The Metamorphosis... Me Vs. Him

What would you do if you woke up as a beetle? Would you do everything in your

power to change back? Do you think it would be hard to change the life you once had and

have to adapt once again? The main character in The Metamorphosis, Gregor Samsa,

wakes up one morning to find that he has "morphed" into a beetle. He comes to realize

new things about his family and has to adapt to his new living situation. Franz Kafka

captures the theme of adaptation in his story, opening the door to let others compare their

adapting skills with those of Gregor's. Everyone has to adapt to something new at some

point in there life. Mine would have to be right now. I am a college freshman, living on

campus, in a new environment and away from family. I, personally, can relate to Gregor

in these ways. We both know that adapting to a new situation can be one of the hardest

things to do, but it has to be done. There is no other choice but to adapt. With anything in

life, you always have to learn to adapt to things that can be even the most unfortunate.

Being in a new environment has to be one of the worst things to have to adapt to.

It is necessary for Gregor to, after the transformation, isolate himself in his room. He can

no longer leave the house, let alone his room. When he does leave his room, even for a

short time, he is abused and chased back into his room. His sister, Grete, and his mother

begin to take his things out of his room. They think it is for the best, but they do not

realize, at first, that they are taking away the surrounding that Gregor has known for many

years of his life. His mother stated, "I think it would be best if we tried to keep the room

just as it was, so that when Gregor comes back to us again, everything will be unchanged

and it can be easier to forget what happened in the meantime" (Kafka, 459). She hopes

Gregor will change back into a human and everything will be fixed, which is most

unlikely to happen. Unlike Gregor, I actually changed the literal surroundings of my life.

Moving away from my family is one of the hardest things I have ever had to do. I went

from a family of five to a hall of twenty-one girls, having to share bathrooms, laundry

facilities, and showers at each location. Gregor experiences living with others, the

boarders, as I do with my hall-mates. I even have to share a room now. I have always had

my own room for as long as I can remember, and now I have to watch what I do, where I

put things, and make sure everything on my side of the room is cleaned. It is hard for me

to adapt to these new living conditions, as I know it has got to be even harder for Gregor.

I miss being able to talk to my parents in the living room at night before I go to bed, and

them knowing that I am home, and safe. I am completely aware that I can go "home" on

the weekends, or whenever I would like, but it is not the same. I feel like I am left out, a

lot like Gregor feels knowing that his family has moved on without him.

Gregor's family also has to adapt around Gregor's change. They, especially his

father, begin to treat him with very little respect. His father becomes abusive towards

him, his mother can no longer look at him, and his sister takes care of him, unlike how

anything was before he transformed. In my case, it has the reverse affect. You see, neither

of my parents went to college, making me the first