good thesis statement for the metamorphosis

A Summary and Analysis of Franz Kafka’s ‘The Metamorphosis’

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

‘The Metamorphosis’ is a short story (sometimes classed as a novella) by the Czech-born German-language author Franz Kafka (1883-1924). It is his best-known shorter work, published in German in 1915, with the first English translation appearing in 1933. ‘The Metamorphosis’ has attracted numerous interpretations, so it might be worth probing this fascinating story more closely.

You can read ‘The Metamorphosis’ here before proceeding to our summary and analysis of Kafka’s story below.

Plot Summary

Gregor Samsa, a travelling salesman, wakes up one morning to find that he has been transformed into a giant insect. Although he briefly considers this transformation, he quickly turns his thoughts to his work and his need to provide for his parents (he lives with them and his sister) so that they can pay off their debts. He also thinks about how much he hates travelling.

He realises he is already late for work, but hesitates to call in sick because he has never had a day off sick before, and knows this might raise alarm bells. When he responds through the bedroom door after his mother calls to him, he realises that his voice has become different as a result of his metamorphosis into an insect. When his family try to enter his bedroom, they find the door locked, and he refuses to let them in.

Then there’s a knock at the door and it’s the chief clerk for whom Gregor works, wondering where Gregor has got to.

Still Gregor refuses to open the door to his family or to his visitor. The chief clerk is affronted and tells Gregor through the door that his work has not been good enough and his position at the company may not be safe. Gregor seeks to defend himself, and assures the clerk that he will soon return to work. However, because Gregor’s voice has changed so much since his transformation, nobody can understand what he’s saying.

Gregor opens the door and his mother screams when she sees him. He asks the chief clerk to smooth things over at the office for him, explaining his … sudden metamorphosis into an insect.

Later that evening, having swooned and dozed all day, Gregor wakes up at twilight and finds that his sister had brought him milk with some bread in it. Gregor attempts to drink the milk, but finds the taste disgusting, so he leaves it. He climbs under the couch so his family don’t have to look at him, while his sister tries to find him food that he can eat.

Gregor overhears his family talking in the other room, and discovers that, despite their apparent debts, his parents have some money stashed away. He has been going to work to support them when he didn’t have to.

As well as the changes to his voice, Gregor also realises that his vision has got worse since his transformation. He also discovers that he enjoys climbing the walls and the ceiling of his bedroom. To help him, his sister gets rid of the furniture to create more space for him to climb; Gregor’s mother disagrees and is reluctant to throw out all of Gregor’s human possessions, because she still trusts that he will return to his former state one day.

When he comes out of the room, his mother faints and his sister locks him outside. His father arrives and throws apples at him, severely injuring him, because he believes Gregor must have attacked his own mother.

After his brush with death, the family change tack and vow to be more sympathetic towards Gregor, agreeing to leave the door open so he can watch them from outside the room as they talk together. But when three lodgers move in with the family, and his room is used to store all of the family’s furniture and junk, he finds that he cannot move around any more and goes off his food. He becomes shut off from his family and the lodgers.

When he hears his sister playing the violin for the lodgers, he opens the door to listen, and the lodgers, upon spotting this giant insect, are repulsed and declare they are going to move out immediately and will not pay the family any of their rent owed. Gregor’s sister tells her parents that they must get rid of their brother since, whilst they have tried to take care of him, he has become a liability. She switches from talking about him as her brother and as an ‘it’, a foreign creature that is unrecognisable as the brother they knew.

Gregor, overhearing this conversation, wants to do the right thing for his family, so he decides that he must do the honourable thing and disappear. He crawls off back to his room and dies.

Gregor’s family is relieved that he has died, and the body is disposed of. Mr Samsa kicks the lodgers out of the apartment. He, his wife, and their daughter are all happy with the jobs they have taken, and Mr and Mrs Samsa realise that their daughter is now of an age to marry.

