CC - II : Ovid's Metamorphosis Summery

Plot Overview

Gregor Samsa, a traveling salesman, wakes up in his bed to find himself transformed into a large insect. He looks around his room, which appears normal, and decides to go back to sleep to forget about what has happened. He attempts to roll over, only to discover that he cannot due to his new body—he is stuck on his hard, convex back. He tries to scratch an itch on his stomach, but when he touches himself with one of his many new legs, he is disgusted. He reflects on how dreary life as a traveling salesman is and how he would quit if his parents and sister did not depend so much on his income. He turns to the clock and sees that he has overslept and missed his train to work.

Gregor’s mother knocks on the door, and when he answers her, Gregor finds that his voice has changed. His family suspects that he may be ill, so they ask him to open the door, which he keeps locked out of habit. He tries to get out of bed, but he cannot maneuver his transformed body. While struggling to move, he hears his office manager come into the family’s apartment to find out why Gregor has not shown up to work. He eventually rocks himself to the floor and calls out that he will open the door momentarily.

Through the door, the office manager warns Gregor of the consequences of missing work and hints that Gregor’s recent work has not been satisfactory. Gregor protests and tells the office manager that he will be there shortly. Neither his family nor the office manager can understand what Gregor says, and they suspect that something may be seriously wrong with him. Gregor manages to unlock and open the door with his mouth, since he has no hands. He begs the office manager’s forgiveness for his late start. Horrified by Gregor’s appearance, the office manager bolts from the apartment. Gregor tries to catch up with the fleeing office manager, but his father drives him back into the bedroom with a cane and a rolled newspaper. Gregor injures himself squeezing back through the doorway, and his father slams the door shut. Gregor, exhausted, falls asleep.

Gregor wakes and sees that someone has put milk and bread in his room. Initially excited, he quickly discovers that he has no taste for milk, once one of his favorite foods. He settles himself under a couch and listens to the quiet apartment. The next morning, his sister Grete comes in, sees that he has not touched the milk, and replaces it with rotting food scraps, which Gregor happily eats. This begins a routine in which his sister feeds him and cleans up while he hides under the couch, afraid that his appearance will frighten her. Gregor spends his time listening through the wall to his family members talking. They often discuss the difficult financial situation they find themselves in now that Gregor can’t provide for them. Gregor also learns that his mother wants to visit him, but his sister and father will not let her.

Gregor grows more comfortable with his changed body. He begins climbing the walls and ceiling for amusement. Discovering Gregor’s new pastime, Grete decides to remove some of the furniture to give Gregor more space. She and her mother begin taking furniture away, but Gregor finds their actions deeply distressing. He tries to save a picture on the wall of a woman wearing a fur hat, fur scarf, and a fur muff. Gregor’s mother sees him hanging on the wall and passes out. Grete calls out to Gregor—the first time anyone has spoken directly to him since his transformation. Gregor runs out of the room and into the kitchen. His father returns from his new job, and misunderstanding the situation, believes Gregor has tried to attack the mother. The father throws apples at Gregor, and one sinks into his back and remains lodged there. Gregor manages to get back into his bedroom but is severely injured.

Gregor’s family begins leaving the bedroom door open for a few hours each evening so he can watch them. He sees his family wearing down as a result of his transformation and their new poverty. Even Grete seems to resent Gregor now, feeding him and cleaning up with a minimum of effort. The family replaces their maid with a cheap cleaning lady who tolerates Gregor’s appearance and speaks to him occasionally. They also take on three boarders, requiring them to move excess furniture into Gregor’s room, which distresses Gregor. Gregor has also lost his taste for the food Grete brings and he almost entirely ceases eating.

One evening, the cleaning lady leaves Gregor’s door open while the boarders lounge about the living room. Grete has been asked to play the violin for them, and Gregor creeps out of his bedroom to listen. The boarders, who initially seemed interested in Grete, grow bored with her performance, but Gregor is transfixed by it. One of the boarders spots Gregor and they become alarmed. Gregor’s father tries to shove the boarders back into their rooms, but the three men protest and announce that they will move out immediately without paying rent because of the disgusting conditions in the apartment.

Grete tells her parents that they must get rid of Gregor or they will all be ruined. Her father agrees, wishing Gregor could understand them and would leave of his own accord. Gregor does in fact understand and slowly moves back to the bedroom. There, determined to rid his family of his presence, Gregor dies.

