Reviews with content warning for Terminal illness - The Metamorphosis

Reviews tagging 'Terminal illness'

The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

5 reviews

ecaps's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

If you want to read a summary without any spoilers and want to know if you should read the book then YES, read the book

Gregor Samsa one morning finds himself turned into a vermin. His family at seeing this transformation are appalled. His father treats him like a pest. His mother cannot bear to look at her son because of what he has become. His sister is the only one who powers through and cleans up his room, puts out food for him and so on. Gregor does not want to burden his family but it does so happen that he becomes one for them. Before this, he was the breadwinner for the family and wanted to give his parents a comfortable life and the best education to his little sister. They were the only reason he was doing the office job he didn’t like.

My interpretation;

Even after he realises his transformation, Gregor is calm. That aspect really made it even more unnerving for me since being turned into a completely new species one fine morning without any reason would render anyone into a state of shock. There is a part in the beginning where his main priority was not to ask how did this happen but just to get out of bed and convince his family that he is not sick. This calmness in Gregor’s demeanour just seems unusual. But when I think about it the explanation that comes to mind is, in a situation where everyone else is panicking someone has to be calm to handle the situation. In this case, where everyone was panicking Gregor kept calm so that he could keep everyone from worrying.

A human turning into an insect is a way of the author metaphorically describing differently abled people, people who suffer from mental illnesses, people who feel unworthy, alienated from their peers and loved ones, anyone who feels they don’t fit in or are treated like a freak for being different.

Being someone who has experienced these things Kafka has tried to communicate the impact they have on their families and people close to them and how it affects themselves as well. How in their own mind they don’t want to burden their loved ones with their issues but they cannot communicate that and the people around them either pity them or see them and treat them differently. This makes them feel betrayed and they see their existence as unnecessary and even try to take their own lives.
This does not necessarily mean either one of the parties are at fault, it is just a situation that they have landed in because LIFE!. The way circumstances bring out a different side in people and how it affects human relationships is what the story tries to depict.

P.S.: I highly recommend reading the preface before starting the actual book. It gives quite an insight of the authors style of writing and helps you understand his thought process.

Content Warnings