Final Exam (The Metamorphosis
Questions) With Complete Solution
Updated!!!
Symbolism: Appearances of the number 3
~3 family members other than Gregor
~3 lodgers
~3 parts
~3 rooms (bedroom,the living room and his sister's room)
Symbolism: significance of the number 3
In nature, insects undergo three steps of metamorphosis (egg, nymph, adult) as does
Gregor (realization, coping, surrender). This symbolism seems to express the author's
dismay at how maturity means accepting surrender to the whims of one's family and
one's culture.
Author's Style: The Title & Examples of metamorphosis
~Gregor's physical metamorphosis
~The transformation of the father
~the blooming of Grete into womanhood (central to Gregor's survival, as she becomes
like a surrogate mother)
~family's change from hopeless dependency to hopeful independence after Gregor's
death
Interpretation: How does Kafka criticize capitalism?
, Definition of "Capitalism": an economic and political system in which a country's trade
and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state.
Kafka criticizes capitalism by manifesting, in a literal way, the dehumanizing effects of
modern life; Gregor's actual physical transformation reflects how his life was
metaphorically that of a bug before the physical, literal transformation into one.
This is but one of several interpretations, one of several ways to "read" the meaning of
the story.
Author's purpose: Existential allegory or personal statement about one's creative,
inner life?
Existential (and politcal) allegory:
Capitalism and bureaucracies of the modern day dehumanize people and force them to
live lives that are insect-like in quality (living in close quarters, often dirty; families torn
apart by financial stress; identifying oneself primarily with one's job).
Personal statement:
~father/son relationship: Kafka's had a strained relationship with his own father, whom
he viewed as overbearing and random in his expressions of disappointment in his son.
Note that the personal and the political/Existential are NOT exclusive. This is merely for
the convenience of analysis.
Characterization: what is the significance of the sister's final action ?
The story concludes with Grete stretching, an act that suggests emerging after a long
period of confinement, as if from a cocoon. Note that toward the end of Part II Gregor is
described as stretching in effort to get comfortable with his new form.
This understanding of the theme of great change (metamorphosis) is enhanced by our
knowledge that Kafka himself was perpetually ill and literally uncomfortable in his own
skin.
Questions) With Complete Solution
Updated!!!
Symbolism: Appearances of the number 3
~3 family members other than Gregor
~3 lodgers
~3 parts
~3 rooms (bedroom,the living room and his sister's room)
Symbolism: significance of the number 3
In nature, insects undergo three steps of metamorphosis (egg, nymph, adult) as does
Gregor (realization, coping, surrender). This symbolism seems to express the author's
dismay at how maturity means accepting surrender to the whims of one's family and
one's culture.
Author's Style: The Title & Examples of metamorphosis
~Gregor's physical metamorphosis
~The transformation of the father
~the blooming of Grete into womanhood (central to Gregor's survival, as she becomes
like a surrogate mother)
~family's change from hopeless dependency to hopeful independence after Gregor's
death
Interpretation: How does Kafka criticize capitalism?
, Definition of "Capitalism": an economic and political system in which a country's trade
and industry are controlled by private owners for profit, rather than by the state.
Kafka criticizes capitalism by manifesting, in a literal way, the dehumanizing effects of
modern life; Gregor's actual physical transformation reflects how his life was
metaphorically that of a bug before the physical, literal transformation into one.
This is but one of several interpretations, one of several ways to "read" the meaning of
the story.
Author's purpose: Existential allegory or personal statement about one's creative,
inner life?
Existential (and politcal) allegory:
Capitalism and bureaucracies of the modern day dehumanize people and force them to
live lives that are insect-like in quality (living in close quarters, often dirty; families torn
apart by financial stress; identifying oneself primarily with one's job).
Personal statement:
~father/son relationship: Kafka's had a strained relationship with his own father, whom
he viewed as overbearing and random in his expressions of disappointment in his son.
Note that the personal and the political/Existential are NOT exclusive. This is merely for
the convenience of analysis.
Characterization: what is the significance of the sister's final action ?
The story concludes with Grete stretching, an act that suggests emerging after a long
period of confinement, as if from a cocoon. Note that toward the end of Part II Gregor is
described as stretching in effort to get comfortable with his new form.
This understanding of the theme of great change (metamorphosis) is enhanced by our
knowledge that Kafka himself was perpetually ill and literally uncomfortable in his own
skin.
