English 2850: Great Works of Literature II

Leo Tolstoy’s novella, “The Death of Ivan Ilyich,” serves as an extraordinary depiction of the agony the protagonist, Ivan Ilyich, faces because of an intense illness. Throughout the text, Tolstoy elucidates the mental and physical responses of Ivan Ilyich because of his illness. This elucidation provides a similar depiction to the my battle or the common individual’s battle against the COVAID-19 pandemic.  Many people, including myself, are anxious because of the interruption of our lives by a disease that gives each of us mental and physical responses like Ivan Ilyich.

For example, there are instances in which Ivan questions whether the life he has lived up until the illness is the life he wanted to live, “‘Maybe I did not live as I ought to have done,’ it suddenly occurred to him”(773). As inevitable death approaches Ivan, he begins to wonder how could he possibly he die when he felt as if he did “everything properly”(773).  Although not to the extreme as Ivan, I think this mental questioning Ivan is doing is very similar to many others questioning amongst this pandemic we are facing. Personally, I have realized that through this pandemic that one can be living life and doing “everything properly”, like Ivan, and have it all stripped from them due to an unprecedented illness. We have all witnessed small business owners who flourished have come to a complete halt indefinitely because of this pandemic. Prior to the pandemic, have they not done “everything properly” to flourish?

Also, in the text, Ivan eventually gives up on the medicine he is given to be treated for his illness. His wife, Praskovya Fedorovna Golovina, offers him his medicine to his response, “‘For Christ’s sake let me die in peace!'” In an unorthodox way, this is very similar to my family and my response too the pandemic. Ever since the start of this pandemic, my family has been constantly obsessed with home remedies that can possibly cure the disease. Multiple studies have shown most of the remedies do not do anything to cure COVAID-19. Thus, leading to my response to my family being much like Ivan’s, much less dramatic, but against these home remedies that do little to nothing.

All in all, Tolstoy’s novella applies profoundly to the current situation of the global pandemic. The ideas conveyed in his work through the words of Ivan Ilyich display the interruption of one’s daily life due to an unprecedented disease.

1. Do you think that Gregor is more powerful BEFORE or AFTER his metamorphosis? Explain your response.

I believe Gregor is more powerful after his metamorphosis. Prior to his transformation, Gregor was the sole provider to his family. He worked countless days as a salesman to give his family a roof on their heads and repaying debts. After Gregor’s metamorphosis, he stands up to the Chief Clerk, who shows up to his house enraged that Gregor has not shown up for work. For instance, he states, “As you know all too well. I am under a very great obligation to the director. In addition, I have responsibilities for my parents and my sister. I am in a jam, but I will work my way out of it. Only don’t make it any harder for me than it is already!”(218). This expression of frustration out of Gregor at the Chief Clerk elucidates how much more powerful he is after his metamorphosis. Gregor knows that he is “in a jam” and is truly frustrated at the Chief Clerk. He wants to express that he is trying his best and that is very powerful of him to do so.

5.Gregor emerges from his room one last time when he hears his sister playing her violin for the lodgers. What is the significance of this scene? What meaning does music hold for Gregor here?

Gregor emerging from his room one last time to hear his sister playing the violin is significant because it brought up the question, “could he be an animal, to be so moved by music”(236)? The music infiltrates Gregor’s emotions; sparking feelings he desires. Kafka does a phenomenal job of illustrating how Gregor wants to go up to his sister and ask her to play the violin for him in his room, “He was determined to go right up to his sister, to pluck at her skirt, and so let her know she was to come in his room with her violin…”(236) Kafka delineates how Gregor wants to be rewarded with such music because it makes him feel good, yet, still uses animal-like verbs like “pluck” to describe how he wants to grab his sister’s attention. The music is the sole feeling that makes him feel like a human again.

