This is the blog -- the electronic home -- for Advanced Placement English Literature and Composition for the class of two-thousand eleven at Gloucester (MA) High School.
While reading Metamorphosis, one of the things that most intrigued me was Gregor Samsa's lack of curiosity about his transformation. He takes the change relatively calmly, and seems much more upset by his “grueling profession” (p.7 Barnes and Noble Classics) than he does about his insect form. I know that if I woke up one morning as a dung beetle I would have been remarkably more concerned than Gregor appears to be. As I was searching around for different interpretations of Kafka's plot, I cam across an interesting theory by Conor Fitzgerald on Associated Content. He suggests that Gregor's transformation was not a metamorphosis at all, but rather a realization of his role in the family all along (that of a dung beetle/unappreciated provider) Gregor's indifference about how the change occurred compliments that theory. If he was in fact a dung beetle all along, it would not matter how this change occurred, only how his family reacted to it. The lack of appreciation becomes clear as soon as Gregor is rendered unable to provide for his family. The physical change only serves to demonstrate more clearly Gregor's position in the household. Fitzgerald also points out that dung beetles are typically providing insects, they work as the caretakers for their nests/hives. I think that Kafka's choice of animal also symbolizes the general disgust that readers feel about his family, especially Gregor's father. He is an unsavory character which we can ell by the way he treats Gregor. He is perhaps the reason that Gregor does not hold any real weight in the family, despite being the primary provider.
Louisa, I think that you took the transformation of Gregor into a dung beetle a little too seriously. Kafka is a very morbid and ironic writer. The fact that Kafka had Gregor more focused on getting to work rather than worry about his current condition was just used to prove one of his long held ideas, “Vermin is in the eye of the beholder.” That being said, we hardly ever felt slightly revolted by Gregor’s condition while he is a dung beetle, instead we are enraged by the way he is treated by his family, who have been so dependent on him in the past. I don’t think at all that Gregor was ever like an insect to the rest of his family, instead I believe that his family were parasites feeding off his strong desire and love of providing for the family.
As the major patriarchal figure before the transformation, Gregor was ravaged by the company he worked for. Living a somewhat monochromatic life, memorizing train schedules, and trying to be a good salesman. Speaking of vermin, salesmen are often times attributed with being lousy and just trying to scam the money out of your pocket. The sales company itself is lousy, They barely give Gregor time off and are very strict when it comes to work. Gregor must make sales and he must be at work promptly, no matter what. The company already dehumanizes Gregor, So its very ironic that Gregor is last scene by the representative and eventually loses his job because he is not human.
As for the animal choice. Superficially dung beetles are absolutely revolting. But what people don’t understand is the good that dung beetles do. They do not encroach on other animals or are even of any inconvenience to humans. They just go about their business wallowing in filth. But dung beetles have been known to help enrich soil, thus promoting crop growth and greener pastures.
To being my discussion I first off want to state that I find strong similarities between our thoughts and ideas. I agree with Louisa’s statement about Gregors lack of curiosity about his transformation. I feel that a great part of the story lacks a true in depth description. I feel like this story is much like that of Beowulf in a sense that you cannot feel the 3D nature. I feel that everything I am reading is missing something. Who wakes up in the morning a beetle and doesn’t ask how or why? The story lacks the who’s, what’s, when’s and where’s.
I spent some time looking up possible inputs about The Metamorphosis and found a similar article that relates to my thoughts. Conor Fitzgerald, writes and article that I strongly agree with. He connects to Louisa’s discussion about how he doesn’t care about his transformation. It also connects to Evans about linking his reactions to that of his household. Kafka is saying that Gregors life can be compared to that of a beetle. Both just focus on purely work. The lack of interest in his life was similar to that of the beetle leading to similar lives. I feel like a door has been opened in this article because it almost had the same exact thoughts I had from reading. Ok I also just noted that Louisa and I have the same background reading and I had no idea. I however am going to add to the discussion by possibility saying that what if the beetle is not representing his family nor himself but representing race. The book was written in a time when Germany was about to being World War I. Germany was unstable, could he be relating the beetle to Germany neglecting the rest of the world. It’s more of a history question than an English but I thought I would throw it out there. I feel like we need to focus more on the time period and Germany’s state.
