Nourishment In Metamorphosis

Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis narrates the events that ensue when a man named Gregor finds himself transformed into a monstrous vermin upon waking up one morning. Although the novella is a tale of fiction, striking parallels between the novella’s events and current societal norms/values are apparent. Through the motif of food and nourishment, notably the contrast between physical nourishment and emotional nourishment, Kafka conveys that while physical nourishment is necessary for survival, emotional nourishment should be of equal or more importance as emotional nourishment allows one to live a more fulfilling life. Ultimately, Kafka illustrates that society’s current infatuation with physical welfare, such as food, money, and materialistic

When Gregor is attempting to rise from his bed and get ready for his day, he states that “the main thing” he wants to do is “have breakfast, and only then think about what to do next” (Kafka 6). Gregor, who is a traveling salesman and therefore representative of the working class, finds himself focused on quenching his physical hunger rather than curious about his current transformed state and finding a solution to his problem. Gregor believes that once his physical needs are satisfied, he can then focus on other needs. By showcasing Gregor’s priorities, Kafka illustrates how the working class is unable to focus on larger problems due to their constant need for physical satisfaction. Moreover, when Gregor first leaves his room after his metamorphosis, he finds that “the breakfast dishes were laid out lavishly on the table, since for his father breakfast was the most important meal of the day, which he would prolong for hours while reading various newspapers” (12). The detail that Mr. Samsa would “prolong [breakfast] for hours” suggests that Mr. Samsa finds enjoyment through meals. Additionally, through the diction of “lavishly” which connotes that his meal is in excess abundance, Kafka suggests that physical nourishment is often satisfied more than necessary which results in a distraction from emotional nourishment and true

When Grete is playing her violin for the roomers, Gregor wonders, “Was he an animal, that music could move him so?” and felt “as if the way to the unknown nourishment he longed for were coming to light” (36). Before his metamorphosis, Gregor did not care for music and his focus was on providing for the family by making money to pay the rent and provide food for the table. However, now, with his inability to work his priorities shift as demonstrated through this scene as Gregor is actively seeking out the music for his own spiritual nourishment. Additionally, the diction of “animal” suggests that Gregor does not believe that it is human to be moved by music – that his feeling was animalistic. However, the diction of “animal” also connotes a more primitive nature, and ironically, Kafka argues that Gregor is more human now than before his metamorphosis because he is able to appreciate Grete’s music. It should also be noted that Grete has shifted from someone who can be considered more human, as she played the violin for her own pleasure before Gregor’s metamorphosis, to someone more bug-like, as a bugs action are focused on physical survival, because now Grete only plays to please the roomers which provide