A family facing transformation
Follow body, work and care in The Metamorphosis, from Gregor’s awakening to the family’s outing after his death.
An original introduction. This guide accompanies the work; it is neither the complete text nor a translation.
Situating the text
Written in late 1912, shortly after The Judgment, it appeared in 1915 in the review Die weißen Blätter and then as a small book. Kafka asked his publisher not to have the insect itself drawn on the cover; translators differ on how to render the German word “Ungeziefer”. Gregor Samsa, a travelling salesman who supports his parents and sister, wakes one morning transformed into a monstrous vermin. In three parts, the story follows his confinement to his room, the family’s growing exhaustion and his death, after which his relieved family plans a new life.
Following the arguments
Literal event : The transformation is never explained or presented as a dream; its consequences are recorded with sober, almost administrative precision. Family and work : Gregor’s first worries concern his job and the train he has missed; the story reveals how far the family depended on his wages and how roles shift once he can no longer earn. Point of view : Most of the story keeps to Gregor’s limited perspective, until the final pages turn to the family after his death and change the tone.
Continuing the reading
Read the first paragraph slowly, then compare the sister’s attitude across the three parts without fixing the insect into a single allegory. Written in late 1912, shortly after The Judgment, it appeared in 1915 in the review Die weißen Blätter and then as a small book. Kafka asked his publisher not to have the insect itself drawn on the cover; translators differ on how to render the German word “Ungeziefer”.
Kafka’s strangeness lies less in the impossible event than in the ordinary reactions it brings to light.
Your turn to think.
- Why does Gregor worry more about his missed train than about his new body?
- How does Grete’s attitude toward her brother change across the three parts?
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