Summary
Gregor Samsa wakes in his bed and discovers he has transformed into a
giant bug. Wondering what has happened, he looks around his small room, where
everything appears normal. He sees the fabric samples that he uses in his job as
a traveling salesman, a picture of a woman in furs that he tore out of a
magazine and framed, and the rain dripping down outside his window. He tries to
roll over and go back to sleep in order to forget about what has happened, but
because of the shape of his back, he can only rock from side to side.
Feeling sore from his effort, Gregor thinks about what a difficult job he
has and the fact that his constant traveling prevents him from making any
lasting friendships. He thinks that he would leave his overbearing employer but
he has to work off a debt that his parents incurred. He suddenly realizes that
he has overslept and does not have a good excuse to give his boss.
Gregor’s mother reminds him that he has to catch his train to work. When
Gregor responds, he finds his voice has changed. His father and Grete, his
sister, join his mother at the door, urging him to get up and unlock it. Gregor
twists and rocks, managing to turn sideways and dangle off the bed. Then the
doorbell rings. It is the office manager, come to check on Gregor. Gregor rocks
his body violently and finally tumbles to the floor. His family and the office
manager come to the door to inquire if he is all right.
Gregor’s mother pleads with the office manager, telling him what a devoted
worker Gregor is, while Grete cries in the next room. The office manager calls
through the door and demands an explanation. He hints that Gregor’s recent work
has not been satisfactory and that Gregor’s current behavior looks very bad,
especially in light of rumors that Gregor may have stolen money from the
company. Gregor claims that he had a dizzy spell and asks the office manager to
spare his parents any undue concern. While Gregor tries to lift himself off the
floor, the office manager and his family discuss the strange change in his
voice, and his sister leaves to fetch a doctor and a locksmith.
Gregor reaches the door, turns the lock with his mouth, and slowly pulls
open the door. Seeing that Gregor is now a giant insect, the terrified office
manager backs away, the mother passes out, and the father cries. Gregor delivers
a long speech asking the office manager to put in a good word for him at work,
since traveling salesmen often become the subjects of negative gossip, but the
office manager continues to back out of the apartment. Gregor unsuccessfully
tries to catch him as he flees and discovers how easily he can crawl on his new
legs. The father then picks up a newspaper and the office manager’s cane and
drives Gregor back into his bedroom. Gregor injures himself when he becomes
stuck in the doorway, but the father shoves him through and slams the
door.
Analysis
The opening line of The Metamorphosis, which reports
Gregor’s discovery that he has become a giant insect, sets the tone for the rest
of the story. The line recounts the bizarre event of Gregor’s transformation in
a sober, straightforward manner, and this contrast between an extraordinary
situation and the ordinary terms used to describe it creates the sense that the
narrator expects the world in the story to be absurd and chaotic, rather than
rational and orderly. Gregor embodies this absurdist tone from the very
beginning. When he first recognizes his transformation, he doesn’t appear
significantly bothered by it, and treats it almost like any ordinary disturbance
to his sleep, as if it were not entirely out of the ordinary. As the story
progresses, he remains focused on largely ordinary concerns, such as losing his
job, his physical comfort, and his family’s financial situation, thus
maintaining the story’s absurdist overtone throughout.
