What is Gregor?
Throughout the
book, there’s never any specification on what type of bug Gregor turns into. In
class, we briefly discussed the significance of this ambiguity, how Kafka
purposefully didn’t specify and why. Personally, I think it’s because he wants
the reader to place their own spin on Gregor. Different people dislike certain
insects more than others and the vagueness of the book allows them to put their
own fears into the book because, as we discussed, Kafka is really good at
capturing feelings that the reader can relate to and distort it.
I know many of
us in class were thinking of Gregor as a cockroach or some type of beetle,
which makes sense due to the large shell that is described in the book. However,
throughout the book there are references to Gregor leaving a trail of slime and
other…bodily fluids around the room. At first this disgusted me (it still
does), but it also made me wonder about what kind of bug Gregor could possibly
be. As far as I know, cockroaches typically don’t ooze slime…correct me if I’m
wrong. I had also wondered about the noises that Gregor makes, described as a
screeching noise. In my (fairly limited) experience with bugs, its more of a
chirping noise, or a sound that they make with their bodies, not their mouths
(I’m thinking of cicadas). Now that I think about it, I had pictured Gregor as
a typical black beetle (google tells me they’re carpet beetles), but perhaps
this was influenced by the art on the cover of my copy of the Metamorphosis.
While I think it
would be helpful to have an image of Gregor in insect form to help us
understand what Gregor’s family sees when they look at him, and thus help us
understand their reactions, if it was necessary, I think Kafka would have been
more specific. Of course, some of this could be lost in translation or
translated differently, but I would assume German has specific words for
specific bugs and therefore, regardless of translation, Kafka would have chosen
a non-specific word to describe Gregor regardless. Kafka’s ambiguity about
Gregor’s insect form is part of what makes it creepy, because there’s that fear
of the unknown. To me, it’s that feeling you get in the middle of the night
when you think you see something out of the corner of your eye and you just
freeze, too scared to turn to find out what it is, despite the fact that you
know it’s probably just a jacket hanging up or your backpack in the corner. Throughout
the novel, I definitely felt that not having a complete image of Gregor added
to the slight hint of fear and eeriness that Kafka created.
Interesting, I wonder if the insect Gregor transforms into isn't clear on purposes. The point isn't that he is a beetle or a cockroach but that he is a disgusting insect the oozes liquid. This further dehumanizes Gregor, not only can we not relate to insects but he isn't even an insect we know. It is also interesting to note we only know he is an insect because the first line. Had we read that he turned into a creature maybe we would have a different point of view on him.
ReplyDeleteThis is really interesting! I agree with your idea that it's not important what kind of bug Gregor is so long as we know that he is a bug, he's a vermin, he's a pure lowlife. The character is so unsettling because we know so little about his appearance, only that he viscerally disgusts every person who views him. The book's purposeful ambiguity helps to give it such a confusing altered atmosphere.
ReplyDeleteI think that it's important that Kafka gives us a rather limited description of Gregor. Some description is needed for understanding why the family is so disgusted and he also gives readers room to fill in the details. In class we said that the story was pretty anchored in Gregor's perspective, so by not telling us that much about his body, Kafka emphasizes how much Gregor takes his transformation in stride and is not as focused on its implications for himself, but on its implications for his family.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I was extremely irritated by the cover art for The Metamorphosis. In my opinion, it's as egregious as the spoilers on the back of Mrs. Dalloway. Kafka left Gregor's insect form up to interpretation, who thought they had permission to decide what it was? Like you said, I think Kafka left Gregor's insect form ambiguous on purpose. It disconnects us as much as possible, it rips away our grounding and base. And I think that's really important for Kafka, but specifically The Metamorphosis. The Metamorphosis is such a strange story, it makes everyone feel odd. The lack of basic understanding of who the main character even is intensifies these feelings and emotions, and the nerve of whoever decided to do the cover art on our copy is incredible. Everyone has their own idea of what Gregor looks like and that's a key part of experiencing the story. But that cover illustration rips that away from readers.
ReplyDeleteGreat point! There is something really scary about not knowing what Gregor is. The idea of a giant insect is already unfamiliar to us and very strange, but it's even creepier that his combination of traits doesn't clearly belong to any insect that we are familiar with.
ReplyDeleteI believe that Kafka purposely hid Gregor's true species to target the reader's worst fears related to insects. He hints at Gregor's form throughout the novel, but never specifically identifies him as a particular insect. Not knowing what Gregor is, it is left up to the reader to decide for themselves what type of insect he could have become, opening up many options when it comes to his appearance. Progressing through the novel, the reader's views on Gregor change as a new mechanic or aspect of Gregor is revealed. It is left for interpretation how hideous or revolting Gregor could be, adding to the ambiguity of the novel.
ReplyDeleteWe both wrote blog posts about what type of insect Gregor may be. You took a slightly different approach though, but I liked it! The point about the trail of slime that Gregor leaves kind of reminds me of a slug or a snail, however those two organisms have no other similarities to the descriptions of Gregor's new body. I also didn't even consider the way that Gregor makes noise (chirping vs. screeching). Regardless, I do agree that not fully knowing Gregor's form adds to the scare factor.
ReplyDelete