Mrs contreras language Arts 9th Grade – Eng I igcse honors Room C209 Weekly Forecast 4/16/07 – 4/20/07

- Beginning of reform in South Africa repeals apartheid laws

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First-person pov: a character in the story narrates what happens in his/her own words.
Third-person pov: a narrator outside the action of the story describes events and characters.
Third-person limited pov: the narrator is “limited” to the thoughts and feelings of only one character.

Metamorphosis is the most famous work by Franz Kafka. The story begins with Gregor Samsa, who wakes up to find that he has been transformed into a giant bug. (Applebee 1108-1109)
In the story, Samsa cares a great deal about his job. However, this is not because he enjoys his job, but rather because he needs the money to pay back a large debt that his parents owe to “the chief” (his boss). (Applebee 1110- 1120)

There are several themes present in this work.
Guilt: According to GradeSaver, guilt is Gregor’s most powerful emotion. He feels guilty that he turned into a giant bug and can no longer support his family, even though it is not his fault. “Guilt, it turns out, is deadly, as Gregor realizes in the end that his life is the only thing keeping the family from a better life. He dies for them just as he lived for them: out of guilt” (GradeSaver 1)

Duty/Loyalty to one’s family: Everything that Gregor does is for his family. He keeps his job, regardless of the fact that he hates it, simply because it’s the best thing for his family. He exceeds the “call of duty.” However, his family does little for him, only doing what is necessary to say that they fulfilled their duty. (GradeSaver 1)

Alienation: Throughout the story, Gregor feels alienated from everyone and everything. Before his transformation, he was alienated in his job. After his transformation, he was locked up in his room and alienated from the outside world. (GradeSaver 1)
Economic effects: The only reason his family paid any attention to Gregor was because he was the one who made the money. Since he was unable to continue this after his transformation, the rest of the family had to get jobs, and noticeable differences came with this. It shows that a person has value only if they make the money. (GradeSaver 1)

Personal Identity: Throughout the story, Gregor’s identity seems to be that of caregiver, for he is the one to support his family. However, while being locked up in his room, he begins to think about his identity and to try to interpret it until he realizes that he never had an identity. He did things because it was in others’ best interests, but not because he enjoyed it. He also refuses to accept his bitterness towards his family. At the end of the story, he finally realizes how much he truly cares for his family. This makes his identity. (GradeSaver 1)

Need for freedom: Gregor needs freedom from his job and his family. He is tied to both of them through his sense of duty. “There is no way of balancing out freedom and duty, and in the end one is always a slave. The only means of escape turns out to be death” (GradeSaver 1).

I was surprised that the story ended that way. I’m sure most people believed that it was going to have some happy ending to it. However, the ending fits the overall theme of the story.

For which character do you have the most sympathy? For which character do you have the least sympathy?

The character for which I have the most sympathy is Gregor. To live a life of only following family duty and never pursuing your true dreams, not to mention being turned into a giant insect, really makes me pity him. He had no life in the sense that he did not live his life for him, but rather for those around him. The character, or rather characters, that I have the least sympathy for would be the mother and father. I see no reason why they could not go out and get themselves jobs instead of making Gregor support them and his sister.