Gregor Samsa

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Disabilities Exile One from Society In Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, Gregor Samsa is exiled from his family as soon as he becomes disabled and cannot provide income and is therefore useless to his family. When Gregor is turned into a bug, his disability becomes the sole thing people see. Gregor is deemed a burden on his family and all of society, basically worthless. Gregor is only seen as a handicapped individual, only his physical is judged, his mental capacity is never tested. “His parents didn't want Gregor to start any more than a sister did, but perhaps for them to be directly involved in his feeding was more than they could bear, or perhaps a sister wanted to shield them even from what might prove to be no more than a minor …show more content…

“It will be the death of you both. I can see it coming. People who have to work as hard as we do can't stand this constant torture at home. I can't stand it anymore either.”(Kafka 343) Gregor is viewed as a strain by his family, especially his sister. Handicapped people are often seen as a nuisance and “good for nothing”. They believe it would be best for them if they got rid of Gregor. When Gregor dies, his father is joyous. “Well”, said Mr. Samsa, “now thanks be to God.”(Kafka 345) Mr. Samsa says relieved his son is now dead and that he doesn't have to worry about him anymore even though it was like he was already dead because his father paid no attention to Gregor as bug besides when he was abusing and injuring him. No father should be happy his son is dead. “Ableism has been historically present in schools as well as in society at large and is tied in part to the medical model that seeks to “fix” people with disabilities.” (Storey 9) Gregor was never accepted for who he now was, he was only ever compared to the able bodied Gregor. He was ruled “unfixable” and then treated like garbage, like he was not even a human anymore despite his mental capacity. Even though his outside changed into a bug, mentally Gregor was still human with emotions and feelings. Gregor, for as long as he was a bug, he was a damper on the overall vibe of the Samsa household because his family did not accept him for who he was. As soon as Gregor became disabled he was ruled out of his family. In Metamorphosis, Gregor was deemed unworthy of society and his family solely because he was unable to work and unable to communicate with his family. The mentally and physically handicapped are people too and should be treated witht the same respect as everyone

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