Re-reading my previous post I think the point that I was trying to make was that Gregor was playing the role of an insect even before he physically became one. Evan, you point out that salesmen are generally disliked and under-appreciated, and that Gregor's career is dehumanizing him. This lends itself to my theory. If Gregor has already become alienated from society and his family before his transformation then exactly what “metamorphosis” is Kafka pointing out? After grappling with this question in my quotation response journal I keep coming back to the same answer- that we are meant to pay more attention to the transformation that Gregor's family makes rather than Gregor himself.
At the end of the book the focus is definitely not on Gregor but rather on the hope discovered by his family after his death. While Gregor is alive and living as a beetle in their house there is undeniably a lot of change that occurs. His sister Grete develops into a much stronger character, as displayed by her possessiveness of the task of cleaning Gregor's room. His mother and father become more independent now that they cannot relay on Gregor's income and his previously sluggish father grows into a man who can take care of his family.
Evan, you also brought up the fact that his family were “parasites feeding off his[Gregor's] strong desire and love of providing for his family”. This is undoubtedly true, in the beginning Gregor's family takes full advantage of his generosity (whether consciously or not). This seems to be the same sort of relationship that humans have with dung beetles (as you point out in your last paragraph). We take their contributions for granted much in the same way that Gregor's family take his contributions. However as soon as the metamorphosis occurs the tables are turned and Gregor is forced to be dependent on his family for a change. At this point Gregor becomes the parasite and it is this change that catalyzes the transformation of his family.
Evan and Louisa, you both believe that Gregor is a parasite sucking off the family. What I wonder is what he is sucking off of. Everyone in his family besides Grete completely neglects Gregor after his metamorphosis. Halfway through the book after the transformation I thought that the beetle was a symbol for his family to love Gregor again. I felt that his life was too repetitive and that his family did not value him. After the transformation I thought that his family would mourn over the death of his son. The transformation I thought would be in their eyes equivocal to death. The family however did the opposite of what I thought and actually neglected Gregor even more.
I am disturbed preceding reading the book that his family could completely neglect their son after his tragic transformation. Evan I believe that you are making the best points through the symbolism of the beetle. I concur that the family is a parasite sucking off the wealth of Gregor. I however disagree that the role of the parasite switches, I still believe that Gregor’s parents were still the parasite sucking the life out of Gregor. If it was not for his parents Gregor would not have worked so much nor would he have stuck with the job like he stated in the book. Following the transformation Gregors parents not only sucked more of the life out of him, they drove him to his death.
Andrew, I never ever said that Gregor was a parasite, Instead I insisted it was his family. Even when Gregor is turned into an insect, all of his actions are for the betterment of his family. The daughter(Gregor's sister) may seem as if she is living for him but in reality she is just helping the up keep in hopes that Gregor might get well and shatter off his beetle apearence. Grgor hides under the sofa and later the bed sheet many times to try and spare his apearance from the others. When the family comes to grip and realizes that Gregor is never going to get better (Mind you this was after Gregor came out of his room, messmerized by his sister's violin playing, trying to give her an ample audience because the gentlemen who were renting the rooms were clearly not amused, he is messmerized because of the human emotion that was so tangible to him which he never had as a human, of his sister, whom he really loved playing the violin to the best of her abilities. He rarely ever got to hear her play while he was human.) He sister however is anything but thrilled with Gregor being tantalized by her violin playin, "..she even abandoned the mother, she literally bolted from the chair as if she would rather sacrifice the mother than stay in the vicinity of Gregor." The sister is clearly revolted theres no argument there, But she also is the one who first states that something must be don about Gregor, "My dear parents, said the sister, pounding the table with her hand by way of introduction, things can't go on like this..". The change in the sisters attitude is brought about by lack of hope and the realization of her own ability to do something for herself., she even stops feeding Gregor.
Gregor finally decides to die and soon he can no longer even feel the rotten apple stuck into his side, a constant "itch" which he cannot scratch, a constant mentalreminder that Gregor can no longer do anything to provide for his family, only to excuse himself. But when Gregor dies and the family goes out to the country side we our left with the stark image of the young sister stretching her nimble limbs and the thought of her beauty and that she would one day make a good wife. This is a strong contrast to Gregor's shrivelled body that is found by the charwomen. Gregor died just as he lived trying to give his family happiness!!!
