A review by aayjaysbookshelf
The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

challenging dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This is the first Kafka book I read. As expected, it's a pretty sad book, of the fiction category. Although it's a straightforward story, in which the protagonist, Gregor Samsa wakes up one day to find himself transformed into a giant bug and the story revolves around his life from there onwards, I looked it up on SparkNotes side by side and that helped. The exploration of one's relation with his family and it being connected to one's financial capability is done well in the book, although a bit too much on the gloomy side, which is understandable coming from Kafka. It's a sad story of a man who has lived his life away in service of his family and do not feel worthwhile on his own, which reflects in his metamorphosis into a giant bug and the changed attitude of his family towards him, which is concern and pity at the start, and which morphs into contempt and disgust to the point of indifference towards the end, and this gradual change of interrelations and emotions is very artfully done by Kafka, perhaps my most favorite element of this book. I am sure a lot of the meaning must have been lost in the translations (it's a German book originally) and I do like the creative element of explaining relations, money and expectations through a story like this, I still don't see why this book is counted as amongst the greatest works of literature. Or perhaps, I don't have the appetite yet for writers like Kafka, Virginia Woolf or Manto, and need to read them through more experienced eyes and mature lenses to understand the hype about them.  Overall, a fine read. Might pick it up a few years later to see how my perception about it has metamorphosised.