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"The Metamorphosis": A Look into Loneliness

"The Metamorphosis," by Franz Kafka, is a story about Gregor Samsa turning into a giant cockroach and the horrific aftermath. The inspiration for this story was when Kafka's father called one of his friends "…a flea-ridden dog and vermin (Hibberd)." Then Kafka put that metaphor into the literal. This story, then, is about the loneliness of society and what it means to be human. It shows that we are not as connected as we think we are, and that being human is not just one's outside appearance.

Gregor Samsa is the son of Senior Samsa and the breadwinner of the family. He has worked five long years so that his family could survive. He is also the one that wakes up as a giant cockroach in the beginning of the story. "One morning…Gregor Samsa found himself…transformed into a monstrous vermin (Kafka 1999)." He is also awakening from agitated dreams; reality bends and allows fantasy to take over. Gregor is ever so lonely with no one close to him, no lover or friend. His family is not close to him, since they are never shown in the story as caring. His mother isn't motherly, his sister betrays him, and his father is never understanding of him.

Gregor "…thinks of nothing but his job (Kafka 1003)." He doesn't go out in the evenings, nor does he have a true friend, someone to spend time with him. He does have a picture of a woman from a magazine that he has framed and hung on the wall. The woman has never met Gregor, nor is she likely to, but he can take in her physical beauty. Besides the picture and Grete, there seems to be no one that Gregor has even imagined a connection with. As a cockroach, Gregor is even more trapped from the outside. He cannot go outside of his room, since his family has trapped him in there.

Gregor's family is never there for him. When he dies, they do not cry but, instead, become happy and jubilant. They don't even stop to think that it was Gregor, not an unknown bug, which had died. Even though Gregor does not interact much with his family "…he felt a certain pride that he had managed to provide his parents and his sister with such a life…" (Kafka 2010). It does not take a closeness with his family to make him feel like he has a purpose. His sister, Grete, seems to be the only one who cares about him, though she eventually abandons him. The only caring thing they do is in the beginning of the story, when they decide to try to get a doctor. Besides that, they just allow him to waste away in his room, and then move things around without his permission.

Gregor tries to please when he is human, but, when he becomes a giant cockroach his family loses all respect for him. Maybe it is only his outside appearance that makes them fear him. Gregor works five long years to try to pay off his family's debt. He just wants to leave his job, but the thought of leaving his family without a home makes him keep working. His family should respect him while he is a cockroach, but, instead, they lock him up. Gregor finds out that "…some assets…had survived…" (Kafka 2013). He rationalizes by saying his father knows what's best.

Gregor awakes, in the beginning of the story, as a giant cockroach. But why a cockroach? A cockroach is a disgusting animal that crawls around and eats decaying things. The world is decaying and Gregor is living in it. All of those who wish to rise up in society have to become less than themselves. People are like cockroaches, since they are disgusting and do things that those of a higher intelligence would abhor. They prey on the weak that are like them, but they pretend to be different.

Grete Samsa is the sister of Gregor Samsa, both members of the Samsa household. She is the one who takes care of Gregor for a little while. She is shown to be the one with the most humanity in the whole story, besides Gregor. She likes to play the violin and Gregor had money saved up for her to go to the conservatory.

Grete is a good person, to start off with; she is the one who brings Gregor food. She is the one to clean up his room even though it scares her. Grete enters Gregor's room "…as if visiting a very sick patient…" (Kafka 2011). She cares for him, but she is not totally immune to the fear that seeing a giant cockroach produces. First, she takes notice of what foods that Gregor eats and which ones he leaves alone. Grete, before work, "…would use her foot to shove some random food into Gregor's room" (Kafka 2023). She does not care for Gregor anymore like she used to, if she really did care before. Before, it might have been more of a pride thing. She would not let anyone else but herself take care of him, like it was something that defined her place in the family.

Grete does not have any true connection with the rest of her family. The father appreciates her taking care of Gregor just so he does not have to deal with it. The father and mother "[express] their great appreciation of the sister's efforts…" (Kafka 2015). Even this thin connection with Gregor is destroyed when she calls him an "it." Grete has given up all hope of Gregor actually being Gregor. No longer can she see Gregor though his cockroach's form, if she really could before. Cutting her connection off with Gregor, she is freefalling in isolation from the family.

Senior Samsa is head of the household and "…had grown very fat…" (Kafka 2014). He feels that he no longer has to do the work, that all of it now rests on Gregor's shoulder. He is also very cruel to Gregor, as in one scene he throws apples at Gregor. As Gregor falls down, Senior Samsa rises up to become head of the family once again.

