Gregor Sansa is the main protagonist of ‘The Metamorphosis’, he works hard and takes responsibility for managing all the finances of his family. One day he wakes up to realize that he's transformed into a “monstrous verminous bug” (3) and from there on his condition leads to his demise. During his isolation/alienation from his job and his regular way of life, we see that the worst feature of his life now is not his metamorphosis but the ignorance with which people treat his transformation. It is clear that he found his meaning in his family and consequently loves his family very much, especially his younger sister, Grete, who he acknowledges to be a great violin player. His intention was to eventually be able to afford to educate her at a good music school, however, his condition prevents him from having any further ambitions of such sort. It is quite evident that Gregor is an observational character and one that would not harm anyone or come in their way of life (eg: when he hides under the bed in order to not make it awkward for his sister or when he didn’t want to make it hard on his father while trying to get back to his room). But now he is the reason for his family’s struggle to take on the burden of being breadwinners while they try to accept the situation. Because of this attitude of relying on the self, he forgets to understand what other people really intend. His relationship with his parents is somewhat Freudian, meaning that he has deep emotions for his mother and finds his mother’s presence somewhat reassuring while he does not have similar relations with his father. Frank Kafka makes the reader really feel for Gregor especially when the manager, who thinks of Gregor as a calm and reasonable man leaves the apartment after checking on him and not understanding a word he speaks from behind the door. Gregor who is helplessly hopeless still tries hard to convey the importance of the job for him and how seriously he takes it. With all this, Gregor loses the foundation upon which his existence is built and he goes into a state of self-criticism and isolation, eventually dying of starvation.
Answers to Popular Questions
What role does the body play in grounding perception and meaning? What consequences does a change in bodily form have for Gregor? In which respects does Gregor change throughout the story?
Early in the text, it's seen that Gregor’s body transformation to a bug affects his consciousness, but he slowly understands the limits of his body consciousness and re-adjusts his way of perceiving. Immediately after he awakens, his physical appearances and perspectives seemed to have changed but Gregor realizes later that his voice has transformed into that of a bug’s as well, meanwhile, his memory, reasoning, and self-awareness seem to have stayed on. His scene with the Manager reveals the details of his physical performance to a greater depth, especially with his ability to move and speak. His room seems to have become too big for him, the furniture seems to be oppressing him, he prefers closed windows and dirt, but all these changes can be seen as not just arising from his transformation but all reactions from people to his condition. He finds himself amused with the feeling of hanging from the ceiling, an ability he wouldn’t have been able to perform when he was a human. His taste of food changes and he now likes more rotten or less fancy food. All this shows how perception is grounded in the body itself and we make meaning from the senses that we sense and process.
In what ways does “The Metamorphosis” speak to contemporary life? In what ways is the story dissonant with our contemporary situation?
The Metamorphosis illustrates the way of life of a great number of people. The struggle to exist in society and deny one’s freedom in order to accomplish responsibilities, needs, and wants is central to how Gregor analyzes his condition and how most of us live. Moreover, the relationships that he had founded with his family and work prove to be of superficial natures, something similar in many people’s lives. But the overarching theme that resonates with contemporary life is the struggle to find meaning in one’s life and to accept the absurd amount of freedom one has. This is the human condition and all of us have to go through it. Like Gregor, most people live in bad faith, they deny their freedom and accept the responsibilities that shouldered upon them. These demands that society and family have placed on man has and forever will make it seem that one cannot escape one’s condition. This can be seen in humanity especially in modern times due to the heavy focus on earning and making a living in order to survive and the constant need to contribute to the human way of life. Moreover, feelings of existential crisis and alienation are prevalent more than ever and in order to move on one must hide their insecurities and be responsible.
Which existential themes are most prominent in Kafka’s story? What does the story tell us about the nature of existence and/or experience? Support your claims with passages in the text and your own interpretations of them.
One can see many existential themes running through the text. Gregor's condition has forced him to have an existential crisis. After his transformation, Gregor cannot see a future where he is able to take control of his life anymore and all he can do is react to the situation. Unable to grasp the condition that he has been involuntarily placed in, still believing in “calm reflection” (9) and assuring himself that everything will become normal again sometime, he is in bad faith initially. By doing this, he is what Sartre would say “playing with his condition in order to realize it”, reducing his existence to what may come in the future (i.e. transcendence), but this is something worth a debate, especially since his facticity has now changed from a human to that of a bug and looking at the absurdity of his life one cannot go into a downward spiral of sadness of such sort. Moreover, he has also had a life previously of playing that of a traveling salesman, he hated his job but he was stuck and so he played his role and denied his freedom, thereby being according to Sartre, in bad faith (3). Through his reflection of his life as a human, we see that his alienation from the world was not just prevalent after his metamorphosis but also before. His initial pride in supporting his family faded when his father had expected it from him, his relationships as a result of traveling to other humans at work have also been superficial and one of complying with authority. Clearly, the experience of this transformation to a bug has been hard on him, but the most prominent nature of existence is seen here, he exists first, and his essence can only later be built from his existence. He is now free to make his own meaning or as later seen he is liberated from his previous lifestyle and his most sense of calm is achieved when he is about to die.