P.S. The family never looked back at his shrivelled corpse.
and it was only until he was dead that they realized
Symbiosis- Definition--is close and often long-term interactions between different biological species.
Dung beetles need cows crap to live-Cows need to dung beetles to make the ground more fertile and promote better grass.
Gregor is both the cow and the beetle.
Before the transformation he is the one putting food on the table. Dropping manure for his family to eat, But they didnt in return roll it into a ball and make the soil better. Instead they demand more, MORE SHIT FROM GREGOR THE COW. This just means more bullshit that he has to deal with in his pasture, since there's no one to roll it for him.
So it makes sense that he would later be transformed into a beatle and then finally taking shit from the family, but just having to "roll with it".
I'M SORRY THAT IM FREAKING OUT RIGHT NOW, I REALLY DON'T KNOW WHY I FEEL COMPELLED TO KEEP MY CAPS LOCK ON TO ASSERT MY ANGER VIA BLOG. It's just I'M EVAN KIDDER and I'm very upset and I didn't mean to offend Mr. Cook by swearing on his blog.
It's just reading Kafka makes me very sad with my life, because all he talks about as death being the only way to realize purpose, and I really wish he didn't use Gregor as a martyr and have him die covered in "Soft Dust", which I interpreted as feces, and then the way he made me feel happy at the end of the book because "somehow" Gregor's death was for a purpose and the sister gets to live on, even though gregor worked so hard for her to begin with.
First off Evan I think you need to come down in your blogs. Second of all I want to open up the conversation regarding the sheet. I feel that the sheet and the sofa are much more symbolic than expected.
In the novel Gregor tries to hide underneath the sofa and protect his identity from his family. I wonder if he is trying to protect himself or is he trying to protect his family. I for one hope he is just protecting himself because I am not particularly happy with his families behaviors. I believe that the sheet represents his happiness and the sofa represents timidity. Gregor hides underneath the sofa but is still seen. Just like how he hides underneath his timidity in his real life. Gregor was like the white sheet over the sofa. Looking at the sheet you could still see what was really on the other side much like Gregor and his happiness. On the outside Gregor appeared not happy but content however on the inside he was miserable. Happiness was covering him up along with his timidity. If Gregor had more confidence, then I believe he would have quit his job and moved out of his house. This leads me to think more about the post modernistic view and how dystopian novels emerged. Metamorphosis strongly reminds me somewhat of a dystopian novel because of the lack of sense it makes. I feel like much of the story is dark and cannot me made sense of. This leads me to believe that is portrays some characteristics of a dystopian novel, a theme that was becoming very popular in the post modernism era.
Ok, well clearly my presence on the blog over these last few hours has been dearly missed. Evan, I lost you about 4 posts ago. How is Gregor a cow? What “shit” are you talking about? I do agree with you about the ending however. In some of my background reading on Kafka I learned that Kafka himself was not content with the ending, but chose to publish it anyways. It draws a sense of hope from the readers but it is with great reluctance that we embrace this feeling, given that it seems to be drawn from Gregor's demise. We don't want to feel happy for the family and yet we still do. How does this affect the story as a whole? I think Kafka is once again playing on the many dilemmas of the human mind. Throughout the story the characters fight with themselves about how to treat the transformation and so at the end it is us, the readers,who are forced to come to emotional terms with the metamorphosis.
AJ, I think you made some really interesting points about the sheet and the sofa. I hadn't thought to look at either in the way you did. However, instead of real happiness I would say that the sheet represents a sort of false happiness for Gregor. The sheet cannot fully cover him, he is always left with bits and pieces showing much in the same way that we can tell his so called happiness does not completely fulfill him in life. Who can really be content with memorizing train schedules and playing with fretsaws for entertainment? Re-reading your post, AJ, I can see that you brought that idea up (“happiness was covering him up”).