Upon discovering that Gregor is dead, the family feels a great sense of relief. The father kicks out the boarders and decides to fire the cleaning lady, who has disposed of Gregor’s body. The family takes a trolley ride out to the countryside, during which they consider their finances. Months of spare living as a result of Gregor’s condition have left them with substantial savings. They decide to move to a better apartment. Grete appears to have her strength and beauty back, which leads her parents to think about finding her a husband.

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.

Characters:-

Gregor Samsa

The major character of The Metamorphosis, Gregor Samsa is the main source of income of the Samsa family. He feels responsible for the whole family and earns his wages by working as a traveling salesman in a company. However, his transformation into a bug cripples him. Not only has he lost the ability to earn, but he also has lost his importance in the family as well as the company. Shortly after the transformation, he doesn’t come out of the room and slowly responds to the calling of his mother and sister.

Meanwhile, when the manager comes and threatens him, he does not budge either. Finally, his sister succeeds after coaxing him to open the door. She feels shocked at his transformation but doesn’t express it. She controls herself and informs other family members. Eventually, they get accustomed to him and plan to come out of the financial difficulties. His sister starts working, while the family rents out the small apartment to lodgers to earn and save money. Soon he loses his significance and dies due to neglect.

Grete Samsa

The young sister of Gregor Samsa is perhaps the only character who has a little understanding when Gregor transforms into an insect. She perhaps understood from the start how her brother has transformed. Her brother’s transformation changes her and her entire family. She takes the responsibility of taking care of Gregor, by understanding his food habits and makes space for him in the room. She also immediately transforms herself to take up the responsibility of the family by caring for her parents and helping them financially. She understands that Gregor is a burden on the family. Out of frustration and pain, she expresses that they must get rid of him to secure the future of the family.

Mr. Samsa

Mr. Samsa is the father of Gregor Samsa and Grete Samsa and husband of Mrs. Samsa. As the head of the family, he faces financial strain and also woes of the old age. He is entirely dependent on his son who used to support them by working as a salesman. When he sees that his son has undergone a bizarre transformation, he starts working seeing no choice. Feeling estranged, he misbehaves, throws apples and kicks his Gregor out of frustration. He thanks God when he hears that Gregor has died, knowing that he has lately become a burden for them. He knows that after the marriage of his daughter, he could live happily with his wife.

Mrs. Samsa

Typically performing her motherly role, Mrs. Samsa stays in the background but expresses her emotions when she comes to know about her son’s transformation. Although she loves her son, she does not visit his room. She thinks that this sudden transformation may someday reverse. However, as a mother, she has expressed her worry over this sudden transformation of her son. She becomes pliable when she comes to know that the situation has changed, and her son is no more. She adapts herself to the new circumstances and sees that Grete and her marriage would solve the family problem.

The Manager

The manager is a secondary character who appears in the novel in the first part. He visits Gregor’s house to check when he fails to report to his duty. He coaxes Gregor to come out and then threatens him of sacking from the job. The Manager wants Gregor to leave his room and start his today’s routine. It is on this occasion that his family sees transformed Gregor as he is forced to open the door of his room. The Manager takes to his heels after seeing Gregor in that form. This shows how corporate entities leave individuals when the situation changes.

The Servant Girl

She is the only servant who stays with the Samsa family after Gregor has transformed into a bug. She is called Anna at one point. She knows that after Gregor’s transformation, the family must change. Therefore, she tells the family that she will stay in the kitchen and come out only when required. When money becomes scarce, the family decides to ask her to leave.

Cleaning Woman

She is a middle-aged lady. She comes to know about the transformation of Gregor after a few days. As soon as she knows this, she leaves her job and the family. Before leaving, she assures the Samsa family that she would not disclose this secret.

Lodgers

The lodgers are three anonymous male characters. The family has rented out a part of the apartment to the lodgers to meet financial expenses. As they move in the home and enjoy life with Grete’s music, Gregor resents. However, one day they spot Gregor, and one of them refuses to pay. Gregor becomes very upset when he sees that they are getting the best food and enjoying, while he is starving in his room. Later, Mr. Samsa expels all of them after Gregor is dead, and the situation seems improving.

The Chief

The chief, though does not appear personally, is mentioned in the conversation between the Manager and Gregor Samsa. The Manager tells Gregor from behind the door that the Chief is not satisfied with his progress. He informs him that the Chief is thinking of expelling him from the company, as his production has decreased. However, Gregor seeks an apology from the Manager asking him to pay his respects to the chief and that he is coming shortly.