The Metamorphosis By Franz Kafka

The Metamorphosis: Critical Essay

“Just because your doctor has a name for your condition, does not mean that he knows what it is,” Franz Kafka’s chilling maxim alludes to the remarkable lore behind his masterful novella, The Metamorphosis. Franz Kafka was born in 1883 in Prague to a businesswoman and a haberdasher (Kafka’s Life 2). His parents’ high expectations caused him to struggle to maintain relationships with them throughout his life (Sokel 106). This matter crossed over into Kafka’s melancholy story where the main character, Gregor Samsa, becomes burdened by his parents’ debt, ultimately driving him to no longer have the will to live (Sokel 106). Throughout the story, Gregor quickly loses control of his past life, by means of the

It is reasonable to say that Gregor is considered the head of the household, since he is the sole source of income for the family (Kafka 4). There cannot be a greater stress for a man than the inability to provide for his family. A younger man like Gregor cannot carry an entire family on his back. Gregor might not express this to his parents, but the displeasure for his job is substantial, specifically reiterating the emotional strain that gets carried with it (Kafka 4). No person can thrive, emotionally or physically, with all of that stress on them. The expectancy from Gregor’s parents to provide for four people, given his destructive mindset, is sheer cruelty. The only reason as to why Gregor is holding the job position in the first place, is because of his parents’ debt to the boss (Kafka 4, 5). Debt has the potential to put people in a cage, and unfortunately for Gregor, he is now in charge of making up for his parents’ money mismanagement. Family success is based on the whole family's’ contribution and cooperation. Gregor needs his family to pitch in, showing that they care about the great sacrifices he is

When Gregor wakes up, he identifies himself as a vermin, while his family perceives him as asinine (Kafka 10). Gregor paints this picture in his mind that he really has transformed into this otherworldly being. This dismal man is operating under an illusion of his own making. The extent of Gregor’s disillusionment was so deep, that he was able to experience human emotions, yet was unable to see the games his mind was playing (Kafka 20, 51) The mind is the most powerful generator of truth and misconception. This fabricated life that Gregor has created, in the recesses of his mind, becomes his reality. Being quarantined in his room, starving himself, and becoming this thing that has no place in God’s creation, are all products of Gregor’s failure of mind (Kafka 51, 43, 3). The collapsing of Gregor’s mind causes nothing but blindness to his real problem, which is delusion and deception. This hysteria makes Gregor completely crash in on himself, becoming just a simple shell of the able provider that he used to