Juxtaposition of Magic Realism and Modernism in Franz Kafka’s The Metamorphosis

 

Magical Realism

 

           From the first paragraph, a reader of The Metamorphosis will feel that there is something different in how Franz Kafka wrote the story. In Kafka’s story, Gregor Samsa, the tragic hero, found himself changed in his bed into monstrous vermin with numerous legs. It’s different in the sense that the narration seems so natural, yet you’ll get the feel of something unnatural happening. Is it normal to wake up in the morning transformed into a kind of creature? I look at this as magic realism. Kafka created a world that is based on reality. He even used details that describe everyday settings.

 

“Gregor’s eyes then turned to the window, and the overcast weather—he could hear raindrops hitting against the metal window ledge—completely depressed him.”

 

 

           However, this reality is punctuated by “magical” elements—like a fantastic character (Gregor) and fantastic events. These magical elements, in turn, helped me gain deeper, more vivid insights into the nature of Samsa’s world and his relationship (if there’s any) with the rest of the characters. These elements came to open the realities of modern life, and one of these is alienation.

 

 

Alienation

 

           First, Gregor transforms into a creature wherein everything, especially the change in his voice, depicts alienation. At first, there’s a state of denial.

 

“…That the change in his voice was nothing more than the first sign of a bad cold, an occupational ailment of the traveling salesman, he had no doubt in the least.”

 

           The changes come little by little. Gregor’s manager mentions how the main character’s behavior alienates him from daily life, his resistance to open the door, and his stubbornness, according to his father. One symbol of this is the fog as Gregor looks out the window.

 

“At such moments he fixed his eyes as sharply as possible on the window, but unfortunately there was little confidence and cheer to be gotten from the view of the morning fog, which shrouded even the other side of the narrow street.”

 

           But as the story progresses, there are signs that the main character gradually alienates himself totally from the world that he has. First, his confidence in the locksmith and the doctor. This reflects his uncertainty in both technology and medicine. 

 

Second is Gregor’s rejection of the food brought by his sister. He started eating food that was not intended for humans. The third is the removal of the pieces of furniture from his room which shows the permanency of alienation, and lastly, the state of Gregor’s room near the ending. All useless things are put in his room, suggesting that Gregor is now futile and disposable. Indeed, at the end of the story, Gregor’s worth for the family becomes less and less. 

They didn’t even listen to the cleaning woman about the creature's dead body.

 

“Mr. Samsa, who noticed that the cleaning woman was about to tell the story (about Gregor’s dead body), stopped her with a firmly outstretched hand.”