Once again looking over a few of Evan's comments, I feel that we must act a little more understandingly towards Grete. What was she supposed to do? She treated Gregor (a giant dung beetle, not a very pleasant site) well for as long as she could and I think that it's understandable that she would finally want him gone. He, whether he meant to or not, was ruining her future. By the time the book ends she has found new hope. The imagery at the end is suggestive (to me at least) of that of a butterfly breaking from a cocoon. This is interesting because it is another insect, almost the complete opposite of the one Gregor becomes. His death leads to her flight.
Louisa, If Gregor was truely holding Grete back why did she not allow the mother and father to clean the cage? Instead she just swells with pure pride, at being able to finally do a task for the family.
Exactly, it is only after Gregor is rendered useless that Grete comes into herself. While Gregor was still the sole provider, Grete had no true role in family. After Gregor's transformation occurs each member finds their purpose. I would argue that the transformation made for a more functional family.
Louisa I agree with you in response to the ending. I feel that the ending does not properly full fill the story. I feel that Kafka did struggle with the ending but sometimes you have to enter is despite liking it. I just don’t see how Gregors death influenced any of his family. I guess them finding work and surviving without him could be a viable answer. I just don’t see exactly what the meaning of his death to the book as a whole. If either one of you want to help me out on this I would gladly appreciate it.
I would like to bring up another symbolic theme that appeared to me. Towards the end of the story Kafka mentions Greggors room as a storage room for all useless and forgotten items. It directly relates to Gregors situation because he is in the room. Gregor is one of those items that remain useless and forgotten. I also believe that Cretes quote of him being thin is extremely symbolic. In the begging of the story is too big to fit under the coach, however at the end near the time of his death he is so thin he can barely be seen.
That link brings us to our background lens. The way Kafka wrote most definitely fit the bill for a postmodenist writer. Especially in Metamorphosis. He creates allusions and makes the reall struggle to figure out what's real. Now to get to Andrews question, Kafka makes it seem as if Gregor becomes useless and a burden. What really happens though is by Gregor becoming a beetle he slowly allows the family to fend for themselves, and when he dies the family truly fugures out what life is worth and what the daughter mean. Grete become released from her "cacoon" if you will (Louisa), and shes able to develop physically and mentally. Kafka forces us as a reader tobe loyal to Gregor even beyond his death, which is why I didn't like her happiness at first.
AJ, I have also been struggling with Gregor's death in relation to the rest of the story. I think that it is sort of a mixed message, because it is the end of the character that we are most inclined to like but at the same time grants the family a sort of release. Once Gregor is gone, they are forced to provide for themselves and become a much more busy family. Although I'm not sure if work makes people happy, it seems as though having something to do greatly boosts the moral of the characters.
Piggybacking off AJ's point about Gregor becoming useless, I thought it was interesting how Kafka used Grete's music to really drive home this idea. Grete's music is beautiful, she follows the notes with “soulful and probing eyes”. This is happening at the same time that Gregor is dealing with his animal body and his human mind. He resolves to keep Grete in his room and never let her out because he believes that she deserves an audience (himself) who can truly appreciate her. However, this is never something that he would think if were still in human form. The juxtaposition of these thoughts and her music definitely enhance the change that Gregor is experiencing.
Yes louisa! (just playing the devils advocate up there at times, I'm not actually NARROW MINDED) We never actually learned if Gregor enjoyed music or not in his human form. We only know that he did think highly of Greta as a musician and wanted to send her away to school. Also, being attracted to music essentially human, "Was he a beast if the music could move him so?" This is Grgor showing his change from being a dehumanized salesperson, Into a beetle but with an ever-present human mind, instead of living life like an ant.
While reading Metamorphosis, one of the things that most intrigued me was Gregor Samsa's lack of curiosity about his transformation. He takes the change relatively calmly, and seems much more upset by his “grueling profession” (p.7 Barnes and Noble Classics) than he does about his insect form. I know that if I woke up one morning as a dung beetle I would have been remarkably more concerned than Gregor appears to be. As I was searching around for different interpretations of Kafka's plot, I cam across an interesting theory by Conor Fitzgerald on Associated Content. He suggests that Gregor's transformation was not a metamorphosis at all, but rather a realization of his role in the family all along (that of a dung beetle/unappreciated provider) Gregor's indifference about how the change occurred compliments that theory. If he was in fact a dung beetle all along, it would not matter how this change occurred, only how his family reacted to it. The lack of appreciation becomes clear as soon as Gregor is rendered unable to provide for his family. The physical change only serves to demonstrate more clearly Gregor's position in the household. Fitzgerald also points out that dung beetles are typically providing insects, they work as the caretakers for their nests/hives. I think that Kafka's choice of animal also symbolizes the general disgust that readers feel about his family, especially Gregor's father. He is an unsavory character which we can ell by the way he treats Gregor. He is perhaps the reason that Gregor does not hold any real weight in the family, despite being the primary provider.