The one thing people know about ‘The Metamorphosis’ is that it begins with Gregor Samsa waking up to find himself transformed into an insect. Many English translations use the word in the book’s famous opening line (and we follow convention by using the even more specific word ‘beetle’ in our summary of the story above).

But the German word Ungeziefer does not lend itself easily to translation. It roughly denotes any unclean being or creature, and ‘bug’ is a more accurate rendering of the original into English – though even ‘bug’ doesn’t quite do it, since (in English anyway) it still suggests an insect, or at least some sort of creepy-crawly.

For this reason, some translators (such as David Wyllie in the one we have linked to above) reach for the word vermin , which is probably closer to the German original. Kafka did use the word Insekt in his correspondence discussing the book, but ordered that the creature must not be explicitly illustrated as such at any cost. The point is that we are not supposed to know the precise thing into which Gregor has metamorphosed.

The vagueness is part of the effect: Gregor Samsa is any and every unworthy or downtrodden creature, shunned by those closest to him. Much as those who wish to denigrate a particular group of people – immigrants, foreigners, a socio-economic underclass – often reach for words like ‘cockroaches’ or ‘vermin’, so Gregor’s transformation physically enacts and literalizes such emotive propaganda.

But of course, the supernatural or even surreal (though we should reject the term ‘Surrealist’) setup for the story also means that ‘The Metamorphosis’ is less a straightforward allegory (where X = Y) than it is a more rich and ambiguous exploration of the treatment of ‘the other’ (where X might = Y, Z, or even A, B, or C).

Gregor’s subsequent treatment at the hands of his family, his family’s lodgers, and their servants may well strike a chord with not just ethnic minorities living in some communities but also disabled people, people with different cultural or religious beliefs from ‘the mainstream’, struggling artists whose development is hindered by crass bourgeois capitalism and utilitarianism, and many other marginalised individuals.

This is one reason why ‘The Metamorphosis’ has become so widely discussed, analysed, and studied: its meaning is not straightforward, its fantastical scenario posing many questions.  What did Kafka mean by such a story? Is it a comedy, a tragedy, or both? Gregor’s social isolation from his nearest and dearest, and subsequent death (a death of despair, one suspects, as much as it is a noble sacrifice for the sake of his family), all suggest the story’s tragic undercurrents, and yet the way Kafka establishes Gregor’s transformation raises some intriguing questions.

Take that opening paragraph. The opening sentence – as with the very first sentence of Kafka’s novel, The Trial – is well-known, but what follows this arresting first statement is just as remarkable. For no sooner has Gregor discovered that he has been transformed, inexplicably, into a giant insect (or ‘vermin’), than his thoughts have turned from this incredible revelation to more day-to-day worries about his job and his travelling.

This is a trademark feature of Kafka’s writing, and one of the things the wide-ranging term ‘Kafkaesque’ should accommodate: the nightmarish and the everyday rubbing shoulders together. Indeed, the everyday already is a nightmare, and Samsa’s metamorphosis into an alien creature is just the latest in a long line of modernity’s hellish developments.

So the effect of this opening paragraph is to play down, as soon as it has been introduced, the shocking revelation that a man has been turned into a beetle (or similar creature).

Many subsequent details in Kafka’s story are similarly downplayed, or treated in a calm and ordinary way as if a man becoming a six-feet-tall insect is the most normal occurrence in the world, and this is part of the comedy of Kafka’s novella: an aspect of his work which many readers miss, partly because the comedic is so often the first thing lost in translation.

And, running contrariwise to the interpretation of ‘The Metamorphosis’ that sees it as ‘just’ a straightforward story about modern-day alienation and mistreatment of ‘the other’ is the plot itself, which sees Gregor Samsa freed from his life of servitude and duty, undertaking a job he doesn’t enjoy in order to support a family that, it turns out, are perfectly capable of supporting themselves (first by the father’s money which has been set aside, and then from the family’s jobs which the mother, father, and daughter all take, and discover they actually rather enjoy).