Senior Samsa, having grown fat and lazy, is dependent on Gregor for money. He has "…not done a lick of work in five years…" (Kafka 2014). Senior Samsa has not been very active and "…lie buried in bed…whenever Gregor started out on a business trip…" (Kafka 2019). So he has allowed Gregor to do all the work and not even tell Gregor about the money that he has saved up. He does not have Gregor know that Gregor can slow down a little bit, that Gregor does not have to work as long as he thinks he has to. Senior Samsa, though, just wants to laze about and not think of working.

"Stamping his feet, he brandished the cane and the newspaper at Gregor in order to drive him back into his room" (Kafka 2008). When Gregor gets out of his room, while his mother and sister are removing furniture, his father "…lunged toward Gregor…" (Kafka 2019). Senior Samsa is unnecessarily cruel towards Gregor. Senior seems to feel extreme hate towards Gregor, not even thinking that Gregor is still himself. Though, near the end, the father says, "If he understood us…" (Kafka 2027). The emphasis is added by me. The father refers to Gregor as a "he" at the end, making Gregor human. The sister, though, refers to Gregor as an "it" at the end. Senior Samsa seems to come to some agreement, but it does not make him totally at peace with Gregor.

"Leave my home at once!" (Kafka 2029). Senior Samsa exclaims to the three lodgers when Gregor has died. Senior has seemed to have gained some strength from Gregor's death. He gets enough strength to drive the three lodgers out. The three lodgers had been bothering the Samsa household for awhile. They had taken the best seats at the table as well as seeming to run the household. But, upon Gregor's death, Senior has enough strength to kick them out. This is disturbing, since Senior didn't take care of Gregor and yet is becoming happier than he is, or at least better off, at the end.

Anna Samsa is the wife to Senior Samsa and mother to both Gregor and Grete Samsa. A mother is supposed to be loving and caring; to live her life for her children. But Mrs. Samsa is shown as a weak figure, if a figure at all; able to be commanded by both Grete and Senior Samsa in turn. She defies the word "mother".

"Help! For God's sake, help!" (Kafka 2008). Anna exclaims when she first sees Gregor as a cockroach. She should have tried to comfort Gregor, as it was his first few minutes as a cockroach. A mother should have been there to try to comfort him, but she has decided in the way of fear. "Oh God, oh God!" (Kafka 2018). Anna says this even when she has begged to see Gregor, her being a mother is nonexistent.

"Hurry, get the doctor" (Kafka 2005). Grete commands Anna as though Grete is the mother, and Anna the daughter. Anna is such a weak "figure." She does not show any strength whatsoever and a figure would have some substance. Even the smallest figure has something, but all she does in the story is scream and faint. She cannot even keep her own job in the household. Though this, at first glance, does not appear that serious it only prepares us for worse. "…with cries of joyful excitement, the mother came over…" (Kafka 2016), though she falls silent when she reaches Gregor's door. Anna is able to be used by Grete to move furniture from Gregor's room. Besides her being manipulated to do this; Anna fails at showing Gregor any love. Anna is shown not to have any strong feelings to Gregor, while Gregor "…was simply glad that she had come despite everything" (Kafka 2016).

"Come on, get over here" (Kafka 2030), the father commands Anna and Grete at the end. He has finally taken his place as the head of the household. When he says this it sound as if Anna and Grete do not have any position but to be used. Anna, now, does not have even a little chance at having a place in the family. With this final action, Senior is not giving Anna any room to breathe.

Isolation and repression permeates to this story's depth. It is not simply feeling lonely; it is having no true connections with anyone. In life, it is the connections that create joy. Though false joys are realized, no one sees them as false. Gregor has no friends but his job; Grete has no use but taking care of Gregor for a little bit; Senior Samsa has no strength until Gregor dies; and Anna Samsa has no part at all. The Samsa family, besides Gregor, finds some of the false joys of life, rejoicing while the world is crashing own around them. This story, while funny at some points, is an overall downer. We are all doomed to live in a world that does not care for us, always making up some reason to live.

Bibliography
Goldfarb, Sheldon. "Critical Essay on "The Metamorphosis"." Short Stories for Students Vol. 12.(2001) <galenet.galegroup.com.ezproxy.… >

Hibberd, John. "The Metamorphosis: Overview." Reference Guide to World Literature 2nd ed.(1995) <galenet.galegroup.com.ezproxy.… >

Kafka, "The Metamorphosis." The Norton Anthology of world Literature. Ed. Maynard Mack. New York: W W Norton Company, 1984.

