Free Essay

Gregor Samsa

In:

Submitted By mjmj1
Words 272
Pages 2
Meiner Meinung nach war Gregor Samsa in seiner Familie nie ein Mächtiger und stellte immer schon den Ohnmächtigen dar.

Das liegt zu mal daran dass sein Vater schon immer eindeutig das Familienoberhaupt war unabhängig davon, ob Gregor der Hauptverdiener war oder nicht. Auch, dass der Sohn für den Vater nur als Einkommensquelle bedeutend war, zeigt Gregors eher unterlegene Rolle in der Familie. Man könnte meinen das Gregor unabhängig davon, ob er das Ansehen seines Vaters hatte oder nicht, als Alleinverdiener in der Familie unabdingbar der Mächtige war. Dies stellt sich im Laufe des Buches aber auch als falsch heraus, da herauskommt dass der Vater heimlich Geld zurückgelegt hat und die finanzielle Not gar nicht so groß war. Dies zeigt nicht nur, dass Gregor für die Familie nicht finanziell unverzichtbar war, sondern unterstreicht auch, dass Gregor mit mangelndem Respekt behandelt wurde, obwohl er sein Leben seiner Familie widmete. Unabhängig vom finanziellen Aspekt zeigt sich auch in den Beziehungen innerhalb der Familie das Gregor stets eine eher unterlegene Rolle hat. Seine ganze Familie sieht die Opfer die er bringt für die Familie als selbstverständlich und seine Mutter scheint seine persönlichen Probleme nicht einmal zu bemerken. Auch das liebevolle Verhältnis zu seiner Schwester verschwindet mit zunehmender Belastbarkeit von der Schwester Grete durch Gregor. Die gesamte Familie wird unabhängig von Gregor und wendet sich von ihm ab, da sie keinen Nutzen aus ihm ziehen kann. Das beweist endgültig, dass Gregor weder von emotionalen Wert, noch finanziell unverzichtbar für die Familie war.

Zusammenfassend lässt sich sagen, dass Gregor schon von Anfang an als Ohnmächtiger galt, und dies im Verlaufe des Buches nur sichtbar und deutlicher wird.

Similar Documents

Premium Essay

Freedom for Gregor Samsa?

...Freedom For Gregor Samsa? In “The Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka, Gregor Samsa is transformed into a monstrous bug. Despite the circumstance, his reaction is calm. He simply thinks, “What happened to me?” His only worry was would he be able to work. Gregor lived a simple, structured life. Every day he would wake up at four in the morning to catch the train to work so he could support his unappreciative family, and that is all he did. The unsuspecting calm setting of this story in the beginning quickly evolves into positivity as Gregor realizes his freedom as a bug. Gregor sacrificed his personal life to work and pay off his parents’ debts rather than pursue his own interests. Gregor was never recognized by his family for his efforts, instead he was taken for granted and expected to support them without consideration for his needs. When Gregor became a bug, his family started to realize how important Gregor was financially. At the same time, Gregor began to realize that as a bug he had no financial obligations towards his family and this was a huge relief for him. Gregor talks about not giving up and that when he pays off his parents’ debt he will have his big break. “Anyway, I haven’t completely given up that hope yet. Once I’ve got together the money to pay off the parents’ debt to him— that should take another five or six years—I’ll do it for sure. Then I’ll make the big break” (Kafka). He is clearly optimistic and wants to live for himself but suffers from guilt because he...

Words: 569 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

The Metamorphisis of Gregor Samsa

...Metamorphosis of Gregor Samsa Gregory Samsa, is the main character in the story by Frank Kafka entitled "Metamorphosis". This story, published in 1915, is a disturbing look at the seemingly pathetic life of man and how a major change affects not only him, but those around him. Gregor Samsa appears to be a hard working young man, with a strong work ethic, whose main existence in life is to provide for his family through his work. His family, likewise, seems to be only interested in the money that Gregor provides to the family, so that they family debt may be paid. Otherwise, Gregor Samsa is a lonely man who leads a lonely life. He seems to go through life with no sense of being until one day he awakes completely transformed physically. He becomes something completely unknown to him in the physical sense. However, the question remains does the physical transformation produce a transformation in the emotional sense? Does Gregor change his sense of being as a result of his metamorphosis? The story tells the tale of a man who is disconnected from society in so much as a drastic, dramatic and disturbing change in his appearance does nothing to change his emotional state. Transforming into a hideous creature, a detested cockroach does not seem to affect him in the psychological sense, it does not seem to change who he is at the core. However, what we do see is how the transformation seems to change the people around him. His family and boss respond very differently to Gregor and overtime...