Even Gregor’s climbing of the walls and ceiling in his room, when he would have been travelling around doing his job, represents a liberation of sorts, even though he has physically become confined to one room. Perhaps, the grim humour of Kafka’s story appears to suggest, modernity is so hellish that such a transformation – even though it ends in death – is really the only liberation modern man can achieve.

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The Metamorphosis

Gregor Samsa, a traveling salesman, wakes up one morning to a unique problem: He has transformed into a bug. This is a weird one, folks…and that’s one reason why I like it. In fact, Kafka’s writings are often so strange and difficult to parse that his name has been immortalized in English as an adjective, Kafkaesque , to describe things that are irrationally and disorientingly complex.

The Norton Critical Edition is a good choice for this one, as its accompanying notes, supplementary texts, and critical essays will help readers make sense of the story.

Related Resources

Notes on The Metamorphosis (PDF)

Free e-book from Project Gutenberg

Amazon | Parnassus | Powell’s

Norton Critical Edition

Notes on The Metamorphosis

Questions and issues raised in the novel :.

1. Has Gregor actually turned into a bug, or is he just acting as though he has?

• Evidence both for and against a literal, physical metamorphosis

Evidence for :

Reactions of family members and others—e.g., they express extreme horror or disgust and immediately lose hope of communicating with him

Descriptions of physical actions and sensations seem unambiguous, and there is external (or seemingly external) evidence of his ability to do things that are impossible for a person (e.g., sticking to the ceiling)

Evidence against :

The absurdity and strangeness of a supernatural event like this happening in a story like this—no explanation or context for it

People’s reactions to him sometimes seem inappropriate or surreal (e.g., the roomers smiling when they catch sight of him, as if he is a person behaving strangely rather than an actual giant bug)

Gregor’s own reactions are sometimes illogical (e.g., on the morning of the metamorphosis, he acts as though it’s simply an annoyance that can be dealt with)

• Another possibility: Kafka deliberately left it ambiguous, deliberately presents either ambiguous or contradictory evidence

Seeks to establish atmosphere of surreality, tension with no easy resolution: suggests that human life is characterized by this kind of existential doubt?

Erases the boundary between the literal and the metaphorical

Evidence for dileberate ambiguity :

Nothing specific about his appearance is ever said by the other characters

The narration may be an objective description of reality, or it may be a description of Gregor’s thoughts and perceptions only—it is designed to work either way

2. What is the symbolic/thematic significance of Gregor’s metamorphosis?

• Even if it is an actual, physical metamorphosis, it is clearly intended to work on an abstract level as well

Some possible interpretations:

An expression of Gregor’s feelings about being exploited by his family and looked down upon by those he works for and with—sense of powerlessness, alienation

An expression of Gregor’s need to escape the stressful routine of his working life; rebellion against the responsibilities imposed on him: Does his subconscious resentment take the form of a kind of fantasy or hallucination?

A symbol of the plight of the common man/working man being exploited by others in society who enjoy the fruits of his labor without having to compensate him for it in any way or even expressing appreciation

An expression of guilt or self-loathing: for not being able to provide for his family better, or for some other reason?

3. What is the symbolic/thematic significance of Gregor’s deterioration and death?

He suffers from a lack of spiritual nourishment: his life is ruled by work that he does not seem to truly enjoy for its own sake

As the novel goes on, the only things that seem to move him are things that have an emotional and spiritual significance, such as the picture on the wall, his desire for some kind of human contact, his attraction to his sister’s violin playing

This lack of spiritual nourishment is paralleled by his increasing lack of appetite for physical food

His physical death is thus a spiritual death caused by a sense of alienation, isolation, and emptiness

Themes and motifs :

• Helplessness/desperation
• Inability to communicate/alienation/isolation
• Confusion/surreality/irrationality
• The transitory nature of love and loyalty
• Exploitation of the worker/economic plight of the working class

