Essay Example on the Double in Kafka's Metamorphosis

Going through the novel by Kafka, Metamorphosis, there is a good number of themes that are evident. One of them is the theme of the double. The theme of the double indicates the divided nature of a man. For instance, the theme of good and evil can be evident in a person; we say that the person has a double personality. In Metamorphosis by Kafka, the theme is evident on a couple of scenarios. To begin with, we can see that initially see a salesman by the name of Gregor Samsa who transforms into an insect. Gregor is a normal man who wakes up one morning only to find out that he transformed into one big bug ("Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka"). We can see two natures of the same person. Before Gregor transformed into the insect, he loved milk a lot, but when he finally transforms into an insect, he can hardly take fresh milk. The milk that the sister leaves there for him to take thinking that he will enjoy his favorite snack, he is unable to take the milk because he has changed into a bug. Gregor's nature changes completely; he prefers to eat rotten food instead.

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This is a novel that brings out the double nature of the characters. We can see that initially, Gregor's sister going by the name, Grete, is quite fond of Gregor. They have a great relationship; she seems to love his brother a lot. Gregor is also quite fond of the sister; he was even planning to pay Violin classes for her. Grete also knows the favorite snack that Gregor loves taking in the morning. That means that they had a great sister-brother relationship. It is also evident that in the first days after Gregor turns into a bug, the sister puts much effort to take care of him. However, in the end, we can see that the personality of the sister changes. Grete changes the reception and attitude that she once portrayed towards Gregor. This is after realizing the condition was not going to change. Gregor had changed from being a breadwinner into a bug that was utterly dependent on other people. So the double nature of the sister can be seen clearly through the change in the way she treats the brother. The way she vied Gregor changed utterly, and she changed even the way she treated him.

In the novel, it got to a point where Grete advised the parents that they needed to get rid of Gregor if they had any hope of progressing in life. Gregor had turned into such a burden. Based on his insect nature, every single person that saw him ran away or fainted. Even when it got to a point where Gregor died out of starvation, the sister was pleased and relieved because at last, they could now afford the life that they were living. Good and evil is evident in the same the sister is treated the brother. When he used to work as a salesman, he was the favorite brother, but after he stopped being the breadwinner, he turned into a burden. The same theme of the double is evident in the way the parents are acting. When Gregor was working as a salesman, he was one of their best among their children, based in on the fact that he contributed a lot to the well-being of the family. The fact that he was still living with his family means that they got along pretty well.

All of that changed when they realized that he would never work again. Gregor's father could not even stand his presence; there was an instance where he attached him with an apple. His mother fainted every time that she saw him. Gregor turned from being the excellent sun into an abomination. The double nature of the parents was quite evident; they had turned from the good, proud parents into more of enemies. They turned from the understanding of parents into opponents. Their double nature is quite clear, if Gregor remained to be the productive son that contributed to the budget of the family, maybe he could have been branded the favorite son. Even when Gregor finally dies, they seem to be relieved at the death of their son, they do not mourn him, and they go on with their lives. The theme of the double is a great message that was evident from the novel, Metamorphosis, By Kafka, and it is present in the contemporary world. Many are the people in the contemporary world that possess a double nature. In today's world, the moment the breadwinner fails to get the same income, they are sidelined and treated as people who cannot participate in the family - the moment a person loses their job, they lose their value in the contemporary world.

The Fantastic Vs. The Marvelous

According to Todorov, the fantastic can be referred to as a moment of hesitation between belief and disbelief of the supernatural. It is a very fine literary form, as it can all to easily swing from one side to the other. It is the suspension between the two makes the literature fantastic. The marvelous is the more traditional view of fantasy. Todorov is of the view that the uncanny is characterized by a character's response, which is mostly fear towards something seemingly inexplicable, or impossible. He has the view that the marvelous does not necessarily require a response from a character, but the fantastic events do. With that in mind, the novel by Kafka, Metamorphosis exhibits a fantastic view (Kafka 35). When Gregor finally transforms into a bug, no single person can stand his presence. His mother faints every time that he sees him. His work makes away the moment he sets his sight of him. He creates fear for every person who looks at him. According to Todorov, this is a fantastic view.

Grotesque, as explained by Bakhtin

What is Grotesque realism? The vital principle of grotesque realism is degradation, the depression of all that is abstract, noble, ideal, and spiritual to the material level. With the application of the grotesque body in his novels, Rabelais related political conflicts to human anatomy. In the Grotesque carnival, there is a big feast where people eat all kinds of food. In the party, people put on costumes. The people put on masks, and they are a big part of the ceremony. I think that it is a role that was used in the novel Metamorphosis by Kafka. He uses the face of a bug to represent something. In my own opinion, he was applying the Grotesque realism in the novel. Of course, you do not expect that a person will turn into an insect, but there are instances in life that can happen to a person and make them be like Gregor. Many situations happen in life and change how everybody views them. For instance, how many people's life changes the moment they get cancer? The way the people around view them changes, the way the people around Gregor changed. Sickness such as cancer, or an accident that turns a person into a cabbage on a wheelchair can change a person to be seen as a bug by the same people that loved them so much. So the author of Metamorphosis used the image of an insect to depict something that happens in our contemporary society. Moreover, that is a clear indication of the Grotesque realism as used in the novel.

Role of art in Metamorphosis

How has Kafka brought out the role of art? Does Metamorphosis depict any form of art? From the analysis, metamorphosis means the change that insects experience as they move from one stage to the other. In the context of the novel, we can see a person by the name Gregor change from being a human being to a gigantic insect. A person changes to a bug, the same way insect's changes through the process of metamorphosis. From my point of view, I can say that art is evident in that. The word Metamorphosis is used as art, and it creates a specific image to the reader the moment they look at the book. The reader can see a person change from a human being to an insect. The metamorphosis may also have a deeper meaning in the contemporary world. That is where the sense of art comes in, you can see that the person did not necessarily turn into a bug, they may have changed in one way or another but not to a bug, they may have gotten into a condition that makes them fit the role of an insect in the lives of the family.

Works Cited

Kafka, Franz. The Metamorphosis. Aegitas, 2016.

"The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka." Franz Kafka Online, www.kafka-online.info/the-metamorphosis.html.