Interestingly, Kafka’s father was actualy a travelling salesman, which is the proffesion of the character Gregor. Although I found no evidence to back this up, I believe that Kafka’s father may have suggested his son go into the same line of work as him and although he didn’t I believe that Kafka wrote Gregor as the man he could have become, which is why he is a traveling salesman.
Kafka was known to intentionally use ambiguous terms or words that have several meanings. For instance, in the novel The Metamorphosis, the first line reads;
“As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect.”
But as the novel was translated from German, the word used for ‘insect’ is Ungeziefer, which can mean ‘insect’ but can also mean ‘vermin’. It could be said that the ‘vermin’ Kafka referres to is himself, bedridden and suffering from TB as his younger sister nurses him.
Steven Berkoff was born in Stepney and descibed himself as an unhappy child, mainly because of the strained relationship he had with his father. This unhappy homelife, coupled with his sence of isolation amongst his childhood peers, led him into a life as a social and professional outcast.
Berkoff’s father ran a tailors shop. After the war, the Berfoffs returned to the East End after an ill-fated attempt to settle in the USA. After a succession of aimless jobs in fabric and garment trades, miserable stints in the West End clothes shops and a spell working in the US Army PX’s in Germany, Stephen Berkoff studied drama in London and Paris, The Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London (1958), and the Ecole Jacques Le Coq in Paris (1965).
Berkoff is now a playwright, actor, and theatre director. He is an advocate of the style of heightened physical theatre, which has been named ‘total theatre’. He also creates complex psychological plays such as “The Trial”, these works were nightmarish and created a sense of isolation.
Many of the themes in The Metamorphosis can be linked to aspects of Kafka’s life. Most notably his releationship with his father. Gregor and Mr Samsa take part in a constant power struggle throughout the play and this is not unlike the relationship that Kafka had with his own father.
Interestingly, Kafka’s father was actualy a travelling salesman, which is the proffesion of the character Gregor. Although I found no evidence to back this up, I believe that Kafka’s father may have suggested his son go into the same line of work as him and although he didn’t I believe that Kafka wrote Gregor as the man he could have become, which is why he is a traveling salesman.
Kafka was known to intentionally use ambiguous terms or words that have several meanings. For instance, in the novel The Metamorphosis, the first line reads;
“As Gregor Samsa awoke one morning from uneasy dreams he found himself transformed in his bed into a gigantic insect.”
But as the novel was translated from German, the word used for ‘insect’ is Ungeziefer, which can mean ‘insect’ but can also mean ‘vermin’. It could be said that the ‘vermin’ Kafka referres to is himself, bedridden and suffering from TB as his younger sister nurses him.
Steven Berkoff was born in Stepney and descibed himself as an unhappy child, mainly because of the strained relationship he had with his father. This unhappy homelife, coupled with his sence of isolation amongst his childhood peers, led him into a life as a social and professional outcast.
Berkoff’s father ran a tailors shop. After the war, the Berfoffs returned to the East End after an ill-fated attempt to settle in the USA. After a succession of aimless jobs in fabric and garment trades, miserable stints in the West End clothes shops and a spell working in the US Army PX’s in Germany, Stephen Berkoff studied drama in London and Paris, The Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London (1958), and the Ecole Jacques Le Coq in Paris (1965).
Berkoff is now a playwright, actor, and theatre director. He is an advocate of the style of heightened physical theatre, which has been named ‘total theatre’. He also creates complex psychological plays such as “The Trial”, these works were nightmarish and created a sense of isolation.
With this in mind it is easy to understand why Stephen Berkoff chose ‘The Metamorphosis’ to adapt, and why he chose to portray the novel like he did, using a lot of physical theatre and surreal situations. It would also have been easy for Berkoff to relate to the key issues of the play, i.e. bad family relationships (particularly with his father), social isolation, and badly paying jobs.
The play was very popular and audiences were captivated because of its surreal style, which was before its time. The key themes of oppression, isolation, personal identity, family duty, and guilt are timeless themes are issues that an audience will always be able to relate to.
