The Metamorphosis by Frank Kafka - Essay Example

In addition to this, there is one theme that makes up a major part of this story. In various part of the story, Kafka expresses his believe that Gregor's metamorphosis is a symbolic one rather than a physical one. By giving the story the title metamorphosis, the readers of this story are more likely to expect or believe that Gregor had turned into a real scary creature. However, Kafka expresses his view that Gregor's metamorphosis is a symbolic one rather than a physical one through various texts in the story, each of which explains the theme in various contexts.

At the beginning of the story, Kafka explains how Gregor wakes up one day to find that he has turned into monstrous insect-like creature and this makes his family to run away from him (Kafka 539). The running away is an indication that the family was seeing a totally new and terrifying creature of what used to be one of them. This is also noted when Gregor examines himself and wonders what has happened of him. However, there is something about his transformation that makes Kafka to believe that it Gregor has not turned to a real vermin.

Instead, he has become a vermin in psychological or moral sense. Kafka states that when Gregor realised he had changed, he does not seem to readily accept his new look. He fights with his new reality and how much it has incapacitated him and questions how such changes could occur. He does his best to get out of bed and go to work because he still has the will power to go. However, he could not manage and finally, he resorts to lying back hoping that taking some time and thinking clearly will resolve the situation (Kafka 540).

The will power that Gregor displays is an indication that his transformation was not a physical one. . The will power that Gregor displays is an indication that his transformation was not a physical one. He could not have really wanted to go and mix with normal human beings if he himself had turned into something strange. The transformations where therefore internal and Gregor was seeing the possibilities of him fighting to live amongst people and work despite the changes that have taken place in his life.

He was also seeing he possibilities of being restored to his previous sound state. In other words, there was a possible intervention to it. No such interventions could be possible if Gregor had turned to a real terrifying creature. In another place, Gregor says, “How about going back to sleep for a few minutes and forgetting all this nonsense.” By terming the transformations as nonsense, Gregor was in essence indicating that he was he was experiencing some unhealthy changes in his thoughts.

This is also supported by his decision to resolve to some clear thinking as a way out of this problem. For a normal human being, it does not sound realistic for one to wish away some physical changes that have taken place in one’s life because no amount of wishing can take them away. However, some psychological or moral disturbances or abnormalities can be resolved by taking time to rest, going through counseling, psychological therapy and other forms of rehabilitations. When Gregor’s situation grew worse, he became unbearable to his family and some of them even saw him as a threat to them.

For example, his father throws some apples on him when he met him outside. This is the monster in him that Kafka implies and is an indication that the changes in his thoughts had now made him wild or too absurd in his behaviors. These are characteristics of persons suffering