In the novella The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka, the protagonist Gregor Samsa has become assimilated into a society as a bland entity, due to the social moors that have bound him to his family. He has become the soul breadwinner for his family consisting of his father, mother, and his younger sister Grete. All three of which are unemployed and completely dependent on Gregor. After an unprecedented event in the life of Gregor wherein one morning he awakens to find himself in the physical form of a large bug, the tables turn and he can no longer provide for his family. This causes him to be unconditionally confined to his room under house arrest for the majority of the story. Franz Kafka, one of the pioneers of modernist literature, wanted to jolt the readers of this story out of their complacency. His goal was to show the readers through his literary works, the true colors-- the reality of society. When Gregor was no longer useful to his family or his work, he remained in isolation in his room not being able to participate in any social interaction, he was imprisoned. Throughout the novella, Gregor’s spirit of life diminishes until ultimately death is his only salivation. Due to the confinement in his room, he no longer feels that he has anymore incentive to continue on living. His relationships with all have ended, his dreams and aspirations destroyed, and inevitably he feels as though he has become a heavy burden for his family to bear. Through The Metamorphosis, Kafka wanted to focus on a disjointed condition and how man responds to such a situation, bearing in mind the moors of society du jour. This serves to juxtapose the solitary confinement and death of one individual with the conventional image of society. Through his writing, Kafka displays that society at large shows no feelings for the human being, no immediate signs of compassion or sympathy. Kafka illustrated through his text the three pervaded feelings of the human condition of society in the 20th century; disjointedness, uncertainty, and alienation.
Similar to Kafka, one can observe that Salinger in the contemporary piece The Catcher in the Rye brings about the major theme of alienation from society with his protagonist Holden Caufield. Holden Caufield is a solitary rebel who cannot conform to the requirements and expectations of society. Throughout the novel, Salinger stresses the need for Holden to take part in interaction and communication with others, which unfortunately does not come to be with any of his acquaintances. As the novel progresses, the readers notice that Holden allows his feelings to overcome reason, with signs such as erratic mood swings which serve to justify why he can no longer function effectively, since reason no longer has control over emotion. The readers witness Holden go down an emotional / psychological spiral. The theme of adolescence also ties in very closely with his alienation from society. As Holden had grown up for the majority of his life in boarding schools, growing up in a society that does not provide one with stability and values to youth on the verge of adulthood, can be extremely detrimental to a sensitive individual.
Albeit at times society can seem to have binding regulations, its positive attributes should also be recognized. Societies have existed for civilizations and nowadays, humans are compelled to interact, to communicate, and to unite. In regard to the novels discussed, the main characters felt imprisoned, confined, or even paralyzed by society in each of their distinct ways. Although written in completely distinct times, however ironic it may be, the fate of the two individuals concerned was identical and that fate was death.
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