“I used to think the worst thing in life was to end up all alone, it’s not. The worst thing in life is to end up with people that make you feel all alone.” (Robin Williams) The feeling of loneliness warps the psyche of a person to the point they are not that person anymore. In the novella The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, Gregor Samsa is a young man that has to deal with a family that treats him like a vermin, and expects more out of him than he is capable of. Gregor reaches his breaking point when he wakes up to be turned in too a ungeziefer, this break is showed in the novella as physical, but looking at Gregor and seeing his own thoughts have him trapped within a comatose state of how he sees him self, his family and how that lead through …show more content…
Examples from the novella will show evidence that he has suffered a mental break to where he is unable to find what is real within his own mind. A strong factor in Gregor’s break is his inner battles with him self. “…woke up one morning from unsettling dreams, he found himself changed in his bed into a monstrous vermin…” he demonstrates this sense of worthlessness as he “wakes up” from his unsettling dreams to find him self transformed into a vermin, which illustrates how he sees himself; a worthless bug.(Kafa_1). Battling with ones self leaves holes which can become mentally exhausting, leaving a person to doubt what their capable of and causes depression so deep that a person doesn’t feel like a person anymore. “I’m just opening up, in a minute. a slight indisposition, a dizzy spell, prevented me from getting up…”(Kafka_11) he feels a sense of uneasy wave over him so he makes up whats happening to hide who he truly is for he thinks he's unbearable to look at. ”… While Gregor hastily blurted all this out, hardly knowing what he was saying…” illustrating how Gregor begins to make excuses to show people who he truly is or has become to where people cant understand what he's saying, show how he cannot differentiate between reality and what he see inside his head(Kafka_12). There are many different ways to lose touch with reality, like the pressure …show more content…
He begins to realize how his family hasn't noticed him until he became late for work, his father bursts on the door yelling "Gregor, Gregor, he called, whats going on? Is something a matter with you?” the feeling of disappointment overwhelms Gregor knowing how he's let his family down and his main priority in life is to impress his family, by not getting up for work he feels that he's a failure, which shows how he has suffered a mental break finding it hard to differentiate between reality and his own mind (Kafa_6). As his metal state decreases and he becomes more and more depressed that his family wants nothing to do with his transformed self knowing what he is they choose just not to deal with him and they become discussed with the sight of him “She did not see him right away, but when she caught sight if them under the couch-god, he had to be somewhere, he couldn't just fly away-she became so frightened that she lost control of her self and slammed the door shut again.” (Kafa”_22) showing that he thinks so lowly of him self that he's not only changed how he views himself but how the perception of his whole family changes based on his incapability to differentiate between reality.
During the Kennedy era, many Americans saw Jacqueline Kennedy only as the wife of the president who did not know much; however, not only was she a faithful wife and First Lady, but she was also a very intelligent magazine editor with a very interesting life. In the New York Times bestselling novel called The Outliers: The Story of Success, Malcolm Gladwell challenges the way that success is typically viewed by introducing the idea of an “outlier.” Gladwell defines an outlier as “something that is situated away from or classed differently from a main or related body (Gladwell 1).” Throughout the book, he goes on to explain that success is much more than hard work; it also has to do with what he calls “The 10,000-Hour Rule” or
It has been a mystery for hundreds of years and it has puzzled many historians and archaeologist. They wonder what happened to the lost colony of Roanoke did they die because of war or something they all ate? What people are trying to find out is what was the reason for the people disappearing years after arriving. Why Do you think they wanted to come to America? The main reason for them coming to “America” was Queen Elizabeth 1st wanted to establish an English settlement on the new land.
Isolation not only changes the personalities of Gregor and his family, but also it changes the role and duties Gregor plays in his family. Before the metamorphosis, Gregor worked alone to provide for the entire family. For example, in the beginning, before the transformation, he says, “But besides that, the money Gregor had brought home every month he had kept only a few dollars for himself” (4). This shows Gregor’s selfishness and his family’s heavy dependency on his income. It establishes the fact that Gregor’s family’s loyalty to Gregor was strong because the family depended on Gregor for their own survival, and shows how they betrayed him by disregarding him after he became an insect. The isolation of Gregor caused by the transformation not only affects Gregor’s role in the family, but also changes the role of Mr. Samsa. Mr. Samsa originally told by Gregor: ”Now his father was still healthy, certainly. But he was an old man who had not worked for the past five years and who in any case could not be expected to undertake that much” (17). This shows how irresponsible Mr. Samsa acted for his family in the beginning. Mr. Samsa, a man in his 50s, blamed his unemployment on anxiety and depression from a past failed business. Mr. Samsa changes his role as the useless drag to the provider of the family, and even obtains a new job as a bank manager.
