New books are released every three seconds, however, there are still a lot of old books that are just as good (and sometimes even better) that deserve more attention than most people care to give. With this new segment we revisit some of these old titles that are timeless and quite unforgettable.
For this week’s book I chose to review the latest classic (more like modern classic) I have personally read, and that is Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka. If you are a fan of ugly and depressing stories, then this is the short story for you!
Long story short, the book is about a guy named Gregor who wakes up and finds out that he somehow got turned into an insect of some sort. The story talks about how the family deals with the eldest son, and only breadwinner, turning into this hideous monster. The depressing thing is how quickly the hideous monster hiding in his room turned into a useless parasite sucking the family dry even though the family is not really as dry as they say (the father had some money hidden on the side, all three healthy family members have jobs now, and they have enough money to employ a maid, but not enough to care for the son?).
On the other hand, the family do have a point, taking care of an “insect” of a son is not an easy task. I myself have felt somewhat similar annoyances around the time before my grandfather passed (a 95 year old senile man with Parkinson’s, not a pretty thing to see, especially if I still remember him as the happy lovable young at heart man the year before). But with Gregor, you get the sense that the family is more annoyed at the loss of an income source than the memory of a healthy son.
Even with all the grim, ugly, and depressing events that take place in the story, my level of optimism remained high till the last few pages of the book. I remember thinking “Come on, the book is almost over, when will Gregor/the family learn their lesson and turn him back to a human?” But instead, the book decided to slap me in the face, kick me in the nuts, and stab me in the back. The ending was the most depressing part of the whole thing!!!
This is basically why I hate the book. I actually hate it so much I sort of love it. The theme or “lesson” of the story is super blunt, and is not at all sugar coated. Basically if I can sum up the book in one sentence, it would be: This is life, its crap, ENJOY!
Let me know what you think of the book? Did you have a similar experience as I did? What are your thoughts on Gregor and his family?
Also tell me if you are a fan of classic books, and what classic book do you think I should do next?
[…] revisits a short story, Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, and shares his thoughts in a very relatable way. Vlogger alyjoshaver gives us her birds eye view […]
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