AP Blog Post The Metamorphosis

     I found The Metamorphosis to be one of the most interesting works I have read. The Metamorphosis is Franz Kafka's famous story describing the transformation of a man, Gregor Samsa, into a large bug and explores themes of rejection and sympathy. Gregor's transformation causes him to be difficult to interact with because he lacks the ability to speak and his appearance generally causes other people want to avoid contact with him. This transformation also revealed to Gregor the unhappiness he felt in his life even before his transformation. Gregor's work as a traveling salesman left him feeling isolated and unhappy even before his transformation. His work made it difficult to form real lasting relationships, and it seems his family, the only people he really had to rely on, failed him when he needed them the most. The Samsa family also seemed to accept the awful misfortune that had befallen them, and allowed it in a way to dominate their lives. This feeling of self-pity and hopeless acceptance of the situation rotted the Samsa family worse than the loss of the economic support Gregor had previously provided. I believe this novella also explores ideas involving death and how quickly things can change beyond our control. Gregor, in a way, died. He transformed into a figure which was alienated and caused his family extreme grief. He could no longer contribute to his family, his job, or even really to his own personal advancement. He required the assistance of his sister to continue an existence and his family had all but buried him underground. Gregor's unhappiness with his life before his transformation was also revealed after his transformation. I would say Gregor learned something about his life in this "death" that would have transformed the way he was previously living, causing him in a way to learn to live life in a meaningful way or at least to look at it from a much different perspective.