Gregor Samsa Transforms into a Hideous Creature , Franz...

Lying on an unfamiliar back, Gregor Samsa lifts his black beady head and looks down at his vaulted brown belly which is now covered by arch-shaped ribs. Readers are taken aback when Gregor Samsa wakes to finds himself transformed into a â€Å"monstrous vermin†; and one cannot help but instinctively cringe in disgust at the idea of transforming into a creature as repulsive as a giant insect. In Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis, Kafka’s choice of a vermin as an agent for Gregor’s transformation is not random. The significance of the bug is extensive as this symbol not only represents the meaninglessness and emptiness of Gregor’s life as a man, but also reflects the impersonal and dehumanizing treatment of Gregor by his family and society alike. Our connotations and associated sentiments as a society with vermin, as we understand them as unwanted pests and somewhat repulsive creatures, allows Kafka to express the pointless and empty existence of the mo dern man. When Gregor awakes, transformed, his disgust with himself as a bug parallels the disgust he holds with his pitiful human life. Kafka’s diction and tone draws this parallel as he describes Gregor’s â€Å"many legs, pitifully thin compared with the size of the rest of him, were waving helplessly before his eyes† (1). It is confirmed that Gregor is a pathetic character when he reflects upon his army days, and it becomes understood that he considers those years, ironically, to be his glory days. He looks at a photograph of himselfShow MoreRelatedData Sheet Analysis for Kafkas Metamorphosis Essay4848 Words   |  20 Pagesa Word version of this sheet. | | |Details of the setting (include changes in setting): | |Author: Franz Kafka |The entirety of the novel takes place within the confines of the | | |Samsas apartment, save for the final paragraphRead MoreThe Metamorphosis By Franz Kafka1435 Words   |  6 PagesIn Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis, readers are thrown into a fictional setting in which the main character; Gregor Samsa, transforms into a cockroach. As a response to Gregor’s metamorphosis, his mother and his sister patiently attempt to take care of him and make him as comfortable as they can. However, Gregor’s father’s love is challenged by Gregor’s drastic change in appearance and becomes less patient, acting in complete hatred towards his son. The Metamorphosis is both a cruel and tragic story