Beginning with the title of the short story, The Metamorphosis it can be inferred that Gregor went through a change. The dictionary term for metamorphosis means a marked change in appearance, character, condition, or function. Gregor really went through a character change of homosexuality, and used the beetle to symbolize his sexuality. A beetle is a perfect use of symbolism towards his intimate feelings. Being homosexual was not accepted in his era, therefore choosing an insect, especially one that is not liked, even possible despised by the majority of the population was a perfect fit. “It may symbolize the empty, insignificant, and outcast life that Gregor leads as a traveling sales lackey. Or perhaps it symbolizes the degraded nature of modern existence in general, or bourgeois life in particular…Or Kafka’s low opinion of himself as imagined through his father’s eyes,” SparkNotes.
Gregor could have had aids. Focusing in closely on the text, noticing that no one every states what exactly Gregor looks like, it is more then likely that he could have been very sick. During the early 1900’s aids wasn’t educated thus when society is ignorant to something different, they fear it. Gregor could have been dieing from the beginning of the story. “And during Gregor’s speech he did not stand still for a minute but, without letting Gregor out of his sight, backed toward the door, yet very gradually, as if there were some secret prohibition against leaving the room. He was already in the foyer, and from the sudden movement with which he took his last step from the living room, one might have thought he had just burned the sole of his foot” Kafka 16-17. Why would the manager run away from a big helpless bug lying on his back? A bug with legs so tiny that he couldn’t even flip himself over. This is because Gregor wasn’t a bug at all. Gregor must have looked differently, but most likely looked sick. In most aids cases the person has white spots on him. Gregor could have possibly had these, which scared his manager away. Gregor’s mother did indeed run towards him with outstretched arms. It just isn’t common for a woman to fun open handed towards an insect. How would she know it was her Gregor if he was physically changed into an insect? If he were a beetle wouldn’t she think that the insect ate Gregor? It’s just not physically possible for a human to turn into a beetle over night. Gregor had a disease; a disease that wasn’t known during that time and this disease is at fault for all of his disfunctionings.