Metamorphosis Literary Analysis

In many stories, characters are pulled in conflicting directions by ambitions, obligations, desires, and influences. The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka is a piece of literature that incorporates multiple conflicts. The Metamorphosis is about a man who transforms into a giant insect and struggles mentally and physically when obligations, ambitions, desires, and influences affect his life. Although there are constant conflicts within his mind and body, it is crucial for these occurrences to arise in the story. With an analysis of the conflicts of Gregor's family and self, the meaning of the story through the protagonists view illuminates the meaning behind his piece of work. Working is one of Gregor’s obligations but after his metamorphosis he faced a conflict within himself that he could not cope with. Without him supporting the family, they would not have been able to live the life they did. They would have struggled to make payments and have food on the …show more content…
Without Gregor’s obligations and ambitions the irony of the story would have been altered. One form of irony is how Gregor acted like a bug before his transition because he allowed everyone to step all over him and then he changed into a cockroach. His mindset, family, and the financial situation guided him to his metamorphosis. Another form of irony from the literature includes how Gregor, before he turned into an insect, took care of his family and began to hate the consequences. When he turned into a cockroach, his family felt obliged to care for him and toward the end of the piece, they saw this as a burden hanging over the family. In addition, without Gregor's ambition to bring back normalcy, there would not have been such an emphasis on his change from a human to a cockroach because throughout The Metamorphosis, Gregor becomes less interested in being human and developes more insect