Existentialism talks about man making himself. Man has a dream for himself to fulfill one day. These dreams sometimes get the best of people and become them. These people become isolated from society with only their dream keeping them going. Isolation is everywhere. There are different types of 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 this idea of a “perfect” future that the chance for a relationship with anyone has snuck away. This dream that he thought would make him happier has only blinded him to the world and brought him sorrow. Gregor also splits himself off from himself and his relationships. This doesn't allow him to be fully present in his relationships or with himself; which is why his relationship with his family was so weak. He detached himself to the point where he didn’t even know who he was anymore; “he is a “bug”, a person without character and, consequently, without human dignity.” (MLA 7th Edition) Gregor worked so hard to achieve his goal, that work became him. He became something he was not. Even when Gregor turned into a bug, a creature with hardly any worries but to sleep, eat, and mate he still stressed over his family; “Gregor spent the days and nights almost entirely without sleep. Sometimes he thought that the next time the door opened he would take charge of the family’s affairs again, just as he done in the old days” (40) His family was his number one worry and not himself; this isolated him from himself even more. This was his intrapersonal isolation. He became so used to being isolated from his family, friends, and even himself that he separated himself from the world. Once he did this he was no longer Gregor Samsa; he was “an image for non-being, constructing a symbol for the absence of a man once called Gregor”. (MLA 7th Edition) This was his existential isolation. Gregor was isolated, but he had no one to blame his isolation on but himself. He was obsessed with “making himself”; this brought great responsibility on him as an individual. With this responsibility tagged along his anxiety and despair. The anxiety associated with his life made him in a constant rush in which he didn’t see himself fading away from society; but he has free will and therefore is entirely responsible for his actions. He cared for his family so much that he “ultimately sacrifices his own well-being for the good of his family, starving himself and dying a death of alienation and loneliness”. (Literary Companion Series) The light entering his room right before his death broke him away from his isolation. It is almost as Gregor’s death has set him free. Gregor tried to create meaning in his life, but instead his universe became meaningless. He was isolated from himself, his family, and friends. He kept putting others in front of his own needs; this is how he lost touch with himself and society. He became something he was not, into a bug. Turning into a bug was just what Gregor needed; “in an ironic Typology, the insect brings to fruition Gregor’s earlier roles as an intimidated worker, guilt son and devoted brother.” (MLA 7th Edition) With this knowledge Gregor could finally go in peace.