Words: 1218 - Pages: 5

Free Essay

Dr. Ragin Meets Gregor Samsa

... Ragin Meets Gregor Samsa Andrey Yefimich stared at the specimen in front of him in surprise. He’d never investigated a case quite like this before. It had been Mikhail Averyanich who had suggested anxiously that he take the trip, insinuating that the distance from the ward might provide him with some mental clarity. He has insisted it would be best from his health, and Andrey Yefimich had agreed reluctantly. Mikhail Averyanich first heard about Gregor from an acquaintance living in the Samsas’ neighborhood after three boarders had left the Samsas’ residence because of what they referred to as inhabitable conditions due to an outrageous housemate. Gregor stared curiously up at the doctor, wondering who had decided to call him in. He decided the practical thing would be to first introduce himself. “Hello, doctor. Good to see you,” Gregor clicked. Andrey Yefimich looked startled for a moment and then peered closer at Gregor. Gregor stood perfectly still so as not to scare him. He considered backing up a few steps but then realized he might come across as frightened instead of wary. As much as he wished to lessen the doctor’s discomfort, he didn’t want to create the impression of being a frightened insect that would skitter away at the slightest move. After all, here was the first person to come so close to him, willingly and unrepulsed. “Is he trying to communicate?” Andrey Yefimich asked Mr. Samsa, never taking his eyes off the subject. Mr. Samsa let out a snort...

Words: 1463 - Pages: 6

Premium Essay

Gregor Samsa, a Good Man Psychologically Weak

...little over the course of the book. Gregor is a good man with a good heart – he is very close with his family, especially his little sister. This essay analyzes Gregor’s lonely yet compassionate and selfless character. The reader is immediately brought into Gregor Samsa’s bizarre world in the first sentence of the novella: “Waking up from anxious dreams, he discovered… he had been changed into a monstrous venomous bug” (3). A normal reaction for someone who goes to sleep as human and wakes up the next morning as a hideous insect would be utter shock and panic – but for some odd reason, this doesn’t happen with Gregor. Instead, he rolls over in bed, looks out the window, and the first thing he thinks is that he will be late for work. “I have to deal with the problems of traveling, the worries about train connections, irregular bad food, temporary and constantly changing human relationships which never come from the heart… to hell with it all!” (4). Gregor is oblivious to the fact that his transformation even occurred. He’s concerned about the morning’s commute – and the crowded train – even the bad food he might eat that day! He’s overly pessimistic. But as the novella progresses, the reader learns more of the Gregor’s personality – in particular, his loneliness. It’s obvious he has a lack of interaction within his own family. When his manager shows up at the house to check on Gregor, his mother tries to intervene and save her son’s job: [Gregor] has nothing in his head except...

Words: 824 - Pages: 4

Free Essay

Sociological Autobiography

...work did Gregor do before his metamorphosis? Answer: Gregor worked as a traveling salesman. 2. What are Gregor’s obligations to his family before his transformation into an insect? Answer: Gregor is the sole support of his family before his metamorphosis. He paid the rent, all the bills, and he was paying off his parents’ private debts to the chief of his firm. 6. What are some of the things that Gregor hopes for? Answer: Gregor hopes one day to leave his job for good. His fondest wish is to send his sister, Grete, to music school to study the violin. He hopes to free himself from all his family’s obligations and from his parents’ dependency on him. 7. What two contradictory goals does Gregor seem to be striving for throughout the story? Answer: Gregor seems to want to withdraw from the world and to be isolated from it, while at the same time he has an irrepressible need to be loved and understood. 8. What are some of the things Gregor tries to tell the chief clerk? Answer: Gregor tries to remind the chief clerk that he is often the target of unfounded rumors and malicious attacks. He begs the chief clerk to have some compassion for him, and he reminds him that he has to provide for his family’s welfare. 9. How does Mr. Samsa force Gregor back into his room? Answer: Because Mr. Samsa chases Gregor back into his room with a walking stick, rolled up newspaper and by stamping his feet and hissing savagely. 10. In what ways has Gregor been alienated...

Words: 365 - Pages: 2

Free Essay

The Metamorphosis

...isolation: intrapersonal, interpersonal, and existential isolation. We see the main character Gregor Samsa going through all three types of isolation in the short story The Metamorphosis. Gregor Samsa is an ordinary man with a dream to one day fulfill. This dream or goal of his has become him. The only thing keeping him going is the thought that one day his goal will be reached. This dream has kept him running away from reality, which has led to his isolation. The first type of isolation that we see in Gregor is interpersonal isolation; this is the form of isolation from others. Throughout the short story Gregor isolates himself from his family. He overworks himself to try to maintain his family by himself. People would think that such dedication from a son would bring him closer to his parents; “but for all the work one does, one still doesn’t gain any right to be treated with loving kindness by everyone; on the contrary, one is alone, a perfect stranger to everyone, and merely an object of curiosity.” (Emrich) Gregor did not stand up for himself, he let his parents control his life; a life he despised. His parents had such control over him that he no longer was a son to them, but an object that spit out the income they needed to maintain themselves with. This ruined their relationship with him and isolated Gregor from his parents. He no longer had a true relationship; which he longed for. Gregor is hungry for a serious, long relationship with someone meaningful, but he has been chasing...

