The Metamorphosis
The Metamorphosis is a novella by Franz Kafka, first published in 1915. It has been cited as one of the seminal works of fiction of the 20th century and is studied in colleges and universities across the Western world. The story begins with a traveling salesman, Gregor Samsa, waking to find himself transformed (metamorphosed) into a large, monstrous insect-like creature. The cause of Samsa's transformation is never revealed, and Kafka himself never gave an explanation. The rest of Kafka's novella deals with Gregor's attempts to adjust to his new condition as he deals with being burdensome to his parents and sister, who are repulsed by the horrible, verminous creature Gregor has become.
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Readers say Kafka’s *The Metamorphosis* is a profound, philosophical work exploring themes of dehumanization, identity, and societal roles. Reviewers ...
This novelette tells an intriguing story through metaphor, and I appreciate the approach, although I found reading it to be more challenging than expected. Maybe it was the way in which Kafka crafts his writing, or the fact that underneath it all, it's all so extremely tragic. The reader feels these ups and downs, mostly downs, throughout each part. We die with him. It doesn't help that I read this while I was sick, but I do plan on returning to this story again, and I'm optimistic about future explorations of Kafka's work.
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