Theme Of Isolation In Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis

Words: 1409
Pages: 6
Open Document
Metamorphosis: Lack of Love and Affection Leads to Isolation Mother Teresa once said, “Loneliness and the feeling of being unwanted is the most terrible poverty.” In the short fiction story The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, Gregor, the main character, undergoes a sudden transformation that changes his life involuntarily. Gregor has always felt disconnected from society due to his job as a travelling salesman, but he feels most disconnected from everyone, especially his family, when he becomes a bug. However, Gregor’s disconnection from his family wasn’t something that he ever planned or wanted. His family isolates themselves by the choices they make, but Gregor, on the other hand isolates himself because he has no other choice. This metamorphosis brings forward one of the major themes in the story, which is isolation.
From the beginning, Kafka shows the reader Gregor’s loathing for work. Even right after he becomes a bug, Gregor’s initial reaction is not one of alarm, instead he …show more content…
It is said that emotional isolation can occur as a result of social isolation ,or when a person lacks any close emotional contact with someone else (Isolation). That is exactly what happens to Gregor in The Metamorphosis, from the start he feels a detached from the world he lives in and with everyone else who surrounds him including his family. Gregor has no real connection with anyone he meets through his job and he feels frustrated because of that, but he feels even more frustrated when his family is the one who neglect him. Gregor experiences lack of love and acceptance from every single family member, and has no other choice but to isolate himself from them. Although he has always felt isolated and disconnected from society, his isolation starts to get worse once his family, the people who are supposed to be there for you, start to reject him and act indifferent towards
Show More

Related Documents: Theme Of Isolation In Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis

The Metamorphosis Alienation

Alienation in The Metamorphosis Kafka’s The Metamorphosis contains many themes and ideas, but Kafka’s main goal was to depict alienation, its effects, and how it can manifest itself. “Alienation is the process whereby people become foreign to the world they are living in” (Glossary). When one experiences alienation, there is an “interplay of truth and falsity” (Franz). An individual may feel one way, but the individual will later realize that that feeling was false. For example, Gregor Samsa knew…

Words 1846 - Pages 8