Franz Kafka's Miscommunication

The intrinsic meaning that communication has on humans is characterized as the effective transmitting or sharing of thoughts and emotions. In order for a message to be successfully conveyed, communication must take place correctly. When communication is delayed or interrupted the process is affected, obstructing the efficacious method. In The Metamorphosis, the Samsa family experiences an absence of communication when their son. Gregor morphed into a bug, profoundly affecting their relationship.

Miscommunication begins at the beginning of the short story as Gregor does not reveal his true feelings about his job bringing stress upon himself. At the beginning of "The Metamorphosis," Gregor reflects on his life as a traveling salesman wishing

Gregor transforming into a bug leads to him not being able to speak correctly, conducting him from not being able to vocalize his thoughts and feelings. "It was clearly and unmistakably his earlier voice, but in it was intermingled, as if from below, an irrepressibly painful squeaking which left the words positively distinct only in the first moment and distorted them in the reverberation, so that one didn't know if one had heard correctly."(Kafka, 3) Gregor's change in voice becomes more apparent to the reader as the signs of him being a human slowly goes away as he transitions into the bug, detaching him from the communication he has with his mother. The apartment which Gregor had lived in with his family for five years started to transform, as Gregor did as well making him feel secluded. "But the empty high-ceilinged room in which he was forced to lie flat on the floor made him nervous, without his being able to telly why - since it was, after all, the room in which he had lived in for the past five years - and turning half unconsciously and not without a slight feeling of shame, he scuttled under the couch."(Kafka, 5) The description of Gregor's new attitude towards his room conveys a disconnection between himself and his own home, leading

Grete, the once loving sister, now treats Gregor as a chore, leaving their house maid to care for him, this causes for Grete to lose hope in seeing Gregor as a human again. "He must go," cried Gregor's sister, "that's the only solution, Father. You must try to get rid of the idea that this is Gregor. The fact that we've believed it for so long is the root of all our trouble."(Kafka, 25) Grete losing faith in Gregor begins the ultimate decision of blocking off communication to her brother, creating a loss of hope in not only herself but her brother. The final moments of Gregor's life included a pessimistic mind full of negativity, due to the actions of his sister, all communication with his family has vanished and the internal voices within himself have also given up on him. "He remained in this state of empty and peaceful reflection until the tower clock struck three in the morning. He still saw that outside the window everything was beginning to grow light. Then, without his consent, his head sank down to the floor, and from his nostrils streamed his last weak breath."(Kafka 3) Analyzing the previous quote, the reader can infer that the lack of communication ultimately slowly killed Gregor Samsa. The scarcity of communication throughout the family and Gregor is what leads to a fatal finale,