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35 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A recommended read, November 29, 2009
A man wakes up one day to find he has been changed into a large insect/beetle. The story follows his efforts to deal with this, and his family's reaction to the change. But it's not just a story about a man turning into a beetle, it's a clever way of writing about how a family would deal with the main breadwinner in the house becoming unable to work, and also on a wider scope, the way a family (and the world at large) reacts to someone who is disabled, or terminally ill. It could also be an analogy for how a family treats a member of the family who is now old and needs to be cared for. The man who is now a beetle, is forced to live in his room, shut away from the world, for fear that he will frighten anyone who enters the house. The man who once provided for the family, and thought of them above himself, has now become a burden on them, as they are now short of money, and have to find employment. The once able and hard-working man, transformed into a beetle, is now rejected, and his family blame him for their financial situation and the fact that they cannot move to a smaller house, because they need to have a room to keep him in.
The descriptive quality of the writing is excellent, and although it is a sad and gruesome tale, it is also very funny in parts; I couldn't help laughing out loud a couple of times.
The main thing that struck me, was that even though this story is nearly 100 years old, it is still totally relevant to today's world (and I'm not sure that's something we should be proud of)
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Beautiful Portrait of Dehumanization, June 13, 2011
The existential theme of choice in The Metamorphosis, and the repurcussions of our dubious choices coming back to haunt us, has been noted many times elsewhere. In this novella, Gregor's choice to work like a drone delivers a most unspeakable transformation. Granted. But, what I find more interesting is another aspect of existential thought: Taken in its rightful modern context, it shunned religious dogma and the whole idea of predictability. It rejected the seemingly simplistic idea that everything has meaning and purpose, and scoffed at the scientific assuredness that all things can be explained. In other words, weird things happen, and we don't know why! Furthermore, there's often nothing we can do about it and we have to live with it, and then die without answers.
As if this news wasn't dismal enough, like Gregor, even when we bust ourselves to serve and please others, that effort often goes without recognition or gratitude. We have to live with that reality, too. Taken to its extreme, we end up feeling oppressed, rejected and sometimes, sadly, completely disjointed and alienated from society. And as if that isn't extreme enough, how about if everyone around you could no longer understand you? If they looked at you as if you were an alien? If life's simple pleasures--in Gregor's case, a plain old glass of milk--evaded you?
In this case, dehumanization isn't just a figure of speech. Our grotesque protagonist is shut away and left to rot. Yet in this cheerlessness is a beautiful portrait of life. As the fog suggests the increasing distance between Gregor and the world, all of Kafka's rich imagery and symbolism culminates in a poetic reflection on the puzzle of existence, itself.
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5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
This is a review for the CD audiobook ! ! !, September 25, 2009
It seems EVERYONE has an opinion about the BOOK, but I came here to read reviews about THE CD AUDIOBOOK, and there aren't any. So, for those of you who want to wade through all the high-horse critiques about what it meant to them yadda-yadda-yadda for the thousandth time and simply want to know how and what the CD sounds like, here it is:
The 2 CD set is excellently crafted, the vocals of Martin Jarvis are clear and a small baroque-style accompaniment occasionally plays behind him. The unabridged work is presented here straight-forwardly, and presented as if Franz was relating it to you.
The sound is clear and fresh, 9/10.
This CD is worth the purchase price.
You all know the book, you all know what it may or may not mean, but if you're willing to LISTEN TO IT IN AN AUDIOBOOK FORM, this is the version for you.
So, that's pretty much it. Thanks for reading, and check out my (hopefully) not too biased other reviews here online.
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