Notes and observations :

The atmosphere of surreality and absurdity established from the beginning is one of the primary characteristics of the novel as a whole

• Sense of absurdity conveyed by Gregor’s anxiety about work and the manager’s impression of him when he obviously has a much greater problem to deal with and can’t possibly expect the manager to react to his concerns about work, even if he could be clearly understood
• Gregor’s reaction to the situation is irrational: he seems to accept his condition as a difficult yet simple problem to be dealt with as a practical matter rather than as an existential dilemma or horrifying mystery

Gregor is apparently used to being exploited and taken for granted by his family and scorned by those he works with—his occasional expressions of annoyance or resentment seem to be subdued or suppressed

Gregor’s extremely self-sacrificing, hard-working, ambitious character is contrasted with the selfish, lazy, spoiled character of the other members of his family: this juxtaposition is perhaps the central quality of the novel in terms of character development

• The sudden reversal of their positions (from caretaker to dependent and vice versa) is a kind of irony
• Even though Gregor has provided for them for so long, they see Gregor’s death at the end as a relief—liberation from the burden of having to care for him and tolerate his presence
• Is their attitude a reflection of elitist society’s attitude toward the working class as a kind of necessary but distasteful burden to be tolerated? (Or the attitude of those who are accepted by society toward its outcasts?)
• Ironically, the burden of caring for Gregor has given the family renewed health, vigor, drive, etc.

The story reveals a number of negative characteristics of human nature: selfishness, laziness, classism, lack of sympathy, tendency to take things for granted

PDF version

Notes © 2008 C. Brantley Collins, Jr.

Home — Essay Samples — Literature — Metamorphosis — The Metamorphosis: An Analysis of Isolation, Identity, and Symbolism

