meet. With all of these events happening to the family it causes many

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.

On the surface, “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka is an evocative story of a man transformed into a “monstrous vermin”. It seems to focus on the dark transformation of the story’s protagonist, Gregor, but there is an equal and opposing transformation that happens within Gregor’s family. Although Gregor has physically changed at the beginning of the story, he remains relatively unchanged as the novella progresses. The family, on the other hand, is forced to drastically change how they support themselves. Although the change was unexpected, Gregor’s transformation into a vermin sets into motion a change in the Samsa family that leaves them better off in almost every facet of their lives. Thus, Kafka’s story is not one of descent into darkness, but one of a family’s ascent towards self-actualization. The metamorphosis the title speaks of does not take place in Gregor, but rather in the Samsa Family; consequently, Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” is not a tale of darkness, disconnection and despair, but rather a story of hope, new beginnings and perseverance.

In The Metamorphosis, Franz Kafka conveys the series of emotional and psychological repercussions of a physical transformation that befalls the protagonist, a young salesman called Gregor Samsa. As the story progresses, Gregor finds himself unfairly stigmatized, cruelly rejected because of his clear inability to financially support his family, and consequently increasingly isolated. Through extensive use of symbolism, Kafka is able to relate the surreal and absurd, seemingly arbitrary events of this short story to a general critique of society-particularly on the alienating effects that conformity generates. On a broader level, the combined themes-which include the themes of conformity, freedom, and alienation--found throughout The

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka is a reflection on how alienation and isolation begin and develop in a society by employing the characters in his novella as a representation of society as a whole. Using Gregor’s manager to demonstrate the initiation of isolation and alienation of a person, Gregor as the person being isolated and the inhabitants of the Samsa household as the other members of society, Kafka creates an effective model to represent the hierarchically structured effect of isolationism and alienation in society on a larger scale.

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,

On (page 101) Kafka’s point of how society treat workers are that Gregor and the workers around the world are not getting respect as they deserve. Their bosses, their chief clerks, and their employers are treating them bad and never can understand what’s going on such as Gregor really isn’t getting the respect he needs from his parents, boss, chief clerk, and employer and that is the exact same thing the workers around this world are doing to them. Metamorphosis is showing that it isn’t just Gregor that’s getting treating by abuse of power or making them isolated. Kafka is making a point that these types of things can happen to anyone in this world even in a book, a novel, or a cartoons. This shows that these types of things can happen to

Franz Kafka, in his novel The Metamorphosis, explores two conflicting ideas through his protagonist Gregor: unity and isolation. Gregor’s transformation created a whole life of distress for him, but on the other hand also formed a deeper and better relationship for the rest of the family.

Franz Kafka was born into a middle class German-speaking Jewish family from Prague, Bohemia, now the Czech Republic. Although Kafka obtained a degree in law, he spent his short adult life working as a traveling insurance salesman. He considered this job as a “bread job”, a job performed to only pay bills. At the time Kafka wrote Metamorphosis he had been employed for four years. In parallel, Kafka’s main character in the Metamorphosis possessed a job as a traveling salesman for four years to pay off the family debt and support them. He is dissatisfied with his job, which is noted when he says” O God, he thought, what a demanding job I've chosen, day in, day out on the road…”(Kafka p.612). I have to deal with the problems of traveling, the worries about train connections, irregular bad food, temporary and constantly changing human relationships, which never came from the hear, To hell with it all!”(Kafka p.612). The metamorphosis of Gregor liberates him from his dreaded job, as well as, releases him from his financial obligation to his parents.

Gregor, the main character of the short story “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka is a young man who portrays the role of a guardian by being the main provider for his family with his job as a traveler salesman. His unconditional love towards his family is demonstrated through his dedication of working by paying debts and fulfilling his family’s needs. While the story unfolds, as readers we discover Gregor’s job is the main source that holds and supports the family together. When Gregor transformed into a beetle, the family went into crises since Gregor can no longer provide for his family because the form of a beetle come along with his new abilities that were no longer capable of working for a business job. Moreover, he was ban from society

Kafka’s Metamorphosis suggests to his readers to take a glimpse inside a dysfunctional atmosphere triggered from a painful childhood, to see how influential each member of the family contributes to the dynamics, but also to learn how to make light of the situation with acceptance. Kafka is reflecting on his own relationship with his family in Metamorphosis. He sees himself in Gregor, or is he him.

But if we study this text with Marxist point of view, we come to know that this whole tale has great relevance to our society. The protagonist of “the metamorphosis”, Gregor Samsa, is representing a working class or proletariat. While on the other hand, his boss who is unnamed in the entire novella represents the middle class or bourgeoisie. So, the entire play deals with the struggle of working class.

Franz Kafka's story The Metamorphosis looks at the principles of society. At first The Metamorphosis seems to be about a man waking up as a giant insect but there is a much deeper meaning. Gregor Samsa, the protagonist in this story wakes up as a giant insect, which effects his whole life. Gregor's relationship with his boss and family disappear. Using Marx theory the story reveals a metaphor that tells the story of a proletariat and bourgeoisie.