Modern writers often questioned conventions within their society. Frank Kafka’s protagonist Gregor Samsa is the victim of oppression and alienation due to his transformation into a roach. Virginia Woolf’s narrator finds that women are being marginalized base on the opinions of men. According to Sascha Bru, modernist writers “depicted society in a state of disintegration and dehumanization.” (Page 111) Writers worked to break tradition and established social views. Frank Kafka’s Metamorphosis reinforced the idea of oppression and alienation through Gregor’s physical change and the reaction that his family has towards his situation. Virginia Woolf author of A Room of One’s Own illustrates the marginalization of women through the opinions
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Even before Gregor’s transformation he seemed to have feelings of alienation while he was working to support the needs of the family. “Gregor went on to earn so much money that he was able to bear, and indeed bore, the expenses of the whole family. They had just become used to it. There was no particular warmth about it.” (Page 224) Even though Gregor was successful in his job not having his family provide him with much needed gratitude made him feel robotic in his actions. The job he once had pride in no longer gave him the same reward without his families praise or thank you causing a distance to grow in him. His sister would go on to have very similar feelings after she assumes the role of Gregor’s caregiver. His inability to speak would play into his alienation from the family. “Had Gregor been able to speak to his sister and to thank her for everything she had to do for him, he would have found it a little easier to submit to her ministrations; but as it was, he suffered from them. (Page 225) Gregor knew what it was like to work hard with no thank you from the ones that matter. Now that Gregor is a bug and relies on his sister to care for him he has a desire to say thank you, but is unable to. Grete will eventually feel alienated from her brother and distance herself emotionally from him. “We must try to get rid of it,’ cried the sister again, that’s the only thing for it, father you just have to put from your mind any thought that it’s Gregor. (Page 238) Greta makes herself clear that she is done. She has alienated herself so much that “It” is no longer her brother, but a burden to her and the whole
Even before Gregor’s transformation he seemed to have feelings of alienation while he was working to support the needs of the family. “Gregor went on to earn so much money that he was able to bear, and indeed bore, the expenses of the whole family. They had just become used to it. There was no particular warmth about it.” (Page 224) Even though Gregor was successful in his job not having his family provide him with much needed gratitude made him feel robotic in his actions. The job he once had pride in no longer gave him the same reward without his families praise or thank you causing a distance to grow in him. His sister would go on to have very similar feelings after she assumes the role of Gregor’s caregiver. His inability to speak would play into his alienation from the family. “Had Gregor been able to speak to his sister and to thank her for everything she had to do for him, he would have found it a little easier to submit to her ministrations; but as it was, he suffered from them. (Page 225) Gregor knew what it was like to work hard with no thank you from the ones that matter. Now that Gregor is a bug and relies on his sister to care for him he has a desire to say thank you, but is unable to. Grete will eventually feel alienated from her brother and distance herself emotionally from him. “We must try to get rid of it,’ cried the sister again, that’s the only thing for it, father you just have to put from your mind any thought that it’s Gregor. (Page 238) Greta makes herself clear that she is done. She has alienated herself so much that “It” is no longer her brother, but a burden to her and the whole