Words: 804 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis Essay

...Franz Kafka is the author of the book Metamorphosis. He was born in Prague on July 3, 1883. Born a German-speaking Jewish boy. Lived with his parents for most his life. He is best known for describing absurd situations with simple, cold words. Franz Kafka’s Metamorphosis could fall under a couple of genres in literature, they would include: classic, fiction, and fantasy. The way that Gregor changes illustrates that the theme would be the absurdity of life. In the beginning Gregor wakes up as a bug and is kind of scared along with his family. Towards the middle he is used to his body and isn’t scared anymore. His family is starting to get used to the idea that the bug is Gregor and that’s what he looks like now. At the end though all of that changes, his sister wants to get rid of the idea that that’s Gregor and they want him out of the house so they can be free from fear again. Change can happen at anytime and it can be very destructive and life changing....

Words: 673 - Pages: 3

Premium Essay

Symbolism In The Metamorphosis By Kafka

...stability of the family shifts onto Mr. Samsa’s shoulders alone in Part II, a familiar tone of resentment and instability is seen when Mr. Samsa immediately “put the worst interpretation on Grete’s all-too-brief announcement and assumed that Gregor was guilty of some outrage” (page 58). As seen in the beginning, the weight of finance on a single person once again results in bitterness and anger. With Mr. Samsa now being the only person providing income to the family, he experiences the same fatigue and bitterness as Gregor, leading him to act impulsively and abruptly by throwing apples at Gregor and injuring him severely. The image of his outrage clearly exemplifies the hostility that he develops from being the only provider. A change in financial responsibility for all family members in the end leads to a “closer examination that these weren’t bad at all, for all three positions—about which they had never really asked one another in any detail—were exceedingly advantageous and especially promising for the future” (page 79). This quote focuses on the potential improvement of the family when they all contribute to the family’s income. This newfound hope develops a glowing image of the family’s situation as a result of contributions from them all. To convince the readers of the importance of equal responsibility among family members, Kafka...

Words: 945 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Isolation In Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis

...In Franz Kafka’s novel ,The Metamorphosis, the author pertains to his character, Gregor Samsa,with uncontrollable circumstances such as isolation caused by outside forces. Gregor Samsa, upon waking one morning finds himself transformed into what he already feels like, an insect. His parents deem him unworthy of their love and throw him away like the rest of their junk. Gregor’s father chooses a job for him that dismisses all hopes of forming human connections because of its time consuming nature. Experiences such as theses parallel with Kafka. Born into an anti Semitic community, along with a very opinionated father Kafka’s life is filled with people pushing him away. Kafka truly lives through his characters, especially Gregor, in this short...

Words: 984 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

The Metamorphosis By Franz Kafka

...the story by using Gregor Samsa and other characters to show the struggles he had in his life. Kafka shows his opinions about work and jobs in society by making Gregor share his opinions on this topic. Another aspect of Gregor’s life that is similar to Kafka’s is their relationships with their families, and especially their fathers. The two character’s strangeness and their health are also issues that affects both of their lives. Kafka dislike work and jobs and he reflects that into Gregor Samsa in his novel. Samsa is a hardworking man who works every day for years without missing a single day. Gregor is a traveling salesman, so not many people...

Words: 995 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Metamorphosis

...throughout the novella. Gregor's family members are his parents, Mr. and Mrs. Samsa and his sister Grete. Gregor's family was contaminated before he transformed into an insect. Mr. Samsa was not taking care of family responsibilities and decided to put the entire burden of his family on his son. Gregor not only had the pressure of supporting his family but of his father's past debts. This put Gregor in a bad situation for his life, he had to exist for his family only. Even when Gregor was confronted with the chief clerk on the other side of the door all he worried about was the future of his family. I however, do not feel his parents ever spared him. He continued to beg for the chief clerk to hear him. The chief clerk must be detained,persuaded and finally won over because the whole future of Gregor and his family depended on it. If only his sister had been there, she was intelligent; she had begun to cry while Gregor was still lying quietly on his back. Gregor's mother loved her son. However, she seemed to partly love him because of the role he played. Mrs. Samsa was the one who was in a state of panic when Gregor could not come to the door when he was transformed. She seemed to be the only one who toyed with the idea that Gregor may be ill, "Oh dear," cried his mother, in tears, "perhaps he's terribly ill and we're tormenting him." Mrs. Samsa was the first to explain the Chief that Gregor had no social life outside of his job responsibilities. As a parent she...