ReplyDeleteLouisa, I think that you took the transformation of Gregor into a dung beetle a little too seriously. Kafka is a very morbid and ironic writer. The fact that Kafka had Gregor more focused on getting to work rather than worry about his current condition was just used to prove one of his long held ideas, “Vermin is in the eye of the beholder.” That being said, we hardly ever felt slightly revolted by Gregor’s condition while he is a dung beetle, instead we are enraged by the way he is treated by his family, who have been so dependent on him in the past. I don’t think at all that Gregor was ever like an insect to the rest of his family, instead I believe that his family were parasites feeding off his strong desire and love of providing for the family.
ReplyDeleteAs the major patriarchal figure before the transformation, Gregor was ravaged by the company he worked for. Living a somewhat monochromatic life, memorizing train schedules, and trying to be a good salesman. Speaking of vermin, salesmen are often times attributed with being lousy and just trying to scam the money out of your pocket. The sales company itself is lousy, They barely give Gregor time off and are very strict when it comes to work. Gregor must make sales and he must be at work promptly, no matter what. The company already dehumanizes Gregor, So its very ironic that Gregor is last scene by the representative and eventually loses his job because he is not human.
As for the animal choice. Superficially dung beetles are absolutely revolting. But what people don’t understand is the good that dung beetles do. They do not encroach on other animals or are even of any inconvenience to humans. They just go about their business wallowing in filth. But dung beetles have been known to help enrich soil, thus promoting crop growth and greener pastures.
Andrew Mizzoni
ReplyDeleteTo being my discussion I first off want to state that I find strong similarities between our thoughts and ideas. I agree with Louisa’s statement about Gregors lack of curiosity about his transformation. I feel that a great part of the story lacks a true in depth description. I feel like this story is much like that of Beowulf in a sense that you cannot feel the 3D nature. I feel that everything I am reading is missing something. Who wakes up in the morning a beetle and doesn’t ask how or why? The story lacks the who’s, what’s, when’s and where’s.
I spent some time looking up possible inputs about The Metamorphosis and found a similar article that relates to my thoughts. Conor Fitzgerald, writes and article that I strongly agree with. He connects to Louisa’s discussion about how he doesn’t care about his transformation. It also connects to Evans about linking his reactions to that of his household. Kafka is saying that Gregors life can be compared to that of a beetle. Both just focus on purely work. The lack of interest in his life was similar to that of the beetle leading to similar lives. I feel like a door has been opened in this article because it almost had the same exact thoughts I had from reading. Ok I also just noted that Louisa and I have the same background reading and I had no idea. I however am going to add to the discussion by possibility saying that what if the beetle is not representing his family nor himself but representing race. The book was written in a time when Germany was about to being World War I. Germany was unstable, could he be relating the beetle to Germany neglecting the rest of the world. It’s more of a history question than an English but I thought I would throw it out there. I feel like we need to focus more on the time period and Germany’s state.
Re-reading my previous post I think the point that I was trying to make was that Gregor was playing the role of an insect even before he physically became one. Evan, you point out that salesmen are generally disliked and under-appreciated, and that Gregor's career is dehumanizing him. This lends itself to my theory. If Gregor has already become alienated from society and his family before his transformation then exactly what “metamorphosis” is Kafka pointing out? After grappling with this question in my quotation response journal I keep coming back to the same answer- that we are meant to pay more attention to the transformation that Gregor's family makes rather than Gregor himself.
