Gregor and Grete’s Transformation in The Metamorphosis by...

Franz Kafka wrote the short story Metamorphosis in 1912. No one can truly know what he aimed to accomplish with the story, but it is thought he wrote it to demonstrate the absurdity of life. The story is written with a very simplistic undertone, ignoring how completely ludicrous the situation that Gregor Samsa and his family are in. Metamorphosis is most often thought of in the scientific meaning of the word, which according to dictionary.com is a profound change in form from one stage to the next in the life history of an organism. It is also defined as a complete change of form, structure, or substance, as transformation by magic or witchcraft or any complete change in appearance, character, circumstances, etc. This word is generally†¦show more content†¦From 1889 to 1893 Kafka attended the boys elementary school at the meat market. After elementary school Kafka was accepted into the rigid Altstadedter Deutsches Gymnasium, a secondary school with eight grade levels at Old Town Square. He studied chemistry for two short weeks at the Charles-Ferdinand University before switching to law. He graduated with his Doctorate of Law on June 18th, 1906. Kafka is thought to have schizoid personality disorder, a personality disorder characterized by a lack of interest in relationships, a tendency to lead a solitary life, secretiveness, emotional coldness and at times sexual apathy while simultaneously living in a fantasy world. This illness explains why he wrote some of the stories the way he did. Kafka met Felice Bauer in 1912, they were engaged two times. Their relationship came to an end in 1917. Kafka began experiencing symptoms due to tuberculosis in 1917 as well. Kafka died June 3rd, 1924 of starvation due to tuberculosis. Kafka’s life history explains why Metamorphosis is written in the way that it is. The opening lines of Metamorphosis give a detailed description of the creature that Gregor has been transformed into, a cockroach. He reacts rather c almly, more concerned with work than the fact that he has turned into an insect. I wish we could see the story through the other characters point of view, particularly Grete’s. But, because we only know Gregor’s side of theShow MoreRelatedThe Metamorphosis : Grete s Transformation1120 Words   |  5 Pages The Metamorphosis: Grete’s Transformation Gregor Samsa appears to be the character who transfigures in the short novel called â€Å"The Metamorphosis,† but Grete, Gregor’s sister, transforms into a stronger and more independent woman throughout the predicaments in the book. After Gregor dies, a new light shines upon Grete, and her parents see her as a grown woman. The author says, â€Å"It struck both Mr. and Mrs. Samsa, almost at the same moment, as they became aware of their daughter’s increasing vivacityRead MoreThe Big, Bad, Socialism Bug1280 Words   |  6 Pages200 September 23, 2015 The Big, Bad, Socialism Bug A known socialist, Franz Kafka was especially taken with Karl Marx’s theory of alienation. The theory states that people lose their humanity as a consequence of living in divided social classes. The worker needs the labor to live, and misses out on intrinsic human needs; the worker is a worker first, a human being second (Fay). This concept is what frames The Metamorphosis: A man loses his humanity through unfulfilling work, and while losing hisRead MoreFranz Kafka s The Metamorphosis814 Words   |  4 PagesWhen Franz Kafka first penned his short novel The Metamorphosis in 1915, he had no idea that it would become one of the most influential pieces of fiction of the twentieth century, continuously being studied in colleges and universities across the Western world. The novel rotates around the life of a man named Gregor Samsa, who wakes up on a routine day, and suddenly finds himself transformed into an insect. As the story progresses, the reader can see how Gregorâ€℠¢s physical transformation triggersRead More Gretes Transformation in The Metamorphosis by Kafka Essay example1729 Words   |  7 PagesKafka wrote The Metamorphosis in 1912, taking three weeks to compose the story. While he had expressed earlier satisfaction with the work, he later found it to be flawed, even calling the ending unreadable. Whatever his own opinion may have been, the short story has become one of the most popularly read and analyzed works of twentieth-century literature. Isolation and alienation are at the heart of this surreal story of a man transformed overnight into a kind of beetle. In contrast to muchRead MoreAnalysis Of Franz Kafka s The Metamorphosis 1711 Words   |  7 Pagescertain theme that most readers can relate to. Franz Kafka, a renowned German-speaking fiction writer of the 20th century, uses a unique style of writing that many people believe is a telling of his own life story. In his well-known short story, â€Å"The Metamorphosis†, many similarities and connections can be seen between the main character, Gregor Samsa, and the author himself, Franz Kafka. A major comparison that can be made is the fact that both Samsa and Kafka died slow, lon esome deaths after being inRead MoreThe Meta Metamorphosis : A Depth Look Into The Metamorphosis Of Grete1073 Words   |  5 Pages28th, 2012 Word Count: 1,416 The Meta-Metamorphosis: An In-depth Look into the Metamorphosis of Grete In Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis, one can find two forms of metamorphoses. One, being the most apparent, is Gregor’s physical transformation from a man to an insect, and secondly one may find a subtext of a form of transformation of Grete. This transformation is one that allows Grete to switch roles from being a young sister role to a motherly role to Gregor, and to lastly a judge with the decisionRead MoreIsolation In Franz Kafkas Metamorphosis1145 Words   |  5 Pagesmain character, Gregor Samsa, also felt this way. Isolation refers to the situation of being alone and/or without others around. Due to his transformation, Gregor was immediately isolated unlike his other family members who chose to be away from their problems in the world. Everyone in the Samsa family has their own reasons of why they chose to be isolated from society. Due to these choices, the entire Samsa family also undergo transformations. The book, Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka , reveals how isol ationRead MoreThe Symbolic Nature of Sacrifice and Transformation in Kafka’s The Metamorphosis1096 Words   |  5 PagesMaking of an Allegory,† by Edwin Honig and â€Å"Franz Kafka’s ‘Metamorphosis’ as Death and Resurrection Fantasy,† by Peter Dow Webster illuminate how sacrifice and transformation are a vital part of the deeper meaning of The Metamorphosis. Gregor Samsa is an ordinary young man until he wakes up one day as a giant vermin; metamorphosised into something horrendous and reviled by the world. Through Honig’s and Webster’s critical essays, this transformation, as well as many more, and sacrifice made byRead MoreFranz Kafka s The Metamorphosis1222 Words   |  5 Pagestear you down. In Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis this destruction is what is seen in the Samsa family. Through what they believe to be necessary, Gregor’s family destroys the environment that he knows, Gregor Samsa destroys his family, a nd Mr. and Mrs. Samsa bring unnecessary destruction to both of their children. The very nature of Kafka’s The Metamorphosis is change and the effect on people. The first very obvious change is that of Gregor Samsa into a â€Å"monstrous vermin† (Kafka 3). However, oneRead MoreAnalysis Of Kafka s The Metamorphosis 989 Words   |  4 PagesRalph Freedman’s critical essay titled â€Å"Kafka’s Obscurity† on Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis delves into the idea that from changes in the protagonist’s physical limitations, familial bonds, and his being â€Å"[he] is finally reduced to a mere speck of self-awareness which is ultimately extinguished† (Freedman 131). General questions of â€Å"why† and â€Å"how† are almost immediately dismissed due to the calm and monotonous tone that Kafka implements throughout the novel. Instead, the reader is encouraged to