Question #5:

I think that this scene is significant because I feel like he wants to hear his sister play the violin even if they don’t want to see him. “…because no one rewarded music here as much as he wanted to reward it.”(236) I think in this line we see Gregor wanting to encourage his sister and help her with her music as she did help him at the first stage of his metamorphosis when she brought him food or cleaned his room carefully. I also think that as the writer mentions “ Could he be an animal, to be so moved by music?”(236). This scene is also important because we can see the distinction between human and animal. Maybe in his mind he realizes that despite his looks he is a human and that’s why he decided to go out with his family and the three tenants.

Question 4:

I think that Gregor’s father was maybe because he did not want to kill him by himself, and by throwing apples would somehow be the apple that killed him. He probably knows that this is his son and even if they had their differences he can’t be the one that killed him. It might also be a contrast between his sister trying to feed him and keep him alive and his father trying to kill him with the food that is supposed to keep you alive.

Here is the link to access the recording of the Zoom call for Wednesday, April 29th.  We discussed Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis.”

https://baruch.zoom.us/rec/share/_p0sAa768kJJAaPNxE77CvcjQovvT6a82icaqPIIxUm3Lx1kO6dfBkwEKblj_eoO

Password: 4A.vY?cl

Question # 2

Gregor has emerged from his sleep and wakes up to an actual nightmare. The man who was once and traveling salesman has now become into this disgusting bug. The transformation of course has been very impactful on his own life, but we notice a transformation in his family as well. For starters his his family starts to get jobs. Gregor had been worried about the financial standing of his family, but realizes that they are doing not as bad as he had imagined. His family has become slightly distant from him. It takes time for them to adjust to life as Gregor as a bug. I feel the father never really accepts his son as this new creature. He attacks him on a few occasions leading to injury. His mother I feel wants to help Gregor, but just even seeing him in plain sight leads to her passing out. His sister learns to take care of her brother. She’s the only one who learns to understand him, his tendencies, and his preferences. Overall the family tries to keep life moving as usual with Gregor mostly trapped in his room for the most part. The family grows among themselves not needing reliance on Gregor. When his sister is the one to say we need to get rid of Gregor, this is when we learn they don’t care for him no more. The family learns to live life without Gregor, and the bug only seems to cause problems so getting rid of him is just one less of a large problem. 

Question # 7

Gregor finally lays out and dies just as if a normal bug would at some point in it’s life.  Gregor didn’t die for no apparent reason. Gregor up to this point had been hungry and pretty under the weather. One man can only stand being a bug for so long. Him and his sister have a pretty close connection. She’s the one who looks after him and accepts him. She moves furniture so he could live life better as a bug. His admiration and connection with is sister is probably what he felt all he had left. After getting caught admiring his sisters music leading to the men wanting to leave, she feels that is the last straw. So once his sister the one he felt really felt close with finally gives up on him, he finally feels there is not much to live for. Days just have become darker and darker for the bug. He possibly feels that he does in fact need to go as he is drawing all these issues with his family was he may only just simply be a burden to them. For the family to grow and be the best not only financially but as human beings, Gregor needed to go so he did.

1. Do you think that Gregor is more powerful BEFORE or AFTER his metamorphosis?  Explain your response.

I think Gregor is more powerful after his metamorphosis because he no longer carries the burden of the family nor is he bound to the jurisdiction of man. Prior to his metamorphosis, Gregor’s role is the main provider for the family. Despite loathing his job, he held himself accountable for serving the needs of his family and repaying its debt. After his metamorphosis, the roles are swapped because he is no longer capable of providing for his family. Despite the initial greeting he received from his family after his metamorphosis, things turned sour really fast. His family began lamenting the fact that they needed to take over his role. His sister who greeted him with utmost care at the beginning became resentful of him and eventually viewed him as a nuisance. He became somewhat of an eyesore in the eyes of his family, and this realization made him only more powerful. His metamorphosis, although disabled him from supporting his family, at the same time rid of his burden and introduce him to a different scope of reality. The reality that he is no longer needed and his presence is a mere burden to his family. Gregor is more powerful after his metamorphosis because he is capable of choosing death, instead of being a prisoner to the affairs of man. 

2. Ultimately, what do you think Gregor’s metamorphosis means?  What does it Look at the final paragraph of the story. How does it shape or alter our understanding of the text?