ReplyDeleteAt the end of the book the focus is definitely not on Gregor but rather on the hope discovered by his family after his death. While Gregor is alive and living as a beetle in their house there is undeniably a lot of change that occurs. His sister Grete develops into a much stronger character, as displayed by her possessiveness of the task of cleaning Gregor's room. His mother and father become more independent now that they cannot relay on Gregor's income and his previously sluggish father grows into a man who can take care of his family.
Evan, you also brought up the fact that his family were “parasites feeding off his[Gregor's] strong desire and love of providing for his family”. This is undoubtedly true, in the beginning Gregor's family takes full advantage of his generosity (whether consciously or not). This seems to be the same sort of relationship that humans have with dung beetles (as you point out in your last paragraph). We take their contributions for granted much in the same way that Gregor's family take his contributions. However as soon as the metamorphosis occurs the tables are turned and Gregor is forced to be dependent on his family for a change. At this point Gregor becomes the parasite and it is this change that catalyzes the transformation of his family.
Andrew Mizzoni
ReplyDeleteF
Evan and Louisa, you both believe that Gregor is a parasite sucking off the family. What I wonder is what he is sucking off of. Everyone in his family besides Grete completely neglects Gregor after his metamorphosis. Halfway through the book after the transformation I thought that the beetle was a symbol for his family to love Gregor again. I felt that his life was too repetitive and that his family did not value him. After the transformation I thought that his family would mourn over the death of his son. The transformation I thought would be in their eyes equivocal to death. The family however did the opposite of what I thought and actually neglected Gregor even more.
I am disturbed preceding reading the book that his family could completely neglect their son after his tragic transformation. Evan I believe that you are making the best points through the symbolism of the beetle. I concur that the family is a parasite sucking off the wealth of Gregor. I however disagree that the role of the parasite switches, I still believe that Gregor’s parents were still the parasite sucking the life out of Gregor. If it was not for his parents Gregor would not have worked so much nor would he have stuck with the job like he stated in the book. Following the transformation Gregors parents not only sucked more of the life out of him, they drove him to his death.
Andrew, I never ever said that Gregor was a parasite, Instead I insisted it was his family. Even when Gregor is turned into an insect, all of his actions are for the betterment of his family. The daughter(Gregor's sister) may seem as if she is living for him but in reality she is just helping the up keep in hopes that Gregor might get well and shatter off his beetle apearence. Grgor hides under the sofa and later the bed sheet many times to try and spare his apearance from the others. When the family comes to grip and realizes that Gregor is never going to get better (Mind you this was after Gregor came out of his room, messmerized by his sister's violin playing, trying to give her an ample audience because the gentlemen who were renting the rooms were clearly not amused, he is messmerized because of the human emotion that was so tangible to him which he never had as a human, of his sister, whom he really loved playing the violin to the best of her abilities. He rarely ever got to hear her play while he was human.) He sister however is anything but thrilled with Gregor being tantalized by her violin playin, "..she even abandoned the mother, she literally bolted from the chair as if she would rather sacrifice the mother than stay in the vicinity of Gregor." The sister is clearly revolted theres no argument there, But she also is the one who first states that something must be don about Gregor, "My dear parents, said the sister, pounding the table with her hand by way of introduction, things can't go on like this..". The change in the sisters attitude is brought about by lack of hope and the realization of her own ability to do something for herself., she even stops feeding Gregor.
ReplyDeleteGregor finally decides to die and soon he can no longer even feel the rotten apple stuck into his side, a constant "itch" which he cannot scratch, a constant mentalreminder that Gregor can no longer do anything to provide for his family, only to excuse himself. But when Gregor dies and the family goes out to the country side we our left with the stark image of the young sister stretching her nimble limbs and the thought of her beauty and that she would one day make a good wife. This is a strong contrast to Gregor's shrivelled body that is found by the charwomen. Gregor died just as he lived trying to give his family happiness!!!
P.S. The family never looked back at his shrivelled corpse.
and it was only until he was dead that they realized
I cannot stop thinking about the symbolic images of the Corpse of Gregor and the lively body of Greta
ReplyDeleteHOW CAN GREGOR OF BEEN A BURDEN WHEN WE ARE LEFT WITH THIS?
Clearly if you read kafka superficially you cannot dredge out the true meaning that Gregor is not the vermin EVER in the book.
