Delaney Allen Hour 6

The Metamorphosis Final

The Metamorphosis is a novella by Franz Kafka in which a man, Gregor

Samsa, transforms into a hideous, disgusting bug and is ostracized by his family. I
am viewing this story from the psychoanalytical lens, and I have observed many
different examples throughout the story that hint at possible disorders that Gregor
may have had, and the mistreatment he faced as a bug.
Throughout the story, Gregor is tormented by his family and called numerous
degrading names by them. His father especially shows the most hate for Gregor, as
demonstrated in several parts of the story. In the first paragraph on page 7, His
father looked hostile, and clenched his fists as if wanting to knock Gregor back into
his room. The father automatically assumed that Gregor had perpetrated some
act of violence. This may even be a demonstration of an Oedipus complex that
Gregor possesses, which is enforced by the resentment his father feels for him.
Gregor is abused both physically and verbally on multiple occasions throughout the
story, and his fathers reaction to Gregors death is nothing short of pure relief. By
the end of the story, the family is starting to refer to Gregor as it, meaning that
they no longer see him as a person. Gregors death would have been totally
preventable, had the family treated him like their son and not attacked him. A big
reason why Gregor died was because he knew his family began to resent him, and
he gave up because he no longer felt loved.
Gregor may also have been suffering from a disorder known as General
Adaptation Syndrome, which is characterized as a term used to describe the bodys
short-term and long-term reactions to stress. The first stage of the disorder is an

alarm reaction, which is an immediate reaction to a stressor. In the story, this would
have been when Gregor was attacked and chased by his father and flees around the
room while his father bombards him by throwing apples. After that is the stage of
resistance, where Gregor continues to function even after being hit with the apple.
He gets around by crawling everywhere, because he knows that he is probably
permanently paralyzed. Eventually, he stops eating and accepts the fact that his
death is impending and imminent, which is when he has reached stage 3--the stage
of exhuation. At this point, Gregor has given up on life, and he is basically waiting to
die.
In the story, Gregor is portrayed as a kind, compassionate, hard-working man
who loves his family and adapts very quickly to the creature he has become. He
understands that the metamorphosis is an irreversible change and he does not let it
bother him that much, especially when he knows he is still the same person on the
inside. However, his family refuses to accept the transformation and eventually turn
against him claiming that the bug is not Gregor. They cannot accept their son, even
though his personality and love for them has not changed and they refused to even
see him as a person anymore. Thinking about suddenly shifting into a bug at
random will send chills down anyones spine, but perhaps the treatment they will
receive from those around them afterwards is the real horrifying thought.