Spann, Meno. "Our Sons." Franz Kafka Vol. 12.(1958) <galenet.galegroup.com.ezproxy.… >

Description
"The Metamorphosis": A Look into Loneliness

"The Metamorphosis," by Franz Kafka, is a story about Gregor Samsa turning into a giant cockroach and the horrific aftermath. The inspiration for this story was when Kafka's father called one of his friends "…a flea-ridden dog and vermin (Hibberd)." Then Kafka put that metaphor into the literal. This story, then, is about the loneliness of society and what it means to be human. It shows that we are not as connected as we think we are, and that being human is not just one's outside appearance.

Gregor Samsa is the son of Senior Samsa and the breadwinner of the family. He has worked five long years so that his family could survive. He is also the one that wakes up as a giant cockroach in the beginning of the story. "One morning…Gregor Samsa found himself…transformed into a monstrous vermin (Kafka 1999)." He is also awakening from agitated dreams; reality bends and allows fantasy to take over. Gregor is ever so lonely with no one close to him, no lover or friend. His family is not close to him, since they are never shown in the story as caring. His mother isn't motherly, his sister betrays him, and his father is never understanding of him.

Gregor "…thinks of nothing but his job (Kafka 1003)." He doesn't go out in the evenings, nor does he have a true friend, someone to spend time with him. He does have a picture of a woman from a magazine that he has framed and hung on the wall. The woman has never met Gregor, nor is she likely to, but he can take in her physical beauty. Besides the picture and Grete, there seems to be no one that Gregor has even imagined a connection with. As a cockroach, Gregor is even more trapped from the outside. He cannot go outside of his room, since his family has trapped him in there.

Gregor's family is never there for him. When he dies, they do not cry but, instead, become happy and jubilant. They don't even stop to think that it was Gregor, not an unknown bug, which had died. Even though Gregor does not interact much with his family "…he felt a certain pride that he had managed to provide his parents and his sister with such a life…" (Kafka 2010). It does not take a closeness with his family to make him feel like he has a purpose. His sister, Grete, seems to be the only one who cares about him, though she eventually abandons him. The only caring thing they do is in the beginning of the story, when they decide to try to get a doctor. Besides that, they just allow him to waste away in his room, and then move things around without his permission.

Gregor tries to please when he is human, but, when he becomes a giant cockroach his family loses all respect for him. Maybe it is only his outside appearance that makes them fear him. Gregor works five long years to try to pay off his family's debt. He just wants to leave his job, but the thought of leaving his family without a home makes him keep working. His family should respect him while he is a cockroach, but, instead, they lock him up. Gregor finds out that "…some assets…had survived…" (Kafka 2013). He rationalizes by saying his father knows what's best.

Gregor awakes, in the beginning of the story, as a giant cockroach. But why a cockroach? A cockroach is a disgusting animal that crawls around and eats decaying things. The world is decaying and Gregor is living in it. All of those who wish to rise up in society have to become less than themselves. People are like cockroaches, since they are disgusting and do things that those of a higher intelligence would abhor. They prey on the weak that are like them, but they pretend to be different.

Grete Samsa is the sister of Gregor Samsa, both members of the Samsa household. She is the one who takes care of Gregor for a little while. She is shown to be the one with the most humanity in the whole story, besides Gregor. She likes to play the violin and Gregor had money saved up for her to go to the conservatory.

Grete is a good person, to start off with; she is the one who brings Gregor food. She is the one to clean up his room even though it scares her. Grete enters Gregor's room "…as if visiting a very sick patient…" (Kafka 2011). She cares for him, but she is not totally immune to the fear that seeing a giant cockroach produces. First, she takes notice of what foods that Gregor eats and which ones he leaves alone. Grete, before work, "…would use her foot to shove some random food into Gregor's room" (Kafka 2023). She does not care for Gregor anymore like she used to, if she really did care before. Before, it might have been more of a pride thing. She would not let anyone else but herself take care of him, like it was something that defined her place in the family.

Grete does not have any true connection with the rest of her family. The father appreciates her taking care of Gregor just so he does not have to deal with it. The father and mother "[express] their great appreciation of the sister's efforts…" (Kafka 2015). Even this thin connection with Gregor is destroyed when she calls him an "it." Grete has given up all hope of Gregor actually being Gregor. No longer can she see Gregor though his cockroach's form, if she really could before. Cutting her connection off with Gregor, she is freefalling in isolation from the family.

Senior Samsa is head of the household and "…had grown very fat…" (Kafka 2014). He feels that he no longer has to do the work, that all of it now rests on Gregor's shoulder. He is also very cruel to Gregor, as in one scene he throws apples at Gregor. As Gregor falls down, Senior Samsa rises up to become head of the family once again.