Gregor’s role in his family characterizes him as an altruistic individual whose nature made him ignorant to his family’s manipulation. Gregor endures most of his hardships without complaint and puts the needs of his family firmly above his own. Upon realizing his transformation at the beginning of the novella, his first thoughts were not of alarm but of great concern about being late to work because it is his only means of taking care of his family (Kafka 6). After his father’s business failed, Gregor “work[ed] with special ardor” (27) doing laborious work as a traveling salesman, not only to “pay off [his] parents’ debt”(4), but to also spend what little money he has to give Grete the opportunity to perform violin professionally (26). With all these responsibilities, it’s inevitable for Gregor to be under great stress, which can infer that Gregor’s transformation is a result of his willful desire to escape the pressures his overburdened life. Gregor struggled between remaining a steadfast provider or following his desire for independence, however, his metamorphosis freed him from a job he detests. Now that it is impossible for Gregor to work, Mr.Samsa reveals that “he possessed more money than Gregor knew about” (#). This is a significant event where Kafka uses the motif of betrayal to emphasize the corruption in familial infrastructure represented through Gregor’s sacrifice and interaction with his family, as well as to socially comment about how people in society use
Gregor maintains submissive personality and does not defend himself. Gregor’s physical change into a bug is the only aspect of him that changes. Gregor continuously allows himself to be abused. Upon Gregor’s transformation, he is unable to go to work. Therefore, the chief clerk visits Gregor to force him to come to work. Gregor remained locked in his room and would not leave for work. So, the clerk became extremely impatient. The frustrated clerk divulges into a cruel and demoralizing speech. He maliciously accuses Gregor of hiding because of unethical involvement in cash receipts. Later, Gregor’s family and the clerk become restless and want to see Gregor. The door to Gregor’s room is unlocked to open and reveal Gregor in his insect form. Gregor’s family and the clerk react with horror. The clerk and Gregor’s mother run away from him in fear. Gregor’s father grabs a stick and a newspaper and dashes toward Gregor, herding Gregor back into his bedroom with prods and fierce language. Gregor injures himself badly while trying to fit back through the doorway. Gregor’s door is slammed shut behind him and he his left alone, frightened and injured, in his room. The events subsequent to Gregor’s transformation exhibit his passive nature. Clearly such passivity was not useful to Gregor.
In the beginning of the novella, Gregor undergoes a transformation. Many readers view his transformation as he turns into a bug because of the way Kafka describes Gregor. Kafka may have been undergoing a transformation of his own. Kafka dealt with many issues growing up such as self doubt, issues with his father, and eventually, health issues. Like Kafka, Gregor deals with issues with his father and within himself and begins to feel less and less like himself as the novella continues. He awakes from his sleep to ask himself, “What’s happened to me (Kafka, 3)?” With the conflicts Gregor has with his family, especially his father, he begins to feel unwanted and unappreciated. Gregor also feels that he is becoming less sensitive when that used to be one of his main traits as a human (Kafka, 24). Seeing that Gregor is losing his sensitivity, that shows that he is truly losing himself since he is losing one of his main traits. Feeling less like himself, Gregor becomes more distant with his close
It is the innate yearning of the human condition to belong. When we come into existence, this desire is satisfied by joining the orderly social structure of a family. Living in a moral, rational universe, leads us to believe that developing such fruitful relationships will grant us the support and resources to achieve success in other facets of life. But in an absurd reality where such beliefs are meaningless, collective pursuits are quite futile. Through an analysis of narrative perspective, character and atmosphere, the closing paragraph of Frank Kafka’s haunting novella The Metamorphosis reveals the superficial nature of the love and bond that holds a family together amidst an existential world.
