Saturday, December 08, 2007

The Metamorphosis | Franz Kafka

What can one say to a short story which begins like this:

"As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect." ?

I mean, really. This book is all about a young adult who wakes up and finds that he is a GIGANTIC insect. The story is about the trials and tribulations of said insect in coping with his family (who discover he's an insect), walking around in his room, eating, etc. And of course, it is also about his family (and servents) coping with having an insect for a son.

Now, it could have been made a little interesting by bringing almost anything from the outside world in (besides a boss and some tenants), but none of that exists. Nothing of a public reaction. Just an insect, inside a room, whilst people figure out to cope. While it was a fascinating concept, the book fell short of my expectations (which weren't that high).

I also have no quotes from this book besides the first line, as I did not feel compelled to write any down.

1 comment:

Tasha said...

I just re-read and enjoyed The Metamorphosis. I agree, bringing more in from the outside world would have given more to work with, but I also like the containment and isolation.