Preview

Gregor Samsa Symbolism

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
396 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Gregor Samsa Symbolism
In this story there is a man named Gregor Samsa who is a traveling businessman that is working for a man who his parents are indebted to. He needs to work off their debt so that they are not made to pay. In the beginning he wakes up to find that he has turned into a cockroach. The time is 7:30 he tries to get up and work but can’t because he’s on his back and he is in this bug like form which he has suddenly transformed into overnight. He is portrayed as a cockroach in this story to compare to absurdity at the fact that life is random and absurd. The symbolism is that he was a worker, always on the move. The physiological distance between him and those around might have also brought about this change.
Bugs are hardworking creatures who
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Analysis Of Gregor Samsa In Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis
    • 578 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Analysis Of Gregor Samsa In Franz Kafka's The Metamorphosis

    and how he transforms from a human into a bug. In the novel, it describes the journey and…

    • 578 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Transformation In Gregor Samsa's Metamorphosis
    • 430 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Transformation In Gregor Samsa's Metamorphosis

    In Metamorphosis Gregor Samsa felt insignificant and useless before he went through his metamorphosis, later in the book he transforms into a cockroach, a hated and viewed as a very repulsive bug by humans. This shows what he felt about himself about how he thought others perceived him. Since how Gregor is a bug and is unable to talk it gives a greater insight to how he feels and what he is thinking. This gives him as a bug more character and depth than the other people in the story who should have more thoughts and emotions about the things going on in his life and his families such as how the are adapting to his change and how they feel about his new appearance “Was he an animal, that music could move him so?” Part III, pg. 49…

    • 430 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Analysis Of Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis
    • 329 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Analysis Of Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis

    In the Metamorphosis,Gregor must work to support his family after they lost the company and lost all their money. One morning he wakes up and discovers he is a vermin. The first thing that occurs to him when he discovers this is how will he get to work and that his boss will come to his house and demand that Gregor come to work, meanwhile Gregor is locked in his room unable to get out of bed because he is a bug. Finally he is able to get out of bed, but the boss is gone the time he gets up. His family sees him and is disgusted and shocked by his transformatio. His sister brings him food and cares for him like no one in his family ever has, but even she becomes disgusted with him after a while. They all ignore Gregor. At one point Gregor is…

    • 329 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    The Old Woodfield Exposed In Katherine Mansfield's The Fly
    • 635 Words
    • 3 Pages

    The Old Woodfield Exposed In Katherine Mansfield's The Fly

    The boss comes across a struggling fly on his desk which instantly makes him think of his son struggling. The fly is stuck in a cup of ink and figuratively exclaims “help, help said those struggling legs (Mansfield 3). Through the struggling of the fly we can see that the fly is similar to the boss's son who was injured in battle and unable to continue. Similar to that of the boss's son, the fly is also unable to continue because it is stuck in a bottle of ink and practically drowning, with its legs frantically waving, trying to survive. Ultimately, the fly represents the boss’s grief of his deceased son. The boss tries not to acknowledge that his son has passed away because of the fact that he lost his life at such a young age. The boss has always thought of his son as a strong person and he does not want to see that strength go away. In “The Fly” the boss comes across a common house fly that is struggling and trying to get out of the bowl of ink that it just flew into. In “The Fly” the boss interprets how the fly is struggling to get out of the bowl, and he wants to test the struggling fly's ability to stay strong on all conditions, and to do so the boss “ plunged his pen back in the ink, leaned his thick wrist on the blotting-paper, and as the fly tried its wings down came a great heavy blot (3). This shows us that the boss is trying to test the fly to see if it…

    • 635 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    'Hotel Room 12th Floor' by Norman Maccaig Critical Evaluation
    • 910 Words
    • 4 Pages

    'Hotel Room 12th Floor' by Norman Maccaig Critical Evaluation

    Even at the beginning of the poem, there are signs that the poet is not comfortable in the city. By comparing the helicopter to an ‘insect’, MacCaig reminds us of the sheer size of New York and the buildings. The fact that the insect is ‘damaged’ suggests pain. It could also suggest that nature – the insect – is harmed by civilisation – the helicopter. The metaphor used to describe the Empire State building – ‘jumbo size dentist drill’ also suggests pain due to the connotations of the drill and of the dentist. By using this metaphor, MacCaig introduces the idea that even during the day, New York is not a pleasant place to be.…

    • 910 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Group Analysis of Two Poems Sharing the Same Topic
    • 434 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Group Analysis of Two Poems Sharing the Same Topic

    In the first poem Morley takes a whimsical look at the common kitchen cockroach through images of its leaving behind evidence on its nightly visits, using words and phrases that give the reader an almost benevolent picture of what most people detest. The speaker addresses the roach directly, personifying it. The images are of the roach snacking and playing in the kitchen: “reclining on the cheese,” “browsing among the tea leaves,” “trekking on the biscuits,” “drowsing in the sugar bowl,”. Just how any normal person would encounter a cockroach, Morley depicts the poem as if it were his own encounter. One can tell that the speaker/Morley doesn't have such a gruesome perspective towards the cockroaches.…

    • 434 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Symbolism in Franz Kalfka's "The Metamorphosis
    • 823 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Symbolism in Franz Kalfka's "The Metamorphosis

    The main symbol introduced in this story is the metamorphosis that actually takes place to Gregor physically. The physical change into a giant bug, which is the lowest of all creatures, portrayed as dirty, disease-ridden, and disgusting symbolizes how insignificant and empty Gregor’s life was (Huffenenglish). The action in which turning into a giant bug shows the relationship contrast between Gregor and his family. Gregor…

    • 823 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    The Symbolism of the Conch Shell in Lord of the Flies by William Golding
    • 1086 Words
    • 5 Pages

