Communication Communication is key to any family dynamic; without communication no one knows what is going on and people get isolated. In Franz Kafka’s Metamorphosis, the family’s communication, or lack thereof, is a big problem. Gregor’s metamorphosis into a world of complete isolation is seen through four stages of communication. Gregor understands what his family is saying when he first morphs into a bug and he assumes that his family can understand him as well. ” Because the door was made of wood, the alteration in Gregor’s voice was probably not noticeable, since his mother was pacified by that explanation.” (13) Gregor has to explain why he didn’t go to work and since his mother never said anything about not being able to hear him, Gregor assumes that his voice has changed in only the slightest way.
There are no telling factors to help Gregor come to the realization that his family can’t understand him. Gregor starts to become more isolated from his family because he thinks / assumes that they can understand him. Gregor finally realizes that his metamorphosis into a bug has changed his whole being, including his voice. “He now realizes that his speech was no longer intelligible, even though it had seemed clear enough to him, clearer than before, perhaps because his ears were getting used to it.” (19) Gregor wants to communicate with his family but he has lost the “only” way of communicating. HIs voice doesn’t register with his family and because of this slight problem, Gregor is even more isolated from his family. “In order to restore his voice to its maximum clarity for the imminent decisive discussions, he cleared it a little by coughing, but took care to do this in very muffled tones, since possibly even that noise might sound different from human coughing, and he no longer trusted himself to make the distinction.” (19) Gregor doesn’t want to be different and so he tries to muffle his coughing just in case it sounded funny.
The Term Paper on Chief Clerk Gregor Family Room
SummaryGregor Samsa awakes one morning to find that he has been inexplicably transformed into a giant insect. He has also slept late. His parents and his sister Grete try to rouse him so he can make it to his dreary job as a traveling salesman. The family depends on him for its livelihood. Gregor, however, is now a bug. When a clerk from his company comes to demand an explanation for his absence, ...
That is the first time that Gregor grasps the fact that he can’t even trust his own judgment anymore because he truthfully doesn’t know what he sounds like. Gregor’s lines of communication have been cut off from any other human beings. Gregor’s sister and Gregor enter into a nonverbal communication where she brings him food twice a day, but never says anything directly to Gregor. “He could never have guessed what his sister in her kindness actually did.
In order to test his likings, she brought him a big selection, all spread out on an old newspaper.” (26) Greta, the sister, is taking car of Gregor because no one else will. Even though Greta won’t talk to Gregor, she still helps him out and that shows that Gregor is not totally isolated. “If Gregor had only been able to speak with his sister and thank her for all she had done for him.” (31) Gregor wants desperately to thank his sister but he can’t which makes it seem as though the sister’s help is worthless. The communication, verbal, makes it hard for both parties. Gregor and his father enter into a more negative nonverbal communication. The one time Gregor leaves the room, the father takes Gregor’s actions to be menacing and proceeds to throw things at Gregor.
“It was an apple; another flew at him immediately afterward; Gregor stood still in fright; to continue running was pointless, because his father had decided to bombard him.” (38) The noon-verbal communication between Gregor and his sister and Gregor and his father are polar opposites. The sister took a more friendly, humane approach to dealing with the metamorphosis, whereas the father is freaked out and can’t even deal with the tension anymore. This instance is when the reader first starts to see the family begin to give up on Gregor which is his fourth and final stage in his isolation and lack of communication. Gregor’s isolation is pushed to the edge when both sides give up on Gregor. Gregor had a “lack of all direct human communication,” (34) and the realization that he has to give up is what drives him into the darkest pits of isolation. He can’t articulate to his family what he would like and they don’t care to communicate with Gregor.
The Essay on Television Has Destroyed Communication Among Friends And Family
Many people think that television has destroyed communication among friends and family. I do not agree with that statement. I will support my opinion. I claim that TV has a great impact on our lives, but it does not have enough power to change relationships among friends or family. For me and for many other people, television is just a source of information. It allows us to get to know new ...
Greta puts it into perspective by telling the father that “all you have to do is try to shake off the idea that that’s Gregor.” (48) All communication is gone between the family and both sides know that hey need to give up because it would never work. Gregor’s family goes on without him and Gregor enters his fourth stage of isolation and eventually dies. The stages in Gregor’s isolation directly correspond to his stage of communication. The less communication that Gregor has the more isolated he became. The real turning point in the story was when Gregor’s father threw the apple at Gregor, after that there was no coming back. Both parties gave up and it was time for Gregor to die..
