In the story “Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka there is a striking difference in how chief clerk and Gregor’s father react when they see Gregor as an insect. Their different reactions are ironic because the father is unsympathetic towards his son, while the chief is filled with horror. We can see the fear in the Chief Clerk in this line, “Without taking his eyes off Gregor, he moved towards the door, but terribly gradually…” (218). It is obvious he was in complete shock because he felt frozen and walked out of the room rather awkwardly. Sometimes when people are in fear they freeze up instead of running off. The Chief Clerk had more of a human like reaction when he saw Gregor as an insect. Although when we look at his father’s reaction it is the opposite. His father was merely concerned with finances and reacts to Gregor with no empathy. Gregor’s father even goes to lengths to hurt his son, in fact he attacks him, it is illustrated here, “When from behind his father now gave him a truly liberating kick and he was throw, bleeding profusely, far into his room” (220). In such an instance a more ‘normal’ reaction would be one of confusion and fear, not one of alienation, especially towards a son. The father seems to be more concerned about how he’s going to handle the family’s finances, instead of the fact that his son has morphed into an insect. One could justify that people react out of anger when they are deeply hurt, but his fathers reaction shows more of a disregard for his sons well being.
assignment 8
November 6, 2015 Written by k.vataj | 2 Comments
Categories: Uncategorized
2 responses so far ↓
yg111658 // Nov 7th 2015 at 12:18 am
Although i do agree with your insight. I felt as if the chief clerk was the one less interested in Gregor, as merely being an employee these problems did not concern him, which was why his first instinct was to head towards the door. I do see your point on the father and i do think he was very harsh in the way he treated Gregor. However i had based my insight on the initial reactions, instead of the proceeding events. In the initial reaction, he had burst into tears upon seeing Gregor. I found that through this reaction he was concerned for his son. It is possible that because his is such a strong fatherly presence he would treat Gregor in such manner, considering him the man. But your quote, does question my initial approach to Gregor’s relationship with his father.
JMERLE // Nov 7th 2015 at 4:10 pm
Krystal,
Yes, you get at a central difference between the two characters, and you use effective quotations to defend your assertion. What I find particularly interesting in your response, is your observation that this difference between the reactions is, indeed, ironic, and this is something that Kafka (I believe) would also quite interested in. Near the end of your response, you begin looking deeper and exploring ways to understand the father, and this is something I hope you will continue doing as you finish the narrative, as none of these characters are, as you rightly imply, simple stereotypes.
Nicely done!
10/10