Kafka's Metamorphosis

“Gregor Samsa awoke from troubling dreams one morning to find that his life had remained conspicuously the same.” This – in context of the entire book – is the actual opening line of Franz Kafka’s Metamorphosis. Gregor Samsa, the unfortunate protagonist and indirect narrator of the story has been “inexplicably” transformed into a bug. But quite truly, Gregor – his persona, and the role he plays – has remained quite the same. Franz Kafka’s theme of isolation is very thick in thi…

…etting so normal and undisturbing that one is left helplessly disturbed. Kafka’s characters are so human and natural that the reader is left questioning the inhumane qualities of their actions. The “metamorphosis” referred to in the title takes place – ironically – not in the protagonist who has become a giant roach. The change is found in the hearts of his seemingly unchanged family.