The Metamorphosis: an Analysis of Isolation, Identity, and Symbolism

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• Critical Analysis of The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka The main subject of the novel is the family relations and problem of a person’s worthiness in the society. The author explores and analyses such social problems as a person’s worthiness and the ills of […]
• Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” Representation in Modern Life Franz Kafka’s novel, “The Metamorphosis,” is regarded as one of the most fascinating and absurdist works of literature and offers a complex philosophical and psychological examination of current circumstances.
• Disintegration of Family and Societal Relations in Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” In the example of the Samsas’, the author depicts how perceptions and feelings of family members change, revealing the illusory character of seemingly unshaken family bonds and relations within society at large.
• Alienation in the Modern World: “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka The mechanism of oppression in Gregor’s case is the bureaucracy in which he is forced to work a meaningless life that contributes nothing to his dreams or aspirations, but instead merely makes of him a […]
• Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis”: Social Aspects When Gregor turns into the creature, he does not care about that in the slightest; on the other hand, he cannot reconcile himself with the fact that he will miss his train and will not […]
• Social Issues in “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka Such loss of traditional humane values like empathy, love, respect, loyalty, and honesty has affected Franz Kafka who illustrated the metamorphosis or transformation of customary values on the example of the family of the Samsas.”The […]
• The Limited Third-Person Narrator in Kafka’s The Metamorphosis. It permits the author not only focus on the subject matter and revolve around the themes of the story, but implement the entertainment function of the writing and provide the reader with an in-depth understanding […]
• Gregor’s Relationship With His Father in “The Matamorphosis” This paper seeks to explore the father and son relationships in Metamorphosis and Oedipus the King and offers a comparison for the two.
• Exterminating Bugs in Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” Gregor is flabbergasted by his family’s hypocrisy and is sad to see that he has wasted his life for the happiness and affluence of his ‘so-called’ family.
• Franz Kafka’s ‘The Metamorphosis’ and Joseph Conrad’s ‘The Heart of Darkness’. Theme Analysis Here, the essay compares how the theme of colonization is captured in the novels, and goes ahead to explain the techniques employed by each author in conveying the theme.
• The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka: Cause and Effect Multiple causes are in force right in the first few paragraphs: the horrendous transformation that Gregor has undergone, the panic and anxiety that the family members feel when Gregor is not responding to urgent summons […]
• Kafka’s Stories “A Hunger Artist”, “Jackals and Arabs” and “The Metamorphosis” The reading of a short story Jackals and Arabs leaves no doubt as to the fact that this story’s foremost thematic element is being of clearly surreal nature.
• “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka The opening of the story clearly introduces the main story to the reader with the creation of a pathetic image in the mind of the readers.
• The Death of Ivan Ilych and The Metamorphosis As he comes to understand the difference between his servant’s and his family’s views on life, Ivan begins to realize that he has lived a life of moral death, a life empty of everything save […]
• The Books “The Metamorphosis” by Kafka and “The Lottery” by Jackson In essence, The Lottery and The Metamorphosis are expository on misfortune as triggering alienation and unsettling the harmony of life to which one’s community and family weaken in their duty of care and protection and […]
• “The Metamorphosis” by Kafka and “Chronicle of a Death Foretold” by Marquez: Comparison The conclusion of this paper can be formulated as follows – in their stories, both: Kafka and Marquez strived to present readers with a three-dimensional clue on particularities of their characters’ behavior.
• Kafka’s ‘The Metamorphosis’ and ‘Spider-Man’ Comparison The same idea is shown in the work of Kafka, as Samsa with a substituted body becomes unneeded to his family members and other people.
• “Blood Wedding” by F. G. Lorca and “The Metamorphosis” by F. Kafka: The Impact of Roles of Parents To compare the role of parents in the stories, we must first get a brief background of the parents in both stories.
• Humanities. The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka Even in his own home, he has taken up the habit of locking his bedroom doors “as if in a hotel” and he continues to follow the rules and regulations set forth by his father […]
• “The Other” in Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” The thesis of the paper is that the notion of “the other” in The Metamorphosis is represented not so much through the opposition between the character and other characters as though the opposition between his […]
• The Discussion of Gregor, a Character in “The Metamorphosis” Existentialism includes the value of freedom of choice, the value of the individual, and the value of interpersonal connections. His short story The Metamorphosis is a good example of existential writing since the protagonist has […]