Senior Samsa, having grown fat and lazy, is dependent on Gregor for money. He has "…not done a lick of work in five years…" (Kafka 2014). Senior Samsa has not been very active and "…lie buried in bed…whenever Gregor started out on a business trip…" (Kafka 2019). So he has allowed Gregor to do all the work and not even tell Gregor about the money that he has saved up. He does not have Gregor know that Gregor can slow down a little bit, that Gregor does not have to work as long as he thinks he has to. Senior Samsa, though, just wants to laze about and not think of working.

"Stamping his feet, he brandished the cane and the newspaper at Gregor in order to drive him back into his room" (Kafka 2008). When Gregor gets out of his room, while his mother and sister are removing furniture, his father "…lunged toward Gregor…" (Kafka 2019). Senior Samsa is unnecessarily cruel towards Gregor. Senior seems to feel extreme hate towards Gregor, not even thinking that Gregor is still himself. Though, near the end, the father says, "If he understood us…" (Kafka 2027). The emphasis is added by me. The father refers to Gregor as a "he" at the end, making Gregor human. The sister, though, refers to Gregor as an "it" at the end. Senior Samsa seems to come to some agreement, but it does not make him totally at peace with Gregor.

"Leave my home at once!" (Kafka 2029). Senior Samsa exclaims to the three lodgers when Gregor has died. Senior has seemed to have gained some strength from Gregor's death. He gets enough strength to drive the three lodgers out. The three lodgers had been bothering the Samsa household for awhile. They had taken the best seats at the table as well as seeming to run the household. But, upon Gregor's death, Senior has enough strength to kick them out. This is disturbing, since Senior didn't take care of Gregor and yet is becoming happier than he is, or at least better off, at the end.

Anna Samsa is the wife to Senior Samsa and mother to both Gregor and Grete Samsa. A mother is supposed to be loving and caring; to live her life for her children. But Mrs. Samsa is shown as a weak figure, if a figure at all; able to be commanded by both Grete and Senior Samsa in turn. She defies the word "mother".

"Help! For God's sake, help!" (Kafka 2008). Anna exclaims when she first sees Gregor as a cockroach. She should have tried to comfort Gregor, as it was his first few minutes as a cockroach. A mother should have been there to try to comfort him, but she has decided in the way of fear. "Oh God, oh God!" (Kafka 2018). Anna says this even when she has begged to see Gregor, her being a mother is nonexistent.

"Hurry, get the doctor" (Kafka 2005). Grete commands Anna as though Grete is the mother, and Anna the daughter. Anna is such a weak "figure." She does not show any strength whatsoever and a figure would have some substance. Even the smallest figure has something, but all she does in the story is scream and faint. She cannot even keep her own job in the household. Though this, at first glance, does not appear that serious it only prepares us for worse. "…with cries of joyful excitement, the mother came over…" (Kafka 2016), though she falls silent when she reaches Gregor's door. Anna is able to be used by Grete to move furniture from Gregor's room. Besides her being manipulated to do this; Anna fails at showing Gregor any love. Anna is shown not to have any strong feelings to Gregor, while Gregor "…was simply glad that she had come despite everything" (Kafka 2016).

"Come on, get over here" (Kafka 2030), the father commands Anna and Grete at the end. He has finally taken his place as the head of the household. When he says this it sound as if Anna and Grete do not have any position but to be used. Anna, now, does not have even a little chance at having a place in the family. With this final action, Senior is not giving Anna any room to breathe.

Isolation and repression permeates to this story's depth. It is not simply feeling lonely; it is having no true connections with anyone. In life, it is the connections that create joy. Though false joys are realized, no one sees them as false. Gregor has no friends but his job; Grete has no use but taking care of Gregor for a little bit; Senior Samsa has no strength until Gregor dies; and Anna Samsa has no part at all. The Samsa family, besides Gregor, finds some of the false joys of life, rejoicing while the world is crashing own around them. This story, while funny at some points, is an overall downer. We are all doomed to live in a world that does not care for us, always making up some reason to live.

Bibliography
Goldfarb, Sheldon. "Critical Essay on "The Metamorphosis"." Short Stories for Students Vol. 12.(2001) <galenet.galegroup.com.ezproxy.… >

Hibberd, John. "The Metamorphosis: Overview." Reference Guide to World Literature 2nd ed.(1995) <galenet.galegroup.com.ezproxy.… >

Kafka, "The Metamorphosis." The Norton Anthology of world Literature. Ed. Maynard Mack. New York: W W Norton Company, 1984.

Spann, Meno. "Our Sons." Franz Kafka Vol. 12.(1958) <galenet.galegroup.com.ezproxy.… >