Personality Theory In Kafka's The Metamorphosis

The twentieth century was an incredible period for the development of psychology. This era was full of many promotions in the area of psychology. These advances in turn influenced artists and writers in the art and literary community. Psychological progressions in the area of dreams and the subconscious inspired the surrealist movement that came about during this time. Literature also felt the influence of the newly discovered deeper mind and often alluded to, or symbolized, new age theories in the stories. Sigmund Freud was a psychologist who explored the human mind, deeper and more thoroughly than anyone before him ever had. He was fascinated by the unconscious mind. Freud’s passion for our deeper thoughts, feelings, and motivations lead …show more content…
One of his most popular theories is present in many texts. This is the personality theory. In this theory, Freud breaks down the personality into three categories; the id, the ego, and the superego. These three levels are easily and often represented in the literature of the twentieth century. One example in particular is Kafka’s, The Metamorphosis. The characters in the story each represent one of the three parts of Freud’s personality model. The three categories of personality are portrayed by the main character, Gregor’s, mother, father, and sister. The id is defined by Sigmund Freud as the type of personality that is most like a child because it is driven by the pleasure principle and expects instant gratification. The ego is the mediator between the id and the superego. The ego justifies and realistically fulfills certain impulses of the id in a way that is acceptable. The superego, on the opposite end of the spectrum from the id, is the portion of one’s personality that provides morals, guidelines, and judgements based on society and what is right. This work of literature, and multiple others, contain many symbols and components that allude to Freudian