• Absurdity in Kafka’s A Hunger Artist and The Metamorphosis This paper provides a detailed discussion of the absurdity as Kafka presents in his works The Metamorphosis and A Hunger Artist.
• Is Kafka’s The Metamorphosis Horror Fiction? It also forces readers to rely on their own interpretations and inferences to understand what is happening in the story, adding to the overall sense of uncertainty and ambiguity.
• The Metamorphosis by Kafka: Literary Analysis In the tale, the author highlights various aspects of his life, including his father, his family, and his plans for the future.
• The Symbolism of Gregor’s Transformation in Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” However, even before the incident, there were no warmth and mutual understanding in the family, despite the fact that the young man was the only breadwinner of the family.
• Review of “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka His sister is the only one of his family that comes to his aid, inquiring if he is ill. His transformation shows Gregor’s anger towards family’s exploitation of him and their irresponsibility in not contributing […]
• “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka: An Analysis The main problem of this response highlights the problem of loneliness of people in the world, despite the simple idea of a good life.
• “Tartuffe” by Molière and “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka One of the leading roles that the author of the work himself highlights is the role of the maid Dorine. Moreover, with her speeches, she urged people to listen to the voice of mind and […]
• Finance in Huffington’s Thrive and Kafka’s The Metamorphosis The purpose of this paper is to describe how the two writers express the idea about the value of financial well-being and to analyze the plot and the style of the texts.
• Triumph of the Self in Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” It is necessary to note that the idea of the triumph of the self is one of the last ideas that can appear in some readers’ minds.
• Writing Techniques in Stoker’s Dracula and Kafka’s The Metamorphosis A critical analysis of the writing styles adopted by the two authors makes it clear that the texts have an effect on the reader.
• Decisions of the Samsa in Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” His mother is shocked by the transformation In this paper, the author will use Saint Leo’s core values of integrity and community to analyze the decisions made by Samsa family when Gregor changes into bug. […]
• Grasping the Human Nature: “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka First of all, it should be said that a good analysis of the work is impossible without a clear understanding of the character of its author and ideas peculiar to him.
• The Metamorphosis, a Novel by Franz Kafka However, when Gregor sees him in his new uniform, he is impressed, and the uniform appears to signify that his father has metamorphosed from an object of fear to a dignified man who deserves respect.
• Alienation Theme in Kafka’s The Metamorphosis This indicates that Gregor’s alienation after the transformation was not a result of his appearance; it was his inability to contribute economically to the family.
• Comparison of the Movie “One Flew Over the Cuckoo Nest” and F. Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” The protagonist’s reluctance to communicate with the external world is similar to the changes that occurred to the hero of Kafka’s Metamorphoses.
• Kafka’s Stories “The Metamorphosis” and “A Hunger Artist” One of the reasons why Franz Kafka is considered one of the 20th century’s most prominent writers is that the reading of his masterpieces leaves very few doubts as to the fact that, while pursuing […]
• Themes in Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” It is evident in the story that it is Gregor who woks to take care of his family and therefore the rest of the family members did not.
• Consider the transformation that happened with Grete Samsa throughout the story. How does Gregor’s sister change after Gregor’s transformation? Explain how her work and house duties turned her into a more mature and confident person. How did it affect the ending of The Metamorphosis?
• Speculate on the symbolic meaning of food. How does food reflect the relationship between Gregor and his family? Their financial situation? Mention how Gregor gave up eating by the end of the novella, just as he eventually gave up living. What impact did food (especially an apple) have on Gregor’s life and death?
• Examine the character of Mrs. Samsa. Why doesn’t the reader learn her name? What is her role in the story? Elaborate on her relationships with other family members. Why did she want to visit Gregor after his transformation? Was she able to?
• Talk about different translations of The Metamorphosis. What are the differences in various translations of the novella? Examplify a few essential ones. Why is translating Kafka’s writing quite tricky?
• Analyze the conflict between the mind and the body. How does Gregor suffer from the conflict after the transformation? In what ways does his insect body contradict his opinions and logical decisions? Explain how Gregor’s physical transformation led to his mental change.
• Talk about the family theme. What was the initial reaction of each member of the Samsa family on Gregor’s transformation? How did their behavior towards the new Gregor change with time? Explain why they struggle with feeling empathy and sympathy towards an insect.
