Gregor’s initial reaction to his transformation shows his preoccupation with work. His confusion over his radical transformation does not last long, quickly becoming concerned with work and disregarding that he woke up physically transformed into a monstrous vermin. Immediately after realizing he had transformed, Gregor explains, “Well, I haven’t given up hope completely; once I’ve gotten the money together to pay off my parents’ debt to [the boss] that will probably take another five to six years… But for the time being I’d better get up, since my train leaves at five” (4). The quick transition of Gregor’s thoughts from the initial shock to his economic duties reveals his ironic nonchalant attitude towards his nonsensical transformation and
1. Almost from the very beginning of Gregor’s metamorphosis, Mr. Samsa has been unwilling to accept Gregor as his son. Furthermore, Gregor’s transformation into an offensive form of an insect, constantly reminds Mr. Samsa of the grotesque, feeble, and pathetic aberration that he has fathered. Consequently, now that Gregor has genuinely revealed himself in all his audacious behavior, his cruel father is driven to destroy him. In his eyes, Gregor has become everything loathsome to him—scrawny, parasitic, and futile—not the kind of son this once successful and ambitious storekeeper could be proud of.
This change has long since happened but is in full affect more than ever since the transmutation. Overall Gregor has changed both physically and emotionally. He was mutated into a giant bug at the beginning of the novella. His emotional connection changed between his parents for the worst. The spark between them has faded as the money Gregor made grew.
Most notably, his reaction is extremely calmer than normal people would be. As a human, Gregor accepted the hardships he faces by his family without complaint. He is a naive and decent person. He works in anonymity without uttering words to earn money for the whole family even he did not even like this “exhausting job he’ve picked on”(p89) since his dad’s failure in business. Similarly, when he first realized he had transformed into an insect, he was not disgusted by his looking and condition, he did not wonder how he turned to an insect and how to transform back to a human.
Gregor’s Family Response It is evident that Gregor’s family still considers him as part of the family in spite of his transformation into an insect. However, the sense of family integrity and community is significantly compromised since his new image prevents the family from sharing food or spending time together in the same room. It is evident that the family is stressed to the extent that they feel repulsed at the mere sight of him.
This is the reason he isolated himself from his family. Gregor is forced to work in an environment he hates but his transformation overlooks that. He doesn’t have to suffer from his occupation and allows him to spend more time with his family. However, this change only had a positive affect temporarily.
Gregor’s isolation and loneliness begins to toy with his composure, he becomes unpredictable and frightening to his family. Although, Gregor’s slow transformation from man to bug eventually becomes beneficial to Gregor. For instance, Gregor’s bug-like appearance allows him to be released from his family's high expectations. As for his developing bug-like qualities helps him to register his inner anger he feels towards his father. Gregor now realizes his father shows no sympathy towards Gregor and instead punishes him for something he has no control over.
His family completely depends on him and his job as a travelling salesman to make their ends meet. Gregor Samsa, however, despises his job and would leave it right away if he did not have to pay off his parents’ debt. As Gregor ponders over the thought of his job, he realizes that he has turned into a cockroach. He also realizes that he’s late for work. His parents and his chief clerk come to his room and knock on the door, wondering why Gregor did not go to work.
Neither Kafka nor Gregor followed the existentialist idea of freedom of choice in a person’s life. They both had a life they didn’t ask for and responsibilities they were forced to assume. This principle of lack of freedom is clearly shown by the unexpected transformation of Gregor, waking up as an insect and obtaining the freedom he lacked, emancipating himself of obligations, injustice and final duties. He is freed from the obligation to work to maintain his family and liberated himself from his tyrannical father. Although he turned into a horrible insect, the metamorphosis did not change the beauty of his soul.
The mother wanted to almost act as if Gregor had died, and she began to rid some of Gregors’ furniture. Gregor began to feel a sense of isolation, but had become accustomed to not showing himself out of shame. The father from the beginning thought the insect his son would harm the family, and attempted to kill him. The mother stopped the father, and reminded him of the fact that Gregor’s still their son.
As the main character, Gregor Samsa, transforms from human state to that of a beetle, there are many aspects that are left unexplained and seemingly unstable. For example, in the novel, Gregor’s transformation into a beetle is left unexplained by Kafka. Kafka opens up the novel by stating, “When Gregor Samsa woke up one morning from unsettling dreams, he found himself changed in his bed into a monstrous vermin” (Kafka 1). There is no scientific or physical evidence as to why this transformation occurred, but it can be ascertained that it is a psychological transformation.
In the Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, he brings to light Gregor Samsa’s lost sense of identity by writing Gregor’s inner thoughts about no longer having a concern for his family’s well-being. Prior to Gregor’s metamorphosis, his personality is of a man whose main responsibility is taking care of his family on the account of him telling the chief clerk, “I’m … in debt…” (pt.1, p.7). The pronoun “I” is important here because it suggests that Gregor considers the debt his, even though in reality it is his father’s. This indicates that Gregor has internalized the idea of him having to work because he no longer considers his efforts a favor but a necessity because of “his” debt.
The narrator describes a recently hung picture, “The picture was of a woman clad in a fur stole; she sat upright and held out to the viewer a thick fur muff into which her entire forearm disappeared” (Kafka, 2013, p. 112). The protagonist displayed, this picture in his room to symbolize his search in finding love and a true meaning in life. Therefore, depriving Gregor from having a social life affected his mental
He became embodied by his weak form and closed off to the real world, literally. Gregor’s influence on his family also allowed his father to grow as an individual and appear superior when dressing within his
The interactive oral on Franz Kafka’s novella The Metamorphosis focused on three literary styles that were evident throughout the text: modernism, magic realism, and surrealism. The presentation began with background on the author, Kafka, and how his works did not achieve recognition until long after he had died; yet, today he is known as a compelling writer who wrote about pain, suffering, and loneliness in a unique way. The discussion then delved into three literary styles present in the text and how they played a part in helping to express oneself within a reserved society. Before the presentation, the class read The Metamorphosis and discussed how a main theme of the novella was the harsh isolation that the main character, Gregor Samsa,