In the final paragraph of the story, Gregor’s family visited a park and discussed their future, a future without Gregor. The text states “Sitting back comfortably in their seats, they discussed the prospects for the future;”. (241) In my view, Gregor’s metamorphosis is an opportunity to escape from the brutality of society. Intelligence has granted mankind their advanced civilization, yet has stripped away their appreciation for nature. We discern everything with a value and loathe those that are worthless. In Gregor’s scenario, he went from someone who holds much value for the family to someone who is disabled and worthless. Gregor’s metamorphosis gave him an opportunity to escape from the brutality of society, free from the affairs of man. Ultimately, intelligence brought his demise and in his final moments of despair he chose death. The final paragraph of the story is used to portray the brutality of society, those who are no longer capable of creating value are rejected and forgotten. 

How is Gregor’s family transformed in the wake of his metamorphosis?

Prior to his metamorphosis, Gregor was overwhelmed by the pressure of supporting his family and paying off his father’s debt. No one in the family worked besides him. However, since Gregor can no longer work because of his physical transformation, the family is forced to sell personal belongings and pick up jobs to survive. In a way, though they face a tough financial situation, the circumstance has nudged everyone in the family to pick up their own responsibility and contribute. From this perspective, Gregor’s metamorphosis has a positive impact on family.

Explain your understanding of Gregor’s death.  How/why does he ultimately die?

Gregor suffers from his transformation. His physical appearance has changed into a bug meanwhile still possessing human consciousness. His inability to go to work to support his family, communicate with his sister, and prove to his family that he is still the person they know truly hurts him. Moreover, his family has caused even more pain for Gregor. It seems like they are paying more attention to Gregor but in reality, they are actually embarrassed by what he has turned into. Instead of treating him like a true family member, they refuse to acknowledge his inner presence as a human. Aching from inability to function as a human and cold affection from family, Gregor decides that death is the relieve. This plot kind of reminds me the story “Punishment” as both main characters end their lives to free themselves from pain.

The final paragraph of Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis embarks on an optimistic tone. This is a dynamic shift in the spirit with respect to the attitude of the characters from the midst of the story.  In the final paragraph, when describing characters in their setting, the text states, ‘The carriage in which they sat was flooded with warm sunshine. Sitting back comfortably in their seats’(241).  The description reveals a mood that was not present among the three of them when in the flat. The attention is no longer on Gregor but rather Gregor’s sister, Grete. It seems that Grete, too, went through a metamorphosis of her own. It was communicated through glances that it seemed about time to ‘find a suitable husband’ for Grete.  Mr. and Mrs. Samsa refer to their daughter as ‘lively’ when noticing her in the carriage in the park, in the conclusion of the story. The two recognize she has ‘bloomed into an attractive and well-built girl’ and describe her body as young and nubile. The attention on Grete concludes a confident attitude emerging from the mature characters. 

Through language, the text illustrates, “Gregor, drawn by the music, has slowly inched forward, and his head was already in the living room. He was no longer particularly surprised by his lack of discretion, where previously his discretion had been his entire pride”(235).  The text then goes on to depict Gregor and the scene in which describe his emotions in detail. Gregor is completely captivated by the music.   His guard is down. The text states,  “Could he be an animal, to be so moved by music? It was as though he sensed a way to the unknown sustenance he longed for”(235). The tenants, on the other hand, were not so fascinated by the violin playing and Gregor is aware of this. He feels as if their lack of engrossment reflects their lack of respect for his sister.  And it was then, when listening to the music, his frightening form would come in useful for him. He imagined how he would go about the situation with him, his sister, and the tenants. Transfixed by the music and his own imagination, Gregor slips too far into the living room and his presence is identified by the middle of the gentlemen.

5. Gregor emerges from his room one last time when he hears his sister playing her violin for the lodgers.  What is the significance of this scene? What meaning does music hold for Gregor here?

“It was as though he sensed a way to the unknown sustenance he longed for” (236).

