Kafka's Metamorphosis-Summary

Improved Essays
Introduction
Gregor had one of the worst lives anyone can ever have. His parents hoarded his money, they made him work for them and made it so they relied on him. “Behind his door Gregor nodded emphatically, delighted at this unexpected foresight and thrift. Of course he actuallly could have paid off more of his father’s debt to the boss with this extra money.” The readers should care about this because he’s being used. Gregor has been used, abused and thrown away like a napkin.
First point
In part one Gregor’s father abused him by hitting him with a cane while he was trying to get out of the house to chase his boss so his boss wouldn’t be able to leave and so that he can talk to him to make him understand. “Gregor had never had any practice in moving backwards and was only able to go very slowly. If Gregor had only been allowed to turn round he would have been back in his room straight away, but he was afraid that if he
…show more content…
It was an apple; then another one immediately flew at him; Gregor froze in shock; there was no longer any point in running as his father had decided to bombard him. He had filled his pockets with fruit from the bowl on the sideboard and now, without even taking the time for careful aim, threw one apple after another.” point 3
When Gregor died his family didn’t show any sign of sympathy they just stood there and then went on with their lives and lived happy lives. “Mrs. Samsa made a movement as if she wanted to hold back the broom, but did not complete it. "Now then", said Mr. Samsa, "let's give thanks to God for that". He crossed himself, and the three women followed his example. Grete, who had not taken her eyes from the corpse, said: "Just look how thin he was. He didn't eat anything for so long. The food came out again just the same as when it went in."”

Related Documents

  • Improved Essays

    Gregor Samsa underwent many changes in The Metamorphosis , however, this story also portrays minor characters’ transformation. Gregor's metamorphosis complicates the circumstances, considering the Samsa family already had financial problems to deal with. After Gregor dies, the family's financial problems fail to subside, but they no longer need to support their son. He was a burden on the family and it was difficult for them to take care of him. Afterwards, everything seemed to resolve itself, which restored peace in the family.…

    • 489 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    In the novella “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka, Gregor, a middle aged man living at home with his two parents and his younger sister, is the sole provider for his family. One morning, Gregor wakes up to find that he has been transformed into a bug, and his family’s greatest fears are met. Normally, people would analyze Kafka’s work and find that Kafka illustrates the unfortunate and difficult decisions between caring for a family member that is in trouble, or leaving them to their own devices. But what if someone thought that Gregor was never human at all, but just a slave blindly working to support his family without any recognition at all. Gregor’s family’s greatest fears are made apparent once it is clear that Gregor is no longer able…

    • 2178 Words
    • 9 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    “We are driven by five genetic needs: survival, love and belonging, power, freedom, and fun” - William Glasser. In kafka’s “The Metamorphosis”, the will and want to belong in show quite plainly by a man whose life is completely turned around. Gregor’s, an average working man, body is transformed into a bug, and he slowly is becoming misunderstood and resented, leaving nothing to belong to. He loses his job and even his own family does not love him any longer. He is forced into becoming an outsider by a body transformation.…

    • 827 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Improved Essays

    His father felt as if Gregor wasn’t still “in” there and he found him to be a burden on the family. Here is a quote from the book when Gregor’s father tried to kill Gregor using nothing more than fruit “He had filled his pockets with fruit from the bowl on the sideboard and now, without even taking the time for careful aim, threw one apple after another. These little, red apples rolled about on the floor, knocking into each other as if they had…

    • 582 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    His father attacked Gregor because “it was clear his father had misinterpreted Grete’s all too brief pronouncement to assume him guilty of some act of violence” (80). He shows fear because his father attacked him with apples and severely damaged him. His fear was justified because of “the grievous wound Gregor had received, which plagued him for over a month – the apple remained lodged in his flesh, a visible memento, since no one dared to remove it” (85). The attack left him damaged to the point of that the “wound cost Gregor some of his mobility, probably for good, and for the time being he required many, many minutes to hobble across hi room like an old invalid” (86). Gregor showed symptoms of fear through two different…