• Elaborate on the role of money. Why was Gregor the sole supporter of the family before his transformation? How did his parents and sister deal with the financial aspect of life after him becoming an insect? Consider Gregor’s feelings about the subject before his transformation, right after, and near the end of the novella. Was his family angry at him for the inability to support them?
• Compare Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis and Joseph Conrad’s The Heart of Darkness. What elements are present in both novellas? What features the main characters have in common? Compare the themes of the novellas and explain what movements influenced the authors.
• Analyze the relationship between Gregor and his father. What’s Mr. Samsa’s initial reaction to Gregor’s new form? Does it change? Consider Gregor’s responses to his father’s violent behavior after the transformation. Why was Mr. Samsa angry at his son throughout the novella?
• Elaborate on Gregor’s room. What furniture and other objects are located in his room? How do they establish Gregor’s personality? Explain why it upsets and satisfies Gregor when his mother and sister move the furniture away from his room. What object does he desire to keep the most, and why?
• Consider the relationship between Grete and Gregor. How does the connection between them differ from that of Gregor and any other person? How does it change after his transformation? Analyze Grete’s attitude towards her brother and why she was the one to ask the rest of the family to get rid of Gregor. Why did she take care of Gregor and his room alone and then stopped?
• Examine how the Samsa’s family reacted to Gregor’s death. What did each member of the family feel? Why did the father kick the lodgers out of the house? Why were they annoyed by the charwoman’s reaction? Express how hopeful they were in the end and ready to move on.
• Compare the father-son relationships in The Metamorphosis and Oedipus the King. What features do the father characters share? How did the relationships with the respective fathers influence the lives of Gregor and Oedipus? Elaborate on the upbringing of the characters and their impact on future choices.
• Explore the Kafkaesque style of The Metamorphosis. What does the term Kafkaesque mean? Why is the novella considered an example of Kafkaesque writing? List the aspects from The Metamorphosis that help to define the style.
• Talk about the character of Mr. Samsa. What are his key traits? Elaborate on what his attitude towards Gregor was before and after his transformation. How did Mr. Samsa change by the end of the novella? Elaborate on his attachment to his uniform and willingness to kill his son at the end of Chapter 2. What were his relationships with his wife and daughter?
• Explore Gregor’s mental transformation. How did the transformation of his body affect his mind? How does his thought process change over time? Express how Gregor’s perception changed, how he started to view himself and the others. Mention the impact that the music had on him and his sense of identity.
• Analyze the relationship between Gregor and his mother. What does her monologue during the chief clerk’s visit reveal about her attitude towards her son? Does she understand him? Explain why she agrees not to visit him, even though she desires to see Gregor after his transformation. Elaborate on the “unfortunate son” quote.
• Examine the supporting characters of the novella. How can the reader view the world outside of the Samsa’s apartment through the lodgers, the chief clerk, and the charwoman? Why are these characters introduced in the novella? Analyze each one of them and the role they play in the story.
• Consider Gregor’s inner monologue. As Gregor lost his ability to speak and isn’t allowed to go out, he’s stuck in the room alone with his thoughts. What does the reader learn about him as a character through his inner monologue? What is his attitude towards the world outside and his family?
• Explain how Gregor’s and Grete’s roles in the family changed. At the beginning of The Metamorphosis, Gregor was the leading supporter of the family, while Grete was a young woman without an occupation, aka a useless burden in the eyes of the family. By the end of the story, their roles changed. How did it happen? How did it affect the attitude towards Grete? Explore what impact the new status had on Grete and her attitude towards Gregor.
• Explore Gregor’s physical and mental injuries. How did Gregor suffer from injuries before and after the transformation (exemplify the knife cut that he recalls)? How does he get hurt throughout the novella? Examine how Gregor’s psychological turmoils correlate with his physical damages.
• Elaborate on the symbolism. What are the most prominent symbols in the novella? Express your thoughts about each one and explain their role in the story. Why did Kafka use a few of them in such a short novella?
• Talk about the character of Gregor. What does Gregor value in life? Explain what his relationships are within and outside of the Samsa family. What does he desire the most? Elaborate on the sacrifices that he made for his family.
• Compare and contrast Mr. and Mrs. Samsa. What are their significant differences? How do their attitudes towards their son differ? Explain that the characters express the polar opposite behaviors throughout the story. How do they treat Gregor and Grete before and after the transformation?
• Analyze the themes of The Metamorphosis. What are the major themes of the story? Consider each one of them and their role in the story. Was there a reason why Kafka wanted to elaborate on these particular themes in the novella?
