Theme Of Self Alienation In The Metamorrphosis

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William Sokel is a scholar of the 20th century who is best known for his work on 20th century European literature. Sokel approaches Kafka’s The Metamorphosis through the lens of self-alienation. Self-alienation is just one of many aspects of Marxism that Sokel touches on. Through Marxism Sokel depicts labor, capitalism, and self-alienation in the novel. Sokel is also able to portray the immense guilt that consumes Gregor because he is unable to work and provide for his family. The work that Sokel has produced about the novel has helped define the nature of capitalism as well as what happened to Gregor Samsa. Sokel takes much of his research directly from the work of Karl Marx. In the opening pages of his analysis he presents Marx’s observations …show more content…

Existence is pain and psychoanalysis allows for readers to examine the novel more closely to uncover the actions behind Gregor’s downfall. Psychoanalysis refers to the interconnection in the mind between conscious and unconscious. Sigmund Freud is the theorist behind the study of psychoanalysis and Jacques Lacan, his successor, also helped develop the theory. Psychoanalysis plays an important role in the novel The Metamorphosis because the reader is left to decide what portion of the novel exists in reality and what portion of the novel exists within Gregor’s mind. The line of conscious and unconscious becomes blurred in the novel, but through the work of Freud and other scholars, readers are able to make sense of it. Scholar Michael P. Ryan understands how society can affect the way some individual acts and thinks. Much of Ryan’s research stems from Freud and as Marx would put it, the aftermath of capitalism. The focus of Ryan’s work is centered around the relationship between Gregor’s last name Samsa and samsara. Samsara is the cycle of death and rebirth. The psychoanalytic aspect of this article relates to the state of mind of the Gregor Samsa’s character in relation to samsara. Through capitalism Gregor has found himself incredibly alone and alienated. He has no real contact with anyone during his time working or while he is confined to his

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