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The Metamorphosis | Study Guide

Franz Kafka

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Course Hero. "The Metamorphosis Study Guide." Course Hero. 28 July 2016. Web. 5 June 2023. <https://www.coursehero.com/lit/The-Metamorphosis/>.

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Course Hero. (2016, July 28). The Metamorphosis Study Guide. In Course Hero. Retrieved June 5, 2023, from https://www.coursehero.com/lit/The-Metamorphosis/

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Course Hero. "The Metamorphosis Study Guide." July 28, 2016. Accessed June 5, 2023. https://www.coursehero.com/lit/The-Metamorphosis/.

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Course Hero, "The Metamorphosis Study Guide," July 28, 2016, accessed June 5, 2023, https://www.coursehero.com/lit/The-Metamorphosis/.

The Metamorphosis | Infographic

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Check out this Infographic to learn more about Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis. Study visually with character maps, plot summaries, helpful context, and more.

the-metamorphosis-franz-kafka_UPDATEFRANZ KAFKA1883–1924Sources: Biography.com, The New York Times, The University of PennsylvaniaCopyright © 2016 Course Hero, Inc. hen Gregor Samsa woke up one morning from unsettling dreams, he found himself changed in his bed into a monstrous vermin.Narrator, Part 1Woman in FursGregor clings to the framed advertisement of the woman in furs, a symbol of lost beauty and the superficiality of modern life.VerminThe vermin symbolizes dehumanization, an inability to fit in, and perhaps even Kafka himself.UniformsIn Gregor's photo and on his father, uniforms lend an air of importance to the wearer.SymbolsKafka grew up in a middle-class Jewish family, working for an insurance company and living with his parents most of his life. Many of his unconventional stories were published posthumously against his wishes, and today the term Kafkaesque is used to describe the bizarre and fantastical.AuthorMotifsTransformationGregor and his family members undergo major changes.LivelihoodMoney and livelihood are the chief concerns of the Samsa family.SubterfugeThere's more here than meets the eye, with Mr. Samsa hiding money andexaggerating illness.Main CharactersCharwomanPractical, blunt; performs duties with no fear of GregorOffice ManagerCritical, demanding; runs when he sees Gregor as a bugMrs. SamsaGregor’s troubled, weak mother; disgusted by her son’s appearanceMr. SamsaGregor’s hostile father; a broken man forced to return to workGregor SamsaLonely salesman; transforms into a bugGrete SamsaAspiring violinist;pities and then resents her brother, Gregor Years in which the main character has not missed workKafka's age when he moved out of his parents' homeThe Metamorphosisby the Numbers31531Year in which the term Kafkaesque first appeared in an article by poet Cecil Day-Lewis1938Renters the family takes in to stretch their shrunken budgetKafkaesqueWhat Makes a Man Less Than Human?THEMESTraveling salesman Gregor Samsa never misses his morning alarm.One day, however, he awakens late and finds himself transformed into a bug-like creature. His catastrophic transformation derails his career, life, and family. As he lives out his life trapped in a small room, readers wonder: Is he still Gregor?The emotions of Gregor's family range from love and compassion to resentment and horror.Family TiesThough Gregor no longer looks human, his thoughts stay the same, revealing a disconnect between mind and body.Mind & BodyGregor's transformationmay seem absurd, but it represents feelings of isolation that are alltoo real.Alienation in Modern LifeFranz Kafka1915GermanNovellaAuthorYear PublishedOriginal LanguageFictionThe Metamorphosis
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