While the whole story speaks of alienation, such as Gregor losing his connection with his family because of his appearance, this is probably one of the most significant scenes only because of the power of music. Not only does it have the power to soothe people into calming down, but it also, in my opinion, helps Gregor keep in touch with his humanity. It was as though a moment of saving grace for him, making him forget, at least for an instance, his obscure appearance and think about what could have been happening “if the calamity hadn’t struck” (236). Additionally, I think that Gregor also felt a sense of relation to her sister Grete’s violin music since, like him, her music wasn’t appreciated as much.

8. Look at the final paragraph of the story. How does it shape or alter our understanding of the text?

“While they were talking in these terms, almost at one and the same time Mr and Mrs noticed their increasingly lively daughter, … she had bloomed into an attractive and well-built girl” (241).

The final paragraph, I think, both shapes and alters what you think you’ve known so far for reading Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis. Metamorphosis, by definition, is a transformation of a thing into a completely different one by undergoing a certain process. This transformation is clear for Gregor as he was transformed into a giant bug. However, the metamorphosis theme also speaks for his sister, Grete, and his parents. It alters our understanding because it was as though they matured, or ‘transformed’ for that matter, into different people as they no longer look at Gregor for sustenance. It is, in my opinion, quite an ironic ending as they saw Gregor as the breadwinner of the family before he transformed, but just because he turned into a bug, they saw him as a nuisance and so they felt were relieved of the struggle. Conversely, it is their struggle, especially for Grete as she was always the one taking care of Gregor and giving him food, that shapes our understanding that, in relation to the title, it is our skirmishes or problems in life that ‘morphs’ us into better and newer versions of ourselves.

1. Explain your understanding of Gregor’s death.  How/why does he ultimately die?

I think Gregor’s death could have been because of several factors but mainly because of his family. In the text it was stated, “Had Gregor been able to speak to his sister to thank her for everything she had to do for him, he would have found it a little easier to submit to her ministration; but, as it was, he suffered from them.” Since Gregor was a bug his sister would bring him food, try to help out with moving out of furniture for his sake but all of the kind gesture the sister thought she was doing was making it worst. The family could have accepted Gregor for who he was saving him from the agony and his suffering of being the bug he became. Had the family not make the situation awkward or being embarrassed from it and not viewing him as a monster, Gregor wouldn’t have looked at his situation as horrifying thus it could have allowed him to eat with the rest of his family, his mother could have seen him more often, and his father wouldn’t have strucken him. All of these examples could have helped or saved Gregor so that he could feel wanted and not feel like he was a nuisance. All of these hindrances like his job, his family, family’s debts, and then his metamorphosis leads to his death which seems more like a suicide. Gregor’s family wanted to help out the best way they can but it was probably best to let Gregor decide freely what was best for himself without any intervention. You could look at it from a psychological perspective of what a family means or suppose to be, in that each member should love, care, understand, and accept each other in order for everyone to survive and thrive.

1. Look at the final paragraph of the story. How does it shape or alter our understanding of the text?

In the final paragraph Gregor’s family took a break by going to a park and they are in a carriage conversing and planning their future, as well as a plan of moving into a smaller, cheaper, practical apartment. To my understanding what this story is saying is that if you look closely at your situation it isn’t all that bad and it can be resolved when you work and communicate together effectively, and eventually one’s problems will mitigate or be eliminated completely. It took the effort and willpower of the whole family to change their life around, no longer were they to rely on one sole breadwinner which was Gregor because of his unfortunate situation. The rest of Gregor’s family had to chip in, in some way to keep their family, their home intact as well as paying off any debts. The message could be to appreciate each other in a family, no one has to be a pest or a nuisance to one another, for there are many alternative solutions to a single problem, and working together is much better than relying on a single person or by yourself. I also feel that the text opens the conversation about one’s work or job and the “necessity of money”, where one should take a break once in a while from their job just to get in touch with reality and to rejuvenate. As well as evaluating one’s life questioning one’s happiness and understanding what’s really important in order to plan and see more clearly the path ahead.