... each work. Isolation, materialism, and self discovery are ideas found in both pieces of literature. Both works have a constant theme of isolation. In Kafka's work Gregor is transformed into an insect. His entire family and employer immediately reject him. His father locks him in his room; his mother ... the importance of material possessions play a part in both of the stories. In Metamorphosis Gregor is almost enslaved by forces of materialism. By turning Gregor into an insect that can observe his family from a different perspective, Kafka can show man's preoccupation with financial secu...

• Word Count: 1195
• Approx Pages: 5
• Grade Level: High School

... world. The modern rationalist, contrary to the earlier realist, sought understanding not by returning to nature, but by explaining it through the mathematics of physical, chemical, and biological law. Kafka, in The Metamorphosis, chooses to focus on an interesting side-effect of a world explained by science. Gregor serves as a vehicle to show the isolated alienation caused by the longing for real human ... connection in a world related through cold numbers. Once again, as did Voltaire and Tolstoy, Kafka reaffirms that meaning in life can only be found through deep, personal interaction ...

• Word Count: 953
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Undergraduate