When Gregor
Samsa wakes up one morning to find that he has changed overnight into a large insect, he
struggles to figure out how to control his new body. He cannot move the way he used to, he can't
make himself understood by his family, and he injures himself when he moves. He soon adjusts to
his insect body, realizing he can walk on the walls and ceiling, and fall without injury. His
teenage sister copes better with his transformation than his parents, and brings him the types
of food she has found he prefers.
Gregor may indeed find some positive
changes that go along with his transformation. For at least five years he has been the sole
support of his family, working as a traveling salesman for a demanding supervisor. Since his
father lost his business he has grown fat, old, and unable to work. Although at first his family
was grateful that Gregor supported them they soon came to take him for granted. Gregor had no
real life of his own. The picture frame in his room contained a photo of an anonymous woman he
clipped from a magazine, and his mother tells his employer that Gregor spent what time he had at
home reading the trade journals. Now, although his parents are afraid and disgusted by the sight
of him, he is fed and does not have to work. His new body appears to heal more quickly than his
old one, at least at first. When he sees his father after about two months, his father has
apparently taken a job and is standing straight. His mother and sister are also employed. After
an incident in which Gregor's father tries to kill him, his father seems to accept Gregor for
who or what he now is. By the end of the novella with Gregor dead, the three remaining members
of the family are in a much better state than they were when they let Gregor support them all;
even his death as an insect has brought some positive aspects to his
family.
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