1. EXTRA CREDIT OPPORTUNITIES
Complete a storyboard for any chapter/scene in The Metamorphosis. I will post a template for this online. (Maximum number: 2)
Complete additional multiple-choice questions for The Metamorphosis. I will give these out at the end of the week. (One additional point per correct answer – you will not be penalized for incorrect answers)

2. Metamorphosis background
Part 2

3. Existentialism – a brief look
Focus on the individual’s experience of trying to survive (whether physically or socially) in an uncertain, irrational, absurd, hostile world
Man “creates” himself through the choices he makes – he takes responsibility through his free thought and self-determinism
Gregor fails b/c of spinelessness (passivity)
Themes of isolation, alienation, disillusion…

4. Beyond good and evil
No absolute good or evil in world – Kafka doesn’t judge his characters
Lack of guilt put upon father and sister for neglecting (and turning against) Gregor
They break away from dependence and become self-sufficient
Family shown at end in pleasant light, free from burdens
It’s more important that family becomes self-sufficient and free-moving.
Gregor dies to lessen burden of himself on his family, and is presented in a bit of a pathetic light – we can’t sympathize too much with him or judge his family too harshly for wanting to be free of the burden he’d become.

5. The “look” – motivating behavior
Being conscious of being perceived by others can be a motivator for what we do
Gregor seeks family’s affection/approval
Hides himself from his family (so they don’t have to suffer his grotesqueness)
In such ways, lets others define him

6. Escape Gregor desires to escape (motif)
Wants to avoid having to make decisions himself (would rather have others do it)
Biggest hint of self-determination is when he decides to open the door in Ch. 1 – but he only does this so others can make subsequent decisions for him
His eventual physical and mental exhaustion leads to the ultimate escape (death)
Other hints of the escape motif can be seen in other characters as well (e.g. mother fainting to avoid having to deal with the situation and forcing others to handle it themselves).

7. The Absurd and Irrational
Subdued reactions from his family are surreal
Doesn’t try to explain or justify Gregor’s transformation, but just encourages us to accept this absurd notion
We see transformation as logical continuation of changes that had already been happening in Gregor’s life/mind (and that he hadn’t addressed)

8. style
Moved away from sentimentality and romanticism  realism, pragmatic language, avoidance of moral judgments
Kafka’s language is plain and efficient
Only things Gregor sees as relevant are discussed
Judgments are left to reader
Characters who should seemingly be condemned in the end aren’t (e.g. father, sister).
Not accepting or rejecting, just noting

9. Translation
Many assert the German term “ungeziefer” conveys an idea that’s much more abstract than “insect”
Kafka chose a vague term to leave doubt as to whether transformation is physical or symbolic

10. Literary Conventions and Plot devices
Conflict – man vs. society (that has crippled Gregor and turned him into insect)
He focuses on social implications of his grotesque transformation, showing he’s a slave to that mentality and can’t even think about himself in a time of personal crisis
He’s a failure in society, leading to family’s rejection

11. Literary Conventions and Plot devices
Conflict – man vs. man
Against boss, father, sister
Conflict – man vs. self
Sense of guilt within himself
Struggles with his new body and its eventual failure to sustain him
Almost all conflicts in story are resolved by his death

12. Literary Conventions and Plot devices
Setting – very limited (mostly bedroom and dining room) which keeps focus on internal issues that Kafka wants to address
Also adds to sense of isolation
Character types – all are flat but dynamic
Flat suggests the family interplay is typical and not specific to these characters
Dynamic shows how they can undergo drastic changes (Gregor isn’t the only one experiencing a metamorphosis)

13. Literary Conventions and Plot devices
Anti-Hero – Gregor’s non-action/passivity makes us sympathize at first, but soon becomes a little too much
His demise is a lesson for how to avoid this in our lives
In Medias Res – beginning a tale in the middle of the action
Climax is more when he’s attacked by his father and receives the injury that leads to the denouement

14. Literary Conventions and Plot devices
Objective correlative – reflection of inner self
Felt like an insect before (helpless, one of millions, trapped in mindless flow of bureaucratic business world, no purpose but to provide money, etc)
With transformation, becomes manifestation of these feelings