An Analysis Of Existentialism In The Metamorphosis

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Recommended: Symbolism in the metamorphosis kafka

SooJin Lee
Period 2
Mr. Ajlouny
Feb 6, 2014
The Metamorphosis Essay
Prompt: How is Gregor’s transformation into a bug a representation of an existentialism crisis?

Existentialism is known to be a dangerous philosophical theory that makes us question ourselves the purpose of our lives, and makes us feel isolated from the world that can even lead to accepting death. In his short story The Metamorphosis, Kafka represents the horror of existentialism through Gregor’s transformation of a bug.
Kafka empathizes that existentialism is so dangerous that existential attitude occurs without even a person realizing until something changes in that person’s life. For example, Kafka creates a character name Gregor, a traveling salesman who works very hard to over provide for his family, to show how he does not realize how tired and overworking man he is until he transforms into a useless bug. Because Gregor over works for his family and is always out in business trips, he is a lonely man. Gregor is used to being alone and even “formed the cautious habit.. of locking all his doors at night”(13). His routine for a day is simple: work and sleep like a bug. He does not meet with any woman, go on a vacation, or even rest peaceful at home because he is so “condemned to work for a firm where people immediately conceive the greatest suspicions at the smallest sign of negligence” (15). He’s isolation from the world even before he becomes a bug already shows his existential attitude. However, Gregor does not realizes this until he turns into a beetle who no longer can work, but to stay in his room. Kafka uses Gregor to represent that existentialism can not be seen until something physically happens.
Although Kafka presents Gregor as an indif...

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...simply “clears out that trash” into a dumpster(51). Instead of being buried and have a funeral for Gregor, he is thrown like a dead bug on the grade. Until the end, Gregor’s family does not show their love for Gregor, but shed some tears at the end; half of it because they feel sad and the other half it because they feel free. The way how Gregor’s family treated Gregor play a big role of danger of existentialism.
Through Gregor’s transformation as a bug, Kafka represents how people around Gregor and himself place Gregor into a greater danger of existentialism. He shows the reader how horrific existentialism is and that this can be one of the reasons why deaths occur in this world. He warns the reader to be able to maintain the limit and the ability of how much a person can work, so that we don’t have to be like Gregor who only works for living like a bug would do.

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