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Catherine Jones Dr. Shepherd Lit 2020 05 April, 00 Kafka’s Truth Despite the
intentional ambiguity in his work, Franz Kafka’s stories do contain a few common
thematic threads. Kafka’s search for truth, be it about relationships, justice,
religion, or human nature is the one interpretation that most critics agree
upon. Wilhelm Emrich, a highly acclaimed professor in Berlin, states that
Kafka’s writings can only be interpreted by accepting the full truth: “An
assistive and willing readiness for the full truth means the ability to renounce
all personal, limited ideas, wishes, and efforts of will and to enter into the
fullness of all of that-which-is” (50). What he is suggesting is that in order
to truly hear what Kafka has to say, one is required to completely disregard the
conventional. For example, if one were to read “The Metamorphosis,” and merely
regurgitate the surface details of the story, they would entirely miss the truth
behind it. On the level of relationships, the average reader might be touched by
the family’s tolerance for the creature, noting that they may not have been able
to do the same in a similar situation. He or she may overlook the truth of this
story as “the realization that even the most beautiful, most tender relations
among people are founded on illusions” (Emrich, 142). Where was the beloved
sister after his presence became burdensome? Did his family not remember his
contributions to pay off the debts owed by his father? Of course not, because
they became comfortable in their situation and took Gregor for granted. When his
family was convinced that no hope remained for his recovery, they moved on with
their lives as if Gregor no longer existed. It is difficult to draw from “The
Metamorphosis,” any particular divine theme without first knowing that religion
was the whole world to Kafka and that “he viewed the total sum of possible
experience in terms of religion” (Muir, 36). There is a subtle religious
inference within Gregor’s beetle existence where he seeks the “way to the
unknown nourishment he had been longing for” (Emrich, 145). Is he longing for
God, or looking for comfort in His absence? The first meal that Gregor was given
consisted of bread and milk. Bread symbolizes that which is sacred in some
religions. Catholicism, for example, blesses bread as the body of Christ. In
biblical parables, seven loaves were broken to feed a large crowd. When Gregor
refused the bread and milk, one might infer that he was rejecting God for
putting him in his unthinkable condition. Emrich emphasizes Gregor’s possible
rejection of faith: “A modern man in his alienated condition, treated as an
insect by his fellows who think only of appearances, frustrated in his longings
which he is unable to communicate, swept away…and all the while, an
unacknowledged religious victim”(36). Human nature is difficult to describe,
especially when one is expected to think outside of “that-which-appears-to-be”
instead of “that-which-is.” After Gregor realized his metamorphosis, he still
attempted to carry out his life as usual, perturbed not because he was a beetle,
but because his daily work routine was disrupted. He was “in a state of
unresolved conflict between work and ego” (Emrich, 136), meaning that although
he acknowledged his changed condition, though barely, Gregor still believed that
it would not hinder his ability to perform his work duties. It seems odd that
Gregor, who disliked his job, would not view his metamorphosis as a clear reason
to abandon it. Gregor thought to himself on that morning, “If I didn’t have to
hold my hand because of my parents I’d have given notice long ago, I’d have gone
to the chief and told him exactly what I think of him” (Kafka, 1123). It is when
this point arises that Kafka illustrated true human nature: man works out of
obligation or duty, not because he enjoys it.
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