EN111 Summer 2017 Assignment: Franz Kafka The Metamorphosis

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Franz Kafka The metamorphosis
Gregor Samsa transformed into a huge vermin or insect like creature and this affected his ability to function like fellow human beings. He was unable to participate in normal activities and no longer had to work as a traveling salesman to fend for the family and pay for his sister/ Grete violin lessons. The story of Gregor in the Metamorphosis is one of transformation and abandonment, as his sister grows tired taking care of him in his new form. In the story there is alienation and abandonment when the protagonist and his family members change.
Even before Gregor is transformed he is burdened by the need to provide for his family and he is frustrated with life unable to form his own distinct identity. The protagonist’s transformation represents changes in his life and that of his nuclear family. When he is transformed the burden is taken away from him as he no longer has to work to cater for the family needs. Before his transformation the family was a burden to Gregor, “If I didn’t hold back for my parents’ sake, I would’ve quit ages ago, I would’ve gone to the boss and told him just what I think from the bottom of my heart” (Kafka 4).
The family depends on Gregor who had to travel for long distances using trains to move around and was the breadwinner for the family. Gregor chose to stick with his family while working while he could have gone farther away and failed to share his earnings. However, his role in the family changes when he is now a burden to them as they have to take care for him. The family then resented him as a burden unlike before, as his sister states “We have tried what is humanly possible to take care of it and to be patient,” (Kafka 68).
One of the themes that emerge from the story is that there are limits to compassion and sympathy. When Gregor is late to work the family members knock on his door and show concern. However, when he transforms they are less willing to take care of him. Grete agrees to bring food and be her brother’s caretaker when the transformation affects his normal living. Nonetheless, as time passes the family members are stressed out because of Gregor’s situation as they are physically and emotionally tired of taking care of him there are limits to sympathy as Gregor becomes burdensome. The family members are no longer comfortable living under the same roof with Gregor.
Kafka does not state what causes Gregor transform and the readers have to infer from the story on the link between his life and metamorphosis. In using the impossible situations the author manages to draw attention to continuous transition and the readers then have to identify how the transformation process affects compassion and sympathy. The story unravels from an impossible situation with Gregor transforming, and this is the basis of the story where Gregor had to overcome the impossible challenges. Similarly, his sister faces an impossible challenge caring for the transformed brother and she is no longer compassionate over time.
The impossible situations further highlight that the family is trapped, as Gregor’s transformation meant that the family memb...