The Metamorphosis – Jeremy Ramirez

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.