    • 1709 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    . . Well, I haven’t given up hope completely; once i’ve gotten the money together to pay off my parents’ debts to him- . . . Then I’m going to make the big break” (Kafka 4). In this quote, Gregor talks about how miserable he is in his current job, but cannot leave because of his father’s debts. Gregor’s father, Mr. Samsa, is an emotionally abusive person because Gregor is forced to pay off his fathers debts.…

    • 1009 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Society has had class systems for many years, and they have been a cause for much suffering for many. In Franz Kafkas “The Metamorphosis” Gergor’s social out-casting was the result of a society that viewed value of a person by the work they have done. The results of societies castigation of Gregor bring his unfortunate situation to light. Gregor’s interactions before his transformation, his interactions with his family after the transformation, and the disconnection of Gregor’s body and mind show the devastating effect on him. Societies view on values and work was shown in Grergor’s interactions with his peers, before the transformation, and that is shown in his interactions within his job and peers.…

    • 1014 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    The initial conclusion one can draw from the critique of modern culture by both Kafka and Eliot in their portrayals of modern man is that it is them placed in these settings and their literature is simply an outlet for said critique. The modernist sentiments expressed in their works were, in part, universally held opinions amongst literary contemporaries of theirs and as such were not only a veritable representation of them coming to grips with the reality of the world around them, but also of course how they particularly dealt with issues on an individual basis. Issues of spirituality, crises of identity and the ability to overcome the very trappings of the harsh times they existed in were at the forefront of their works. Kafka employed a…

    • 1007 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Gregor feels very much unappreciated by his family members. His father is very strict with him. Therefore,…

    • 1113 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Isolation from the world and other people, can sometimes be good for people. For those that choose to step back and take a break from the world, isolation can be a time of growth and self discovery. However, if a person is forced into isolation, like Gregor Samsa and the angel were, it has a completely different effect. For the angel in “The Very Old Man with Enormous Wings” and Gregor Samsa in “The Metamorphosis” their isolation was physical as well as mental.…

    • 1350 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Great Essays

    When Gregor leaves his room after his mother and sister attempt to remove his furniture from his room, Mr. Samsa goes into another episode of outrage, resulting in him tossing an apple and lodging it into Gregor 's back. During this outcry, Gregor is surprised to see his father is not so helpless as he imagined him. Kafka writes, "Truly, this was not the father he had imagined to himself; admittedly he had been to absorbed of late in his new recreation of crawling over the ceiling to take the same interest as before in what was happening elsewhere in the flat… And yet, and yet, could that be his father?" (120).…

    • 1776 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Great Essays

    Gregor’s need for acceptance in society prevents him from obtaining a sense of identity, which is why he also feels the need for conformity as it gives him the false sense of identity he needs to satisfy his humanity. “I’m subjected to this torment of traveling, to the worries about train connections, the bad meals at irregular hours… The devil take it all!” (11-12). Gregor’s expressions of discontent with his job reveal that he has only undertaken this job to submit to the will of his father and the role of a son in a capitalistic society.…

    • 1855 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Great Essays
  • Improved Essays

    (19) This is meant to connect Gregor’s father to the snake/Satan in the Bible, as Adam and Eve were also lured by the “intolerable hissing sound.” Later on, Gregor’s father also throws apples at Gregor, in retaliation to feeling provoked and disgusted upon seeing him. The second apple “literally forced its way into Gregor’s back.” (39)…

    • 1046 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays
  • Superior Essays

    Sports Debate

    • 1312 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Sports debate is a hobby that I am most passionate for. A reason I am so fond of this hobby is because it includes two of my favorite things: sports and arguing. I constantly find myself tuning into ESPN to watch ESPN first take or Fox Sports to watch Undisputed. These two sports debate shows take up most of most mornings as I would sit watching the art of oration between two well prepared candidates. Unlike sports debate, writing papers was not one of my hobbies.…

    • 1312 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Superior Essays
  • Improved Essays

    Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” depicts the tragic fate of a person whose only focus in life was to provide financial support to his family. Gregor, the family’s sole breadwinner, is trapped in a meaningless job, which is of necessity and not choice, and is isolated from the human beings. He is bonded to a company that owns his body and soul and treats him no better than insect. His life is spent in service of others: “The boy has nothing in his head but the company.” The family is careless about the imbalance in family responsibility.…

    • 1048 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Improved Essays