    The Symbolism of the Conch Shell in Lord of the Flies by William Golding

    In Lord of the Flies, several symbols are used to illustrate important ideas that are crucial to the plot and meaning of the book. One of these symbols is the conch: this rare shell is not only a precious and expensive in the world of merchandise; it also holds a dark and mysterious power over a group of English boys, lost on an island with no adults, clues, or means of escape. The boys set up a civilization and try to live in the society they have set up. This system works for a while, aided by the power of the conch. However, as the story advances, the civilized way of life that the boys have set up starts falling apart, and savagery starts luring certain boys outside of the safe and rational walls of civilization. William Golding intertwines the fast-paced, enticing story of the boys’ plight on the island and the descent into savagery with the powerful and deeply meaningful symbolism of the conch.…

    • 1086 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Lord Of The Flies Beast Quotes
    • 672 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Lord Of The Flies Beast Quotes

    The beast is non-existent, yet it cannot be tamed. It is a figment of the human imagination, but it still causes fear. Sometimes, it only takes thought to produce fear, even in the bravest of minds. Thoughts have the ability to produce images, which leads the mind to believe that the beast is real. The author uses various techniques to portray the beast’s significance in “Lord of the Flies”. In this story, this “beast” is shown to be a symbol of hatred, causing the children to fear and despise it. Some of these techniques include symbolism, irony, and character behaviour.…

    • 672 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Mernissi Symbolism
    • 348 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Mernissi Symbolism

    Mernissi begins by explaining the dining habits on Yasmina’s farm, “We never knew when we would eat. Sometimes, Yasmina only remembered at the last minute that she had to feed me” and then goes on to compare the difference between farm life and life in Fez “But dining in our harem in Fez was an entirely different story...we had to sit at our prescribed places” (116). Fez seems to be a place of the past for Mernissi while life on Yasmina’s farm seems to be her current situation. However as Mernissi continues, it becomes clear that the farm has little to do with the story, only used for the purpose of setting up two contrasting dynamics. By setting the scene in such a way, Mernissi makes it clear that there are two different ideologies explored in the story; Fez’s strict policies and Mother’s carefree attitude- both of…

    • 348 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Gregor Metamorphosis
    • 1543 Words
    • 7 Pages

    Gregor Metamorphosis

    Before anyone can change, they certainly have to go through a metamorphosis. Here is where life takes another form. In novels there are always certain events that make the characters change. These changes can be for good or bad. In “The Metamorphosis”, by Franz Kafka the protagonist, Gregor Samsa suffers a significant change. This novella is about a young man who has taken care of his family during the last five years. His life was limited to work and care for his family. None of the members of his family were used to work. In this family had to happen something really bad, so they can notice that they have to do something for themselves. The nature of Gregor’s reality changes insignificantly in spite of his drastic physical changes. Gregor’s metamorphosis leads an important change in the members of his family. The metamorphosis of Gregor eases the sudden change of his family, showing that a disgrace is needed in order to force people or even family, out of the stagnation and put them into life.…

    • 1543 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Kafka's Metamorphsis
    • 628 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Kafka's Metamorphsis

    Although it is not possible for a human being to turn into an insect and the concept is absurd, Kafka must be using the metamorphosis of an insect as a symbol itself. Perhaps it is representing an illness that a person has no control over or an addiction. (This arguably is an illness as well) There is no indication that Gregor did anything to deserve to be changed to into an insect, and his mother refers to him as her “unfortunate son”.…

    • 628 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    comparison encounters with creatures
    • 1153 Words
    • 5 Pages

    comparison encounters with creatures

    In “An Advancement of Learning” Heaney draws on his childhood phobia and fear of rats. This is due to his experiences of fear growing up on Mossbawn farm in the 1940s. The rats provide a link between his childhood and his urban life as an adult. “An August Midnight” is based on Hardy’s Darwinism beliefs which pervade the poem. It is based on Hardy’s beliefs that all animals were sentient, conscious beings worthy of human respect based on the evolutionary theory that all living things are related. His scientific interest is also evident in the close up acute details of the insects’ anatomy “winged, horned and spined” and Hardy’s fascination with natural history, which was typical of many middle class Victorians.…

    • 1153 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Macbeth Symbolism Analysis
    • 1090 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Macbeth Symbolism Analysis

    In the play, “Macbeth” written by Shakespeare there are many deaths and strange happenings taking place. Many of the main characters begin to die off, really taking you by surprise. Shakespeare had an interesting idea to include the use of symbolism and imagery throughout his play. Symbolism is the use of symbols to explain the meaning of qualities, emotions, or ideas. Imagery is a description of visual symbolism in a literary work. There were multiple uses of symbolism and imagery acknowledged from beginning to end. Three of the main appearances of symbolism and imagery seem to involve the use of the number three, symbols of death, and strange occurrences in nature.…

    • 1090 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Magical Realism In The Metamorphosis
    • 1069 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Magical Realism In The Metamorphosis

    In the story the main character that goes by the name of Gregor suddenly wakes up one morning to find that he has transformed into a bug, but the fact that he is indeed a bug he feels he must go to work for his family. His whole family is very lazy and he has to get the money for them, so after Gregor changes to a bug they are all rather shocked in the beginning but slowly begin not to care about him and basically shun him from the family by locking him in his room. With this said you can see a change of the family towards Gregor just because of this change and he is no longer useful to them, this shows the families true colors by the end of the story. At one point in the story his father hurts Gregor by throwing an apple at him and it gets lodged in his back but in the story it says “No one dared to remove the apple lodged in Gregor’s flesh so it remained there as a visible reminder of his injury”, his family are so disgusted with what he has become they won’t help him even in a moment of pain just because of the way he…

    • 1069 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics