Kafka Quiz

1. Connect the Ordinary World and the Call to Adventure to your reading of Book 1 of _The Metamorphosis_ Explain the connection.

-> In the reading so far, the Ordinary World is represented by Gregor's room where he spends most of the time intially. His Call to Adventure can be generally seen as his transformation into a 'verminous bug' that morning or when his mother knocks at his door, in order to wake him up. I prefer the latter because this causes disruption in his Ordinary World, where he is relaxed in bed and not worried about anything else, which relates to Vogler's ideas.

2. Are there any social issues being critiqued in the story? How does "The Red Scare" relate to Kafka's work?

-> The most evident social issue is the one of 'class', which can easily be related to 'The Red Scare'. Gregor's manager mistreats him and his parents, since they are indebted to him and are of a lower social class. He uses their fear of him and society, to control them and their son, to the point of slavery. This can be related to how Senator McArthy exploited the fear of many American families, towards Communism. This is not surprising because Gregor seems to be in a communism-based workplace where he gets paid the same, even when he does more work than the other employees.

3. What does Gregor turn into in the story?

-> Gregor turns into a 'verminous bug' at the beginning of Metamorphosis.