The Metamorphosis and the Life of Franz Kafka Essay

what Gregor wanted. He does try very hard to convince the manager that he can still

The Father goes through one of the most drastic changes in the novella. Before Gregor’s transformation into a bug, the father did not work, and he did not really do anything, he relied on his son’s influx of money but when Gregor changed into a bug that was all about to change. Before the change happened, the father was not in working condition. In Gregor’s words, “now the father was certainly healthy, but an old man, who had not worked in five years and could not be expected to do much” (29). The father before his change was in general lazy. But because of the changes in his family, he had to change. In only 9 short pages of the novella, Gregor’s thoughts on his father changed drastically, “Now however he held himself erect dressed in a tight blue uniform. With gold buttons, like that of a bank manager…” (38). If you compared that to Gregor’s old information on the father, it is a major change, from lazy and unhelpful, to in charge and bringing in money. One of the other major changes in the father was his attitude towards Gregor. At the start of the novella, he wanted nothing to do with Gregor, “when his father gave him a terrific shove from behind and he flew, bleeding profusely, far into the room” (21). He could have killed Gregor then, but at the end of the story, when the sister wanted to kill Gregor, the father said, “if only he could understand us….then we might be able to come to some sort of agreement with him” (53). He almost wanted to make

     I have chosen The Metamorphosis as my subject for this paper; I will take a close look at how the death of Gregor Samsa opens the doors to understanding the story. I will give examples of irony through Gregor’s metamorphosis and how this irony brings together the conclusion of the story. Through his death we see the truth behind his parents, which in it’s self is ironic. It is difficult to pinpoint one specific thing to write about in the story; there are just so many things that can be brought to light. If I happen to lose sight of my topic bear with me, there is just so much to be discussed in the novella.

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.

To fully understand the depths of Gregor’s family’s betrayal, it must be mentioned how much he does for his family. His father had once owned a very unsuccessful small business, and when the business went under the family’s financial woes were unimaginable. Gregor saw this and wanted to bring joy to his family again. Kafka states, “At that time Gregor’s sole desire was to do his utmost to help the family to forget as soon as possible the catastrophe that had overwhelmed the business and thrown them all into a state of complete despair” (Kafka 25) He found a job so that

He thought it would be very difficult for his family to be financially secure without him working, because his father had a debt to pay off. His father didn’t told him that he already worked enough to pay his debt off he just didn’t want to tell him that he don’t have to work like a dog anymore. The feeling of the seclusion and not being wanted went to Gregor head. He feels as no one wants to be around him anymore. In this story, it was the lack of stress causes it to be

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.

So concerned with ensuring his parents and sister were taken care of, he forgot his own needs. It was apparent to everyone that he was no longer thought of as a son or an extension of the family, but merely as a "support system." The tragic fact is that "everyone had grown accustomed to it, his family as much as himself; they took the money gratefully, he gave it willingly but the act was accompanied by no remarkable effusiveness" (Kafka 48). It appears that in the course of his hectic work schedule, he overlooks that in return for dedication to his family, he remains unloved and unappreciated. Yet Gregor still "believed he had to provide his family with a pleasant, contented, secure life" (Emrich 149), regardless of how they treated him.

With all of Gregor dedication in helping his family and at work, he has not once been praised or rewarded. His family and coworker take his dedication for granted, therefore causing selfishness within them. Gregor’s family selfishness really showed when Gregor

When Gregor inexplicably becomes an insect his family is primarily worried about how this will affect them, and their financial security. The morning Gregor awakes as a ‘monstrous vermin' is the first day he has missed work in five years; his family's immediate concern is for Gregor's job. His father begins to admonish him before he can even drag himself out of bed. When Gregor hears his sister crying at his door he thinks, "Why was she crying?? Because he was in danger of losing his job and then his boss would dun their parents for his old claims?" This is very significant to their relationship; he considers himself close to his sister, but feels her emotion spent on him is related to money. Gregor has been the sole breadwinner for years; working at a job he abhors only to pay his fathers debts. The family leads an extremely comfortable life of leisure; the father sits at the kitchen table and reads all day, the sister wears the best clothes and amuses herself by playing the violin, and all even take a mid-day nap. Gregor is extremely pleased and proud to provide them with this lifestyle; however, his generosity is met with resentment by his father and indifference by his sister and mother. Once the family grew accustomed to this lifestyle they no longer felt the need to be grateful, "they had grown used to it, they accepted the money, but no particularly warm feelings were generated any longer." At one point Gregor is deeply

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

There are many causes to Gregor’s stress. Stress is the cause of his transformation. The transformation of Gregor happens because he feels worthless and useless to his family. He also transforms because he represses these feelings from everyone in his life, including his family and his boss at work, causing him stress. Another cause of stress for Gregor is his strongly hated job that he feels that he can not leave. Gregor does not leave his job because he is the person in his family responsible for supporting his family financially. Although he hates his job, Gregor feels as though he can not leave it since it pays well for his family. Another reason Gregor does not leave his job as a traveling salesman is because his parent’s owe the company that Gregor works for a substantial debt.

From the opening of “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka, the character of Gregor is portrayed as a whole and complex human being. Like many people, he detests his job, but he recognizes that his work is necessary because it supports his family. He applies himself “with great earnestness" (Kafka 35) to his grinding work as a traveling salesman, not only because he wants to support his parents and pay off a debt that they incurred, but because he dreams of sending his sister, Grete, to a conservatory where she can learn to play violin professionally (Kafka 37). At this early point in Kafka’s “Metamorphosis” in fact, a character analysis of Gregor would yield rather little in terms of character depth. However, this devotion

Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis, details the transformation of a young white-collared man waking up one morning as a bug. As shocking as the situation presents itself—Gregor—the newly formed insect, is impervious to his new appearance. Instead, Gregor motivates himself to get out of bed and continue his daily routines to go to work. However, his mother, his father, and his sister have other plans for the vermin. Gregor’s gross exterior prevents the family from properly caring for their son. Months pass, and the insects shortage of basic necessities lead to Gregor’s peaceful death. By scrutinizing Gregor thoughts, behaviors, and past throughout the story, Gregor suggests to have an introverted mentality and bizarre interests. Gregor’s abnormal social interactions result in his focus towards his job, his oversight by his family, and his seclusion in his hobbies. In the novella, The Metamorphosis, the main character’s isolation reflects his attitudes towards his work, his family, and himself.

Kafka was born on July 3,1883 and raised in Prague, Bohemia. In the 1900s, societies structured their family through the patriarchal system. Franz Kafka was the first born of six children, consequently, forcing him to shoulder most of the responsibilities and discipline that come with being an eldest child. Kafka’s father in patriarchal view was the dominant leader in the household. This structure left the rest of the household at the bottom of the family. The main character, Gregor, suffers from his family’s oppression and refuses to address his father 's aggression. Kafka connects his responses towards his father through the killing of Gregor. Kafka never had the confidence and bravery to stand up to his father, and ultimately led Kafka to not think for himself and become internally dead. Gregor continues to become passive and weak as the father continued to rule his