• Consider the ending of the novella. Talk about Gregor’s death: was it a noble sacrifice or a tragic one? What does the Samsa family feel? Describe the ending of The Metamorphosis and explain why it sounds hopeful.
• Explore how the plot of The Metamorphosis contradicts Charles Darwin’s evolutionary theory. As opposed to Darwin’s revelation that biological forms evolve over a long time to become more complex and adapted, Gregor Samsa, in a moment, turned into a less perfect yet more primal creature. Compare and contrast Gregor’s de-evolution with Darwin’s theory.
• Compare movie adaptations of The Metamorphosis. What are the significant differences between the two films? How did the directors deal with narration and inner monologue? Present the examples from both movies to explain which one, in your opinion, is better or more accurate to the source material.
• Talk about the genre of The Metamorphosis. Why is it tricky to define the novella’s genre right away? What genres of fiction are the most notable? Provide proof from the text to elaborate on your position.
• Evaluate Freud’s influence on the themes of The Metamorphosis. What Freudian theories can be found in the novella? Analyze the plot according to the interaction of 3 parts of Gregor’s mind (Id, Ego, Superego) and the Oedipus complex.
• Utilitarianism in “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka
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• Isolation and Alienation in “The Metamorphosis”
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• Symbols and Abstractions in Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis”
• The Contrasting Views on Life in “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka
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• The Figure of Exile in “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka
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• The Psychological Transformations of Nora From “A Doll’s House” and Grete From “The Metamorphosis”
• Transformations and Symbolism in Frank Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis”
• Examining “The Metamorphosis” From a Marxist Perspective
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• The Existentialist Philosophy of Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis”
• Isolation in “The Metamorphosis” by Kafka and “Heart of Darkness” by Conrad
• The Significance of the Minor Characters in Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis”
• Metamorphosis of Gregor in Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis”
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• Theme of Death in “Love in the Time of Cholera” and “The Metamorphosis”
• The Dramatic Change: Brief Overview of “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka
• What Is the Significance of the Number “Three” in Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis”?
• How Does Gregor’s Family Change in “The Metamorphosis”?
• What Effect Does Gregor’s Metamorphosis Have On His Family, Individually and as a Whole?
• When Should Children Read “The Metamorphosis” of Franz Kafka?
• How Do Gregor’s Feelings for His Family Change Throughout “The Metamorphosis”?
• Why Has Gregor Changed in “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka?
• Is Gregor an Admirable Character in Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis”?
• What Does “The Metamorphosis” Reveal About Human Nature?
• How Is Gregor’s Metamorphosis Similar to Grete’s in Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis”?
• What Is the Major Conflict in “The Metamorphosis”?
• How Can You Interpret “The Metamorphosis” Through the Existential Lens?
• What Is the Main Message or Theme of “The Metamorphosis”?
• What Is the Importance of Third-Person Narration in “The Metamorphosis”?
• To What Extent Does Gregor Samsa Change After His Transformation in Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis”?
• How Does Gregor React to His Transformation in “The Metamorphosis”?
• Why and How Did Gregor Become “Vermin” in “The Metamorphosis”?
• What Did Kafka Try to Express Through the Metamorphosis of Gregor Samsa?
• Is Samsa Partly to Blame for Having Incurred His Fate in “The Metamorphosis”?
• To What Extent May Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis” Be Read as a Critique of 20th Century Materialism?
• What Is the Moral Lesson of “The Metamorphosis”?
• Does the Kafka Believe That Meaningful Human Communication Is Possible in “The Metamorphosis”?
• How Does “The Metamorphosis” Relate to the Real World?
• How Do the Changes in Gregor’s Room Reflect the Progress of the Narrative In Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis”?
• Does the Sense of Ambiguity Add or Subtract From the Power of “The Metamorphosis”?
• What Does “The Metamorphosis” Teach Us About Identity?
• How Does Gregor’s Loss of Language Affect His Ability to Gain Control Over His Life and Ultimately His Fate in “The Metamorphosis”?
• What Role Do the Boarders Play in “The Metamorphosis”?
• What Evidence Suggests That Kafka Is Making a Statement About the Dehumanizing Effects of Work in “The Metamorphosis”?
• How Does Gregor Feel About His Job in “The Metamorphosis”?
• Can Freud’s Notions of Eros and the Death Instinct Illuminate Gregor’s Plight in “The Metamorphosis”?
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IvyPanda . "145 The Metamorphosis Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." June 7, 2024. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/the-metamorphosis-essay-examples/.