Existentialism is a philosophy that officially came into existence after World War 2.

Its
beliefs are centered on the idea of finding the meaning of life through different choices and
situations. Many authors use bizarre circumstances to portray existentialist ideas. Franz Kafka,
the author of The Metamorphosis, adapted this tactic into his book, and created one of the first
books to incorporate the existentialist belief. The Metamorphosis makes use of several different
ideals of existentialism to portray the authors point of view. In The Metamorphosis, Kafka
exchanges this transformation to an object for a transformation to an insect.
When Gregor Samsa woke up one morning from unsettling dreams, he found himself
changed in his bed into a monstrous vermin, (Kafka, 3). Without any background information,
Kafka thrusts his main character, and the reader thusly, into the precarious situation of becoming
a bug. No explanation is suggested as to why or how, only that it has happened. The author
seems to be jesting at situations that people generally typify as being out of their control. This is
because as an existentialist, he believes that choice defines a person, not external circumstances.
While Gregor cannot control his transformation, he does have the free will to get out of his bed
and pursue his normal activities. However, he struggles to overcome the challenge that his
laziness presents, telling himself that he will get up at a certain time, but passing each time he
sets without so much as a movement. This lack of motivation seems to stem from Gregors
obvious lack of an identity. By this, it is meant that before the metamorphosis, Gregor worked
terribly hard for his family to pay off bills from an unexplained failure of the family business.
He allowed little to no time for his own improvement, and consequently lost his individuality.
The author follows the common existentialist belief supporting the self, and shows the dangers
of working for others without taking into account ones own needs. Kafka fears above all losing
individualism.

He has had a peculiar love for this violin-playing sister, was fascinated even to the end
by her playing, and had even hoped to provide for her musical education at the Conservatory,
(Webster). Grete, his sister, provided Gregor with his only glimmer of hope to gaining an
identity before he became the horrible insect. The change, however, disallows any chance of
Grete attending the Conservatory. With this, Gregor loses his drive to work and live, instead
choosing to hide out in his room and waste away. The fact that he can no longer send his sister
to a higher education only causes Gregor to fall farther and farther away from his human self,
instead gradually choosing to accept his primitive instincts as an insect. By rejecting his former
self, Gregor thereby rejects his individuality. Kafka sets the standard for future existentialists in
this way by showing the trouble that goes with accepting circumstances and not fighting to
overcome adversity.
Gregor also portrays another existentialist idea through Kafkas writing. The obvious
issue that defies the bounds of the real world is that of the actual transformation of Gregor.
Kafka speaks of the change with such ease that he makes it seem as though such a bizarre event
could in fact take place. The change is tragic in the story, as it hurts not only Gregor, but also the
whole family. Where Gregor used to have to work and care for the family, the metamorphosis
forced the father to go back to work, along with the sister and the mother doing random jobs.
Aside from the sister, the father should be the employee of the family, not the son. For the two
to switch places in fact shows justice for Gregor. He has already worked many hours to take
care of his family at his own individualitys sake, and now it is time for his family to return the
favor.

The situation also causes a few problems within the family as well. Grete takes on the
responsibility of caring for Gregor in his bug state, doing things such as cleaning after him,
putting food out, and moving his furniture in order to enable him to move around easier.
Unfortunately, Gregors mother refuses even to come into his room except for one time, showing
how much pain she feels for losing her only son in such a way. On the other hand, Gregor and
his father do not seem to be in good favor with each other. The father is likely angered more at
the fact of his having to return to work and having lost a moneymaking child than he is at
actually losing a son. The tension builds between the two enough that Gregors father throws an
apple into the back of Gregor. The apple partially paralyzes him and brings about his death
much sooner. Due to the problem, a large burden is placed on each of the family members.
However, the weight that had formerly been placed on Gregors back was now on his father,
mother, and sisters back. The new burden placed on Gregors back was one of pain, sorrow,
and the hatred of himself for forcing his family to take care of him. He felt so depressed from
these things that he decided to stop eating completely in order to kill himself, believing that it
would aid his family and take at least some of the burden off of their shoulders if he was not
burning through their resources without supplying any money to make up for it. The entire
family, by the end, did not feel as though the giant insect taking up a room in their house was
Gregor anymore. They felt that he was simply not part of the family, and when he died, the
family grieved, but soon found the good in the situation. The weight, they felt, had been lifted
from their shoulders.
A perfect example of existentialism in the novel is in fact Grete. A central theme to
existentialism is to take on responsibility without the need to be told by laws or rules to do it. By
taking care of Gregor, Grete fulfills this requirement. She makes decisions which benefit the

whole of the family, and that defines her nature as a kind and responsible person. She puts her
family first, but unlike Gregor, she willfully completes the tasks and does not restrain her
individuality. She maintains her uniqueness through her playing of the violin, something of
which she excels at in Gregors eyes. However, in the eyes of some men who are renting out
part of the house, her talent is nothing special. Gregor becomes enraged at this disrespect,
reveals himself from his room, and advances upon the men. Gregors father attempts to shield
the creature from the intrigued gentlemen, knowing what may come of the situation.
The Metamorphosis helped to define existentialist ideas throughout the world. Kafka
used his main characters to outline his point as they progressed throughout the story, especially
using Gregors tragic transformation to reveal why existentialist ideas were so important.