Symbiosis- Definition--is close and often long-term interactions between different biological species.
ReplyDeleteDung beetles need cows crap to live-Cows need to dung beetles to make the ground more fertile and promote better grass.
Gregor is both the cow and the beetle.
Before the transformation he is the one putting food on the table. Dropping manure for his family to eat, But they didnt in return roll it into a ball and make the soil better. Instead they demand more, MORE SHIT FROM GREGOR THE COW. This just means more bullshit that he has to deal with in his pasture, since there's no one to roll it for him.
So it makes sense that he would later be transformed into a beatle and then finally taking shit from the family, but just having to "roll with it".
I'M SORRY THAT IM FREAKING OUT RIGHT NOW, I REALLY DON'T KNOW WHY I FEEL COMPELLED TO KEEP MY CAPS LOCK ON TO ASSERT MY ANGER VIA BLOG. It's just I'M EVAN KIDDER and I'm very upset and I didn't mean to offend Mr. Cook by swearing on his blog.
ReplyDeleteIt's just reading Kafka makes me very sad with my life, because all he talks about as death being the only way to realize purpose, and I really wish he didn't use Gregor as a martyr and have him die covered in "Soft Dust", which I interpreted as feces, and then the way he made me feel happy at the end of the book because "somehow" Gregor's death was for a purpose and the sister gets to live on, even though gregor worked so hard for her to begin with.
I pose a very very serious question:
ReplyDeleteWhat is better, Dehumanized in your own skin, or the world made palpable in a beetle's?
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAndrew Mizzoni
ReplyDeleteF
First off Evan I think you need to come down in your blogs. Second of all I want to open up the conversation regarding the sheet. I feel that the sheet and the sofa are much more symbolic than expected.
In the novel Gregor tries to hide underneath the sofa and protect his identity from his family. I wonder if he is trying to protect himself or is he trying to protect his family. I for one hope he is just protecting himself because I am not particularly happy with his families behaviors. I believe that the sheet represents his happiness and the sofa represents timidity. Gregor hides underneath the sofa but is still seen. Just like how he hides underneath his timidity in his real life. Gregor was like the white sheet over the sofa. Looking at the sheet you could still see what was really on the other side much like Gregor and his happiness. On the outside Gregor appeared not happy but content however on the inside he was miserable. Happiness was covering him up along with his timidity. If Gregor had more confidence, then I believe he would have quit his job and moved out of his house. This leads me to think more about the post modernistic view and how dystopian novels emerged. Metamorphosis strongly reminds me somewhat of a dystopian novel because of the lack of sense it makes. I feel like much of the story is dark and cannot me made sense of. This leads me to believe that is portrays some characteristics of a dystopian novel, a theme that was becoming very popular in the post modernism era.
Ok, well clearly my presence on the blog over these last few hours has been dearly missed. Evan, I lost you about 4 posts ago. How is Gregor a cow? What “shit” are you talking about? I do agree with you about the ending however. In some of my background reading on Kafka I learned that Kafka himself was not content with the ending, but chose to publish it anyways. It draws a sense of hope from the readers but it is with great reluctance that we embrace this feeling, given that it seems to be drawn from Gregor's demise. We don't want to feel happy for the family and yet we still do. How does this affect the story as a whole? I think Kafka is once again playing on the many dilemmas of the human mind. Throughout the story the characters fight with themselves about how to treat the transformation and so at the end it is us, the readers,who are forced to come to emotional terms with the metamorphosis.
ReplyDeleteAJ, I think you made some really interesting points about the sheet and the sofa. I hadn't thought to look at either in the way you did. However, instead of real happiness I would say that the sheet represents a sort of false happiness for Gregor. The sheet cannot fully cover him, he is always left with bits and pieces showing much in the same way that we can tell his so called happiness does not completely fulfill him in life. Who can really be content with memorizing train schedules and playing with fretsaws for entertainment? Re-reading your post, AJ, I can see that you brought that idea up (“happiness was covering him up”).
