Creativity is great, but plagiarism is faster

*This was published in the November 1st edition of the Biola University newspaper

America has an insatiable desire for the wacky, the weird and the unexpected. Psychological thrillers set in unusual circumstances are littered throughout entertainment, and fans flock to read, watch and hear these odd tales.

Much of this fascination with the abnormal can be traced to the work of Franz Kafka. Kafka was a Czech-born, German-educated insurance officer living around the turn of the century. He struggled to establish himself as a writer during his short-life, but has since gained immense popularity with the posthumous publishing of multiple novels and short stories.

“The Metamorphosis” is the only novella published during his lifetime and has become his most recognized work, as well as the epitome of his bizarre style.

The opening scene of “The Metamorphosis” is one of the most well-known in all of literature. Gregor Samsa, a traveling salesman, wakes one morning to find himself inexplicably transformed into a giant insect. Samsa had led a relatively normal life to date, but he wakes to the surprise of a lifetime.

“The Metamorphosis” is no rogue work written in jest; all of Kafka’s works begin with a simple plot or situation, but are quickly infused with a disastrous, abnormal occurrence that the protagonist must struggle with for the rest of the story.

Kafka became so notorious for this that the adjective “Kafkaesque” was created to describe situations resembling his stories.

Samsa searches desperately for an avenue of escape from his situation, but he finds no way to avoid the inevitable truth: he is a repulsive insect with no hope of return to his original form. His family is crushed, and quickly distance themselves from him, all but forgetting his presence in the house. He is left with no friends, no job and no hope.

A strong sense of abandonment and isolation permeates “The Metamorphosis.” Kafka illustrates societies’ unwillingness to accept or even interact with those in different situations from our own. Though his example is an extreme one, Kafka realized the necessity of shocking his audience. Without the astonishing plot twist, his point would risk being buried beneath the narrative.

Shades of existentialism can be detected throughout “The Metamorphosis.” From Samsa’s illogical metamorphosis to the hopeless situation that confronts him, he is forced to create significance in a world devoid of intrinsic meaning.

Though “The Metamorphosis” is a sad tale, it sends a vital message to a society constantly mistreating people not fitting the status quo. Samsa’s family is a perfect example of how not to treat those different from us. Instead of embracing his transformation, they are appalled and avoid him, trying to forget his, and their tremendous misfortune. Samsa was the victim, yet his family treated his metamorphosis as though it occurred from some fault of his own.