Worried about their son, his entire family urges next to the door and demands Gregor to unlock it. At that moment, his manager angrily storms to his house and demands an explanation for his delay. His mother tries to pleads his manager by complimenting Gregor’s devoted and hardworking attitude. She didn’t want her son to lose her occupation as she still perceived him as the successor of the family, and if anything were to happen, it would only disrupt the sustainability of her family. Finally, Gregor opens the door and witnesses the repulsive and scared faces of his family and manager. The horrified office manager backs away, his mother who was "already in tears...yelling" (12-13) passes out, and the father cries. Nevertheless, Gregor “[filled with] assurance and confidence” continued to see himself as his human self, and tries to protect this identity by delivering a long explanation. However, he doesn’t realize that no one saw him as Gregor, and regardless of how strongly he believed in his perception of himself, his family simply saw him as a disgusting creature. Courageously, the father shoves him back into the room and isolates the hideous Gregor into the room.
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,
Throughout the novella, Gregor’s deeply rooted sense of guilt transitions from having the power to drive his actions to merely plaguing his thoughts. Immediately after his transformation, Gregor reveals that he has to “deal with the problems of traveling, the worries about train connections, irregular bad food, temporary and constantly changing human relationships…” (Kafka 4), in his daily work. Although he appears to hate his job, Gregor does not quit, as he has both intrinsic motivation to provide and extrinsic pressure from his family to keep them afloat. Rather than reflecting on his feelings and emotional baggage attached to his job, Gregor focuses on grievances set in reality, and allows this to occupy his conscious mind. After Gregor’s transformation, his
Since Gregor put so much of his energy towards his family’s well-being rather than his own, he never formed a unique identity. After waking up as a cockroach and regretting that he wouldn’t be able to attend work, he thinks of his unhappy work life and says, “If I didn’t hold back for my parents’ sake, I would have quit long ago” (4). In sacrificing the time that he spends at work to support his family, Gregor shows the lengths he is willing to go to allow his family to survive. Gregor recognizes that his work is uninteresting, but he decides it is more important to support his family than to follow his own desires, essentially letting his parents control his life. Another example of Gregor admitting to putting his parents’ needs above his own is when he admits that a lot of his unhappiness comes from the fact that he is just a subordinate of the boss and he has no real power. As a travelling salesman, all he has to do is go from door to door trying to sell items that people don’t want. As Gregor continues to think about his life at work after his transformation, he recognizes: “He was a tool of the boss, without brains or backbone” (5). Gregor sees that he is lacking “brains or backbone”, which is recognition that he does not need individuality to perform his job. However, after his transformation, his lack of a “backbone” is externalized since, as a cockroach, he literally lacks a backbone. Gregor can see that he is a drone, since
Engelberg exclaims, “the common alienation of two urban men, both suffering all the deleterious consequences of subsequent isolation, dehumanization, death” (Engelberg). Gregor’s isolation after turning into a cockroach continually provides evidence that he is no longer a part of the family; thus, he also loses his own instincts as a man. Kafka uses this isolation to exhibit what he experienced throughout his life, especially for being a Jew during World War I. Goldfarb explains, “For one thing, Gregor's repulsive appearance means he has to remain in his room, a prisoner, completely isolated. His existence was always a fairly lonely one, but this is worse: as far as friendship and intimacy are concerned, Gregor's transformation is not an escape from his past loneliness but an intensification of it” (“Goldfarb”). Gregor is isolated from his family because he looks different and he is rejected with any hope of reconnecting with them. Kafka utilises Gregor to show how being different from others leads to being isolated and eventual suffering. The dehumanization of people is caused by the isolation from others; thus, they often lose their will to live.
Characterization of Gregor: Kafka depicts Gregor’s thoughts as depressed and hopeless in order to show that he does not believe his situation will get better. This is done in order to show that Gregor no longer has any humanity left because he repeats the same tasks every day which has numbed him.
Now homebound Gregor is now able to be apart of family conversations. Metamorphosis shows Gregor yearning for human contact from his family, but it also shows his family eagerly alienating him from their life. With continuous alienation, Gregor loss interest in his family and no longer desires to have contact with them. Kafka shows families that are experiencing a financial crisis; a loss, unemployment, abuse or an illness can cause a breakdown in communication as a whole. Once Gregor is unable to communicate, he becomes an observer of the world around him. His insect form symbolizes the emptiness, insignificant and an outcast, which he was at work and at home.
Prior to the metamorphosis Gregor led a physically isolating life with little time for anything other than superficial relationships. Hinted at the beginning of the piece he longed to break free from his traveling salesman's job and shrug off the financial burden placed on his back. The metamorphosis was equally as mentally imprisoning as to what it was physically. Gregor was unable to express his emotions or even communicate his needs to his family this ultimately led to the family’s gradual shift of resentment towards him solely because they were unable to see how much of their once family member remained.