The Role Of Franz Kafka's Family In The Metamorphosis

In the novella, The Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka, Freudianism is used to show the dysfunctional family relationships in Kafka's life through Gregor, the protagonist. The relationship between Gregor Samsa and his father is skewed by his father being an abusive parent and forcing Gregor to do the job of a parent. Additionally, Gregor is attracted to his sister Grete, which although he never acts on it, it is an incestuous relationship. Furthermore, Gregor's mother does not help Gregor and care for him. She is even referred to as "the mother" showing that there is no real connection between them. In The Metamorphosis, Kafka uses Gregor Samsa’s family, to express the flawed relationships between Kafka and his family, which ultimately change the traditional family standards.
Sigmund Freud was a physiologist, medical doctor, and father of psychoanalysis who is generally recognized as one of the most influential and …show more content…
Kafka uses Gregor’s relationship with his sister to exemplify the misfortune of not being able to keep his own relationships. Gregor describes Grete’s appearance when she decides to check up on him early one morning. Kafka writes, “By early morning- it was still almost night-Gregor had a chance to test the strength of the resolutions he had just made, for the sister, almost fully dressed, opened the vestibule door and suspensefully peered in” (pg. 144). When Grete comes into Gregor’s room to check on him, Gregor describes her being almost fully dressed. This type of description is found multiple times in the novella and validates that Gregor thinks of his sister in a sexual way. However, since he cannot keep a romantic relationship, his sister who once cared for him eventually stops attending to his needs. At the beginning of Gregor’s metamorphosis Grete brings Gregor different types of food. Kafka