Franz Kafka’S Autobiographical Features Present In Metamorphosis

Franz Kafka’s autobiographical features present in metamorphosis

Franz Kafka’s metamorphosis is a story focused on the feeling of misery and labor abuse at the beginning of the 20th century in Europe, where for the date of publication of the work (1915) the First World War was suffering. This brought with it an economic decline for families of all classes, especially the middle and low class.

The "insect" in which our protagonist Gregorio Samsa is transformed is a representation of the feeling of abuse and inferiority suffered by working class men and family heads at that time, since providing their family environments was not the easiest of works.

In the world, and above all in Europe, only relatively young men had the right to a "worthy" work, where you could be a merchant, manager or allow some more or less well -off position; Contrary to the elderly, who were not seen as "capable" to remain in adequate work. This worsened a lot in the case of women, which were denigrated by their natural anatomy and were only allowed basic work, which were insubstant for the time;Therefore, women chose to marry a man with a well -off economic position.

The natural or "physical" environment of the work occurs within the house of the Samsa, distributing in the different rooms. Within this house the abuse towards those who are different, exemplified with the contempt for Gregory in its new form is evidenced. All this social environment that Kafka expresses in his work clearly represents very common feelings in society at that time, thanks to work complications and war.

Certain feelings are fear, towards an "insect" that in itself is a person. The rejection of the different and the change. Loneliness, which is evidenced when Gregorio must remain locked in his room. The monotony, which is seen in Gregorio’s constant work as a fabric merchant and in the tortuous day to day after its transformation. And the abuse, towards the little familiar, the unknown and the strange. "I would lose my loneliness, which is mostly horrible and would beat you, whom I love more than any other being". -Franz Kafka.

Introduction

Kafka had a difficult relationship with her father. He looks like a vertical, conservative and arrogant man. This forces Kafka to study law, a career that he did not want to study, and at the time it worked as a good method to obtain money, rather than the idea of being a writer. Franz Kafka then in his life writes letters to his father where he tells him about this past, these letters were never received to whom he tried to send them. However, these were gathered in the non -fictional letter "Letter to the Father" (Kafka, letter to the father, 1952) .

In metamorphosis the alter ego of Kafka will be Gregorio Samsa. You can see the relationship with your father in the work at the time when he threatens him with the cane or with the apples and Gregorio only lowers his head. This is a metaphor that is used as Kafka’s inability to be able to make decisions in its youth and adulthood stage.

“Suddenly, something rightly launched fell to his side and rolled before him;It was an apple, which was immediately followed. Gregorio, frightened, did not move;It was useless for him to continue running, since his father was bombing him. He had filled his pockets with the apples of the fruitman who was on the sideboard, and threw them one after another, although without hitting him for the moment. The red apples rolled on the floor like electrified, stumbling with each other. One of them, launched with greater precision, touched Gregorio’s back, but did not harm him. Instead, the next one gave him fully.”(Kafka, Metamorphosis, 1915) .

Kafka, in the same way, had a not very affective relationship with his mother, which played a secondary role in his education and training. This remained submissive to her husband’s impediment and commandments and, being the time of these facts at the end of the 19th century, it is considered normal for women to develop a submissive role before society. This is reflected in the work when Gregorio, given the abuse and indifference demonstrated by the father, the mother tries to stay equally indifferent;Not only because of her new physical appearance, but for her disability of economic production.

The rest of his work also has autobiographical character. "The process" (Kafka, the process, 1925) will deal with invisible justice, the process of knowing what is right and what is not, and "the castle" (Kafka, El Castillo, 1926) an unfinished novel that Kafka hadstarted writing in 1922, about bureaucracy, due to the failure of institutions and public officials, and alienation, which will be explained later. These works will be traveled by the absurdity, which is inspired by the surrealist, to mark works through humor and surprise, usually used for social situations. Or by what is currently called, the "Kafkian", which is better understood as the application of these elements in social situations, which are being distressing or ridiculous.

Next, a literary analysis is presented to find out if the work "Metamorphosis" has autobiographical characteristics of the author. For this, a video of the web (nocturnity inmate, 2019) was selected as the basis of this analysis, where a series of autobiographical aspects of the work is briefly exposed without much affinque in detail or depth. The purpose of this work will be to expand the information of said audiovisual material with a personal touch, highlighting the author’s own characteristics seen in his own life and in the work "Metamorphosis".

Developing

Kafka’s bureaucratic work will also be reflected in the work. Gregorio is a character given to the daily life of his work that exhausts and wears him. Within the capitalist context of avant -garde, that is, the new and innovative, the work can be interpreted as the dehumanization of man because of the absorption of the system or the loss of the "I" to be part of a gear of the economic machinery to economic machineryearly twentieth century.

This is called "alienation". That is, the loss of personality and identity of an individual or a group of people. It is no accident that in the descriptions of the father this cannot be detached from the "uniform" of ordinance or that Gregorio Samsa, the man of the twentieth century, delivered to work, suffer this transformation and, after this fact, the family discards it noOnly for its appearance, but its cessation to its economic production.

That Gregorio has dawned into an insect is a metaphor that declares the absurd. An absurd that crosses the limits because despite its condition, the insect feels an impulse to go to work, get up and think about it. This is the existential absurdity, which defends the freedom of the individual and the responsibility in their actions, despite its consequences;chaotic and pessimistic that Albert Camus advances, (Frolov, 1984) a French novelist who is remembered for contributing to the concept of German absurdism and existentialism, although Camus always wanted to remain away from this concept and the thought of Nietzsche (Frolov, 1984) . Taking this into account, the novel meets another autobiographical characteristic, being the fact that Kafka, for the events that occurred and his life suffered, reconsiders his personal knowledge, considering the importance of human existence.Therefore this novel is considered as pre -existentialist or that follows the "lines" of Kierkegaard (bibliographic appointment), Danish philosopher considered the father existentialism, for his "great concern about the condition of human existence, to focus her philosophy onthe individual and subjectivity, in freedom and responsibility, in despair and anguish ". (Anonymous, S.F.) .

The exaggeration and deformation of reality with the incursion, that is, to involve an event like that of an insect to express loneliness, another biographical aspect seen inside and outside the work, make this an expressionist work. This literary movement arises at the beginning of the 20th century, just when the work in question develops;This movement indicates the loss of individual identity and criticism towards the society of the bourgeois of that time. Just imagining an insect as part of a scenario is a reminder of German expressionism, the intensity with which this condition is expressed, deformity and pessimism are loaded with an distressing and full of loneliness atmosphere. Metamorphosis is an allegory that represents the dehumanization and absurdity of an exchanges system where human seems to be reduced to appearance and utility. And if these conditions are not met, the company discards it. This is the last and most important autobiographical metaphor that we can get in the work.

conclusion

It is possible to conclude that metamorphosis is a work that meets many autobiographical aspects, facts that Kafka lived and suffered for many years are clearly reflected in the form of metaphor. To better explain its different feelings and opinions, Kafka uses different literary movements to explain what he felt at that time.

Gregorio is a character given to the daily life of his work that ends it, literally. Taking this into account, Kafka, for the events that occurred and his suffered life, reconsiders his personal knowledge, considering the importance of human existence and, from this principle, opens its doors to new literary borders, as we observe with the other two twowritten works, such as "El Castillo" or "The Process". Metamorphosis is nothing more than a reflection of Kafka’s personal knowledge and a "written" mirror of her feelings and fears. "I can’t make you understand. I can’t make anyone understand what is happening inside me. I can’t do it, I can explain it to myself ”-f. Kafka.