When comparing Siddhartha, by Hermann Hesse and The Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka, both novels display protagonists who embark on a journey in search of themselves, displayed through the significant names of the characters. The Metamorphasis contains the name Gregor Samsa, which not only relates to the author, Franz Kafka, but to societies influence in his self-realization. Siddhartha on the other hand, utilizes names from Hindu deities and other important characters throughout the Hindu and Buddhist holy ... scriptures showing his captivation into society's materialistic world. The Metamorph...

• Word Count: 1500
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

The central theme of The Metamorphosis, by Franz Kafka, is modern man's sense of alienation and detachment. Gregor's transformation into an insect greatly resembles a familiar form of detachment of modern man. Unfortunately, Gregor cannot turn the door lock, for he has no hands, and his body is of little use and difficult to control. He is alienated by his own body, encased in both a mentally and ... physically exhausting skin that blocks him from his world. He is obviously very different from everyone and becomes rejected by his entire family. Gregor's family doesn't think about how Gregor f...

• Word Count: 311
• Approx Pages: 1
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

German writer Franz Kafka's and American J.D. Salinger's respective masterpieces, The Metamorphosis (1915) and The Catcher in the Rye (1951), examine the universal themes of personal relationships within the context of painful change. Each did that in his own way: Kafka portrayed familial support and sympathy as necessary to the alleviation of pain, while Salinger suggested that to truly grow up is to come to terms with one's relationships and ultimately one ... , he can't stop thinking about "her and Stradlater sitting in that goddam Ed Banky's car"-while he and Jane had never been particular...

• Word Count: 1076
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Undergraduate