“The first few
days were painful, since we’d both left so many things in the part that had been taken over. My collection of french literature, for example, was still in the library. Irene had left several folios of stationery and a pair of slippers that she used a lot in the winter. I missed my briar pipe, and Irene, I think, regretted the loss of an ancient bottle of Hesperdin.” Julio Cortaza (House Taken Over).
In the story, “House Taken over” we are introduced to a brother and sister while their extravagant house is being overrun possibly by revolting Argentinians. However, the two rarely put up a fight, though they make continuous claims about how important that house is to the two of them. As the intruders take over more and more of the house, Irene and her brother sheepishly move to another room until there are no rooms left. They rarely seem distraught during the intrusion as well, the reality of the dullness that is their existence becomes painfully obvious through the quote above. The narrator works to convey the pain he feels due to the losss of precious items during the intrusion. But how many of us would possibly consider not having your french literature or a smoking pipe to be a painful experience. The two of them sit around all day either cooking or knitting, with very little in the way of relationships outside of one another. Neither chose to adapt or have their own personal metamorphosis to a strong-willed individual until it’s too late.
I think it’s very easy to make the connection between their lives and Greggor’s. While Greggor loses his ability to be a human, and Irene and her brother lose their house, do they really lose anything at all? Greggor doesn’t seem to gain the requisite perspective on his situation and the meaning of our existence until the final days of his time as a cockroach which forces him to contemplate these ares and become stronger which ultimately culminates in his sacrifice. That was his metamorphosis, not his initial transformation into the bug. Irene and her brother lack the will or fight to live a life of purpose, maybe the loss of their house into the streets of a revolting Argentina will finally allow for their metamorphosis so they can actually have inherent meaning to their lives.
I really liked your spin on The Metamorphosis, I like the light in which you saw Gregor, not as useless but as the ‘sacrificial lamb,’ that had to be made in order for the rest of the family to fulfill their purposes. I hadn’t looked at it in that way, so it’s a really nice contrast in the way I personally saw Gregor. I also thought the connection you made to “House Taken Over,” was interesting; is it in all three characters inability to take control of their lives that set them up as failures? And also, I’m interested in your personal views on Irene and the brother, do you see them as sacrificing their home, or the lack of fight they put up as a weakness? if so, then why is Gregor a great character, if he wasn’t willing to put up a fight and get a hold of his own life? Or are they brave enough to leave everything they have in the house as well as the house to start another chapter in their lives during an unforgiving and dangerous time?