Metamorphosis Analysis

What is the significance of windows and furniture in Gregor’s room in Franz Kafka’s ‘The Metamorphosis’?

Walter H. Sokel’s article does well in trying to encompass many deeper meanings behind the story, The Metamorphosis, but some of them are invalid and do not accurately represent the happenings in Kafka’s work. Sokel emphasized that the reason for the metamorphosis was of Gregor's own doing more than anything else. The article tries to compile several viewpoints and ideas which is confusing and unconducive to any one motive in the novel. The basis of this articles many widespread arguments is as absurd as the story it is trying to explain. Any clarity that could have been gained was overshadowed by Sokel's own conflicting ideas. In the end the causes and results that exist in the Kafka's far flung tale are neither factual nor comprehensible, leaving it up to the reader to evaluate if they themselves are absurd to question Gregor's

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.

In The Metamorphosis, Kafka establishes, through his religious imagery and gospel-esque episodic narration, the character of Gregor Samsa simultaneously as a kind of inverse Messianic figure and a god-like artist, relating the two and thus turning the conventional concept of the literary hero on its ear. The structure of the novel reflects that of the Gospel of Mark in that it is narrated in individual events, and in this it is something of a Künstlerroman - that is, the real metamorphosis is over the course of the novel, rather than just at the beginning, and that change is a heightened sensitivity to the world in an artistic sense. The motif of change is a rather theological one as well: we see it in a religious sense, in the form of

One of the important aspects in literature is the point of view. Point of view is important as it determines how a story unfolds and influences the tone and the angle in which the story takes place. In a way, it manipulates the readers’ understanding of the story as it can allow or withhold the readers access into the story (“Point”, n.d.). In The Metamorphosis, readers are granted access to Gregor’s thought but not to other characters. Thus, we only learn about other characters mainly through what Gregor sees, hears and infers. Therefore, one can assume that the readers’s understanding of other characters and The Metamorphosis as a whole is affected by Gregor’s perception. The Metamorphosis is narrated in the third person point of view and is mainly limited to Gregor’s point of view and only shifted when Gregor dies. Throughout the

Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis is so strikingly absurd that it has engendered countless essays dissecting every possible rational and irrational aspect of the book. One such essay is entitled "Kafka's Obscurity" by Ralph Freedman in which he delves down into the pages of The Metamorphosis and ferrets out the esoteric aspects of Kafka's writing. Freedman postulates that Gregor Samsa progresses through several transformations: a transformation of spatial relations, a transformation of time, and a transformation of self consciousness, with his conscious mutation having an antithetical effect on the family opposite to that of Gregor. His conjectures are, for the most part, fairly accurate; Gregor devolves in both his spatial awareness and his

The Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka, tells a unique story about a young man that suddenly turns into a bug; Gregor Samsa. The reason for Gregor turning into a cockroach unexplained. The novel is told as if Gregor; the main character, is perfectly normal. Kafka portrays Gregor as a very selfless man, not thinking of his own health or what would be good for him. Throughout the book there are many Gregor is seemingly cut off from the world, the transformation into a bug almost like a metaphor for Gregor's own life.

The Metamorphosis is the ultimate identity crisis. From the very opening lines of the novella- “As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning out of restless dreams, he found himself in bed, transformed into a gargantuan bug” (Kafka 13)- the absurdity of the storyline is evident. However, Kafka approaches the issue of identity from a interesting angle. Gregor’s thoughts are allowed to the reader. Kafka permits an insight that he does not grant with his other characters.

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,

Metamorphosis, everyone goes through it. A caterpillar transforms into a butterfly, a seed into a flower, a girl into a woman. The inescapable change which every girl experiences as she becomes a woman is a natural phenomenon. Words cannot express all that a girl feels when she is going through physical and emotional changes. The power spirals from within as she is submerged into the primary indications of her womanhood. As a young girl, I struggled against a misogynistic society and the ideals it tried to force upon me. I experienced series of awakenings, each changing me drastically and leading her further down my path of self- discovery. In nature the equivalent of this transition of form and internal evolution is my metamorphosis.i

But the truth is, it happens all the time. The Metamorphosis is a story of change. Throughout the novella, we cannot help but think that it is all nonsense and absurdity, but the abstract ideas the story conveys build upon ideas that are present in us– just subconscious and stuck in our head. The characters in The Metamorphosis go through the reality of change and it happens in our lives too. The most obvious change in Gregor is his physique.

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka can be interpreted in many different ways. Considering the story from a psychological perspective, one could compare reading The Metamorphosis to a psychiatrist or psychologist listening to their patient converse about their day, or life. In Jerome S. Gans' analysis Narrative Lessons for the Psychotherapist, he compares “the effect the author's story has on the therapist-reader” versus “the effect that the patient's narrative has on the therapist” (Gans 352). Gans states that not every reader experiences a novel or book in the same way, much like a therapist consulting a patient.

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka is a novel that centers on the theme of alienation. When Gregor turns into a bug, he is estranged from almost everyone he comes into contact with, except for his sister. As the novel progresses, Gregor’s family, even his sister, begin to see Gregor as someone completely different and feel burdened by him. When he dies in his room, they seem oddly excited and begin to move on with their lives. The physical and mental death of Gregor in The Metamorphosis reinforces the theme of alienation.

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.

To begin, the Metamorphosis presents itself with a unique presence as you begin to read it due to the applicability of Gregor immediately being transformed without any back story and presumably any particular reason. Throughout the Metamorphosis, Kafka incorporated an abundance of door references to the story. To some this may be just part of the story with nothing to analyze. With Kafka, the meticulousness in which he presents his writing forces me to counter that notion and to believe differently. In pg. 16 he writes, “But when he finally succeeded in positioning his head in front of the doorway, it turned out that his body was too wide too fit through the opening.” On the very next pg. “Gregor thrust himself- into the doorway… his father administered a powerful shove… bleeding profusely… banged shut.” On the surface level it appears to add on the story; however, from a more sophisticated eye the door clearly symbolizes the state of the family. The door was open while Gregor was this huge bug; however, he could not fit through. This could perhaps give a background story to the premises that the family was still open to everyone, especially Gregor, but there was this