The Dehumanization of Gregor in Kafkas Metamorphosis Essay

The Dehumanization of Gregor in The Metamorphosis In the novella The Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka, the main character Gregor undergoes a physical transformation from human to bug. Despite this change in appearance, he maintains his human brain as insect tendencies slowly take over his day to day behavior. He maintains his thoughtless state of mind, memories, and inner dialogue during his exterior transformation. Although he maintains his mental capacities, it is his change in appearance that causes his family to turn against him and eventually kill him. These events show how people can become dehumanized by society and the government only because of a difference in behavior or appearance. In Gregors case, he is transformed in†¦show more content†¦But, as time goes on his sister Grete, who had been the one to care for him the most, begins to lose faith in his humanness. She says to her parents, You must just try to get rid of the idea that this is Gregor. The fact that weve believed it for so long is the root of all our trouble. This same idea is reiterated when Gregor finally dies and his mother says, Well, now thanks be to God. His family was convinced after a short while that it wasnt even their own Gregor underneath that hard exoskeleton. Gregors physical transformation also sparks a streak of cruelty on the part of his family. It is understandable that they be frightened when he first appears, but they continue to lock him in his room without ever trying to communicate with him. The only person who ever goes in his room on a regular basis is his sister and she can barely even tolerate his presence. At one point when Gregor successfully escapes from his prison cell, his father ends up throwing apples at him with the intention of causing injury. Gregor came to a stop in alarm, there was no point in running on, for his father was determined to bombard him. As Gregor merely sat there on the wall, his own father sunk an apple into his shell. After this event they leave him to whither away and die alone in his room. Gregor did not bring this horrid behavior upon himself by his actions, but instead they result because his different appearance and behavior led his family to think ofShow MoreRelated‘The Metamorphosisâ⠂¬â„¢ and ‘A Hunger Artist’980 Words   |  4 PagesThere are many parallels and differences between Franz Kafka’s â€Å"The Metamorphosis† and A Hunger Artist. Kafka portrays these differences and similarities very effectively through his utilization of elements such as transformation, dehumanization, and dedication to work. Through his works, Kafka communicates with the reader in such a way that almost provokes and challenges one’s imagination and creativity. Kafka is known for his highly symbolic and oblique style of writing. 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