Words: 1039 - Pages: 5

Free Essay

Metamorphosis

...points in time and in different settings; Metamorphosis in an apartment in the early 1900’s, and Billy Budd on a ship in the late 18th Century. These settings help to identify the mood of each story. Metamorphosis takes place in the early 1900’s in the apartment of Gregor Samsa. Kafka does not provide a geographical setting for Metamorphosis, however, the significance of the story taking place on land is the ability of the characters to escape at their own will. Metamorphosis begins with Gregor unable to get out of his bed for work, later succumbing to the fact that he has morphed into an insect. Gregor’s extreme tardiness for work causes upheaval and chaos in the Samsa home; The father is screaming, Gregor’s boss comes to the house to find his employee, Gregor’s mother and sister are crying because they are scared, and there are guests in the home. The setting of the entire Samsa family being confined into a small apartment makes the the turmoil that arises a much larger issue than it really is. At a certain point, the Samsa family, led by their father, decides to isolate Gregor into the living room. This isolation is the start to planning a death for Gregor in order to restore the family dynamic in the Samsa home. Billy Budd takes place on a boat in the Mediterranean Sea in 1797 during the Napoleonic wars. The fighting between France and England at the time helped frame the setting of the story. The names of the boats Melville chose, “Rights of Man” and...

Words: 749 - Pages: 3

Free Essay

None

...In the journey and experience of Gregor Samsa and Pecola Breedlove a reader can depict the sensation and attributes of alienation, separation, and confusion. In addition, both Gregor and Pecola are faced with the constant rejection and absence not only within their community but within their society as well. However, with these similarities both protagonists are extremely different in their unique ways. We start off with Gregor Samsa an adult who is conscious to who he is and ultimately meets his death towards the end. Ever since the transformation Gregor didn’t quite understand how this happened or even why. But instead of dwelling of the change he sought out ways to adjust to his new body and becomes concerned on how to support his family. When we look at Pecola we see an adolescent whose deepest desire is to have the “bluest” eye. Through this notion it displays her as a weak and passive allowing her to be mistreated by others, such as, her father, mother and Mr. Yacobowski. “Adults, older girls, shops, magazines, newspapers, window signs – all the world had agreed that a blue-eyed, yellow-haired, pink-skinned doll was what every girl child treasured (Morrison pg. 20).” Pecola being confused about this notion of why this doll is so special she strips the toy down to the point where only a mere round metal piece is left, in which turns into hatred not only to the dolls but towards the white little girls. However, Pecola hatred goes into a false love of becoming just like...

Words: 728 - Pages: 3

Free Essay

Bus Law

...Part 1 : The Metamorphosis Narrator: When Gregor Samsa woke up one morning from unsettling dreams, he found himself changed in his bed into a monstrous vermin. He was lying on his back as hard as armor plate, and when he lifter his head a little, he saw his vaulted brown belly, sectioned by arch-shaped ribs, to whose dome the cover, about to slide off completely, could barely cling. His many legs, pitifully thin compared with the size of the rest of him, were waving helplessly before his eyes. Gregor: What’s happened to me? [Gregor looks around room, confused and scared] [Gregor then look straight out window and begins to squint] Gregor: how about going back to sleep for a few minutes and forgetting all this nonsense [Gregor tries to move but cannot] Gregor: Oh god, what a grueling job I’ve picked. Day in, day out-on the road. The upset of doing business is much worse than the actual business in the home office, and besides, I’ve got the torture of traveling, worrying about challenging trains, eating miserable food at all hours, constantly seeing new faces, no relationships that last or get more intimate. To the devil with it all! This getting up so early, makes anyone a complete idiot. Human beings have to have their sleep. Other traveling salesmen live like harem women Narrator: He looked over at the alarm clock, which was ticking on the chest of drawers Gregor: God Almighty! Narrator: It was six-thirty, actually past the half hour, nearly a quarter...

Words: 762 - Pages: 4

Premium Essay

Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis Literary Analysis

...parallels between Gregor and Kafka can be noted throughout the novel. The Metamorphosis may have been a metaphorical allegory written to expresses Kafka’s unvoiced antipathy with his life and authoritarian father. According to the presentation over Kafka’s biography,...

Words: 1715 - Pages: 7