Once again looking over a few of Evan's comments, I feel that we must act a little more understandingly towards Grete. What was she supposed to do? She treated Gregor (a giant dung beetle, not a very pleasant site) well for as long as she could and I think that it's understandable that she would finally want him gone. He, whether he meant to or not, was ruining her future. By the time the book ends she has found new hope. The imagery at the end is suggestive (to me at least) of that of a butterfly breaking from a cocoon. This is interesting because it is another insect, almost the complete opposite of the one Gregor becomes. His death leads to her flight.
Louisa, If Gregor was truely holding Grete back why did she not allow the mother and father to clean the cage? Instead she just swells with pure pride, at being able to finally do a task for the family.
ReplyDeleteExactly, it is only after Gregor is rendered useless that Grete comes into herself. While Gregor was still the sole provider, Grete had no true role in family. After Gregor's transformation occurs each member finds their purpose. I would argue that the transformation made for a more functional family.
ReplyDeleteSo it is Gregor in his human form that holds her back rather than Gregor in beetle form!
ReplyDelete...that's what I'm saying...once he transforms, Grete is free. hence, his transformation is good for her.
ReplyDelete....well i did kinda already say that up there...
ReplyDeleteyeah I just said it better
ReplyDeletenahh-uhh
ReplyDeleteAndrew Mizzoni
ReplyDeleteLouisa I agree with you in response to the ending. I feel that the ending does not properly full fill the story. I feel that Kafka did struggle with the ending but sometimes you have to enter is despite liking it. I just don’t see how Gregors death influenced any of his family. I guess them finding work and surviving without him could be a viable answer. I just don’t see exactly what the meaning of his death to the book as a whole. If either one of you want to help me out on this I would gladly appreciate it.
I would like to bring up another symbolic theme that appeared to me. Towards the end of the story Kafka mentions Greggors room as a storage room for all useless and forgotten items. It directly relates to Gregors situation because he is in the room. Gregor is one of those items that remain useless and forgotten. I also believe that Cretes quote of him being thin is extremely symbolic. In the begging of the story is too big to fit under the coach, however at the end near the time of his death he is so thin he can barely be seen.
Evan i feel that you need to accept peoples idea more and not be so narrow minded.
ReplyDeleteI love that last connection you made Andrew!
ReplyDeletehttp://www.associatedcontent.com/article/33002/kafka_and_postmodernism.html?cat=38
That link brings us to our background lens. The way Kafka wrote most definitely fit the bill for a postmodenist writer. Especially in Metamorphosis. He creates allusions and makes the reall struggle to figure out what's real. Now to get to Andrews question, Kafka makes it seem as if Gregor becomes useless and a burden. What really happens though is by Gregor becoming a beetle he slowly allows the family to fend for themselves, and when he dies the family truly fugures out what life is worth and what the daughter mean. Grete become released from her "cacoon" if you will (Louisa), and shes able to develop physically and mentally. Kafka forces us as a reader tobe loyal to Gregor even beyond his death, which is why I didn't like her happiness at first.
AJ, I have also been struggling with Gregor's death in relation to the rest of the story. I think that it is sort of a mixed message, because it is the end of the character that we are most inclined to like but at the same time grants the family a sort of release. Once Gregor is gone, they are forced to provide for themselves and become a much more busy family. Although I'm not sure if work makes people happy, it seems as though having something to do greatly boosts the moral of the characters.
ReplyDeletePiggybacking off AJ's point about Gregor becoming useless, I thought it was interesting how Kafka used Grete's music to really drive home this idea. Grete's music is beautiful, she follows the notes with “soulful and probing eyes”. This is happening at the same time that Gregor is dealing with his animal body and his human mind. He resolves to keep Grete in his room and never let her out because he believes that she deserves an audience (himself) who can truly appreciate her. However, this is never something that he would think if were still in human form. The juxtaposition of these thoughts and her music definitely enhance the change that Gregor is experiencing.
Yes louisa! (just playing the devils advocate up there at times, I'm not actually NARROW MINDED) We never actually learned if Gregor enjoyed music or not in his human form. We only know that he did think highly of Greta as a musician and wanted to send her away to school. Also, being attracted to music essentially human, "Was he a beast if the music could move him so?" This is Grgor showing his change from being a dehumanized salesperson, Into a beetle but with an ever-present human mind, instead of living life like an ant.
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