Carlos and Kafka Analysis

Men are superior and the woman is considered inferior. In society, this thought is portrayed in several different ways. Women still are paid less than a man and have to work twice as hard for dominant and prestige positions. Kafka’s and Carlos’s Metamorphosis gives an idea how views on gender roles where slowly changing. Women in 1912 were thought to be vulnerable, irrational, emotionally unstable, and small brained. Women were only good for housekeeping and being caregivers. Because of that outlook, more and more women suffrage organizations were beginning to form that focused on women’s rights and concerns. These groups brought much needed public attention and in Metamorphosis Kafka demonstrated through Grete and Gregor how breaking down barriers can promote growth. In Kafka’s story Gregor underwent a full transformation. His armour-hard body, the exterior, demonstrated masculinity. His outer covering conveyed the male he once was, strong, a protector, and independent. However, his hard shell held him down causing Gregor to no longer be independent. Without Gregor being able to care for him it made him vulnerable, dependent, and emotionally unstable, characteristics that were used to describe women. Grete, Gregor’s sister, took the role as his caregiver as well as obtaining a job to provide for the family. After the transformation there is a shift in gender roles, from Gregor upholding society’s view of the male role to needing to be aided and Grete gaining autonomy and showing her new found strength. Kafka gave contrasting ideas of gender roles in 1912 and showed that stepping out of the norm brings great change. Towards the mid 1930’s early 40’s women rights were progressing. Women now had the right to vote and because of WWII women sought work outside of domestic settings and routines. They were now joining armed forces and working in factories. Although women faced unequal pay, women’s right was headed in the right direction. Carlos Atanes decision to depict Gregor as partially transformed showed how outlooks on gender roles were starting to differ from when Kafka’s story was published. Carlos’s short film revealed gender roles very similar to Kafka's; however, in the short film Gregor transformation raises different interpretations. His half man half insect gave him the ability to not lose all of his independence. Women at this time had gained the right to vote and were coming more self-sufficient, gaining rights that were once held by men only. Gregor's partial change illustrated how men are now sharing the responsibilities that were once solely theirs. We can say women have come from being dependent, trap, and alienated, resembling Kafka’s Gregor, to gaining more independence and showing the balance of genders as Gregor in Carlos’s film. Women have fought long and hard to be treated fairly and to be viewed as an equal in society. Women have surpassed a lot of obstacles and are still jumping over hurdles and breaking down barriers. Women are now making decisions for themselves. We women still should fight when there is injustice, and men should embrace women fight for equality. Since Kafka’s 1912 and Carlos’s 1930’s Metamorphosis, gender role notions were gradually changing.

Work Cited: Wesley. "." The Women's Movement. . . 31 May 2012. . Trueman, Chris. "." Women in World War Two. . . 31 May 2012. . The Metamorphosis of Franz Kafka. Dir. Atanes, Carlos. 1992. film Kafka, Franz. “The Metamorphosis.” Literature Fiction: Craft & Voice. Ed. Delbanco, Nicholas. New York, NY. 2010. (335-356). Print

Annotated Bib- Kafka vs Carlos Atanes

A girl becoming a Lady Critic:

It has been an ongoing fight for men and women to be looked at as equal. Women fought for voting rights, jobs, equal pay, and more. Female equality has existed always; however, societies norm have tendencies to put things aside and it slowly became overlooked. In most societies, the man goes out and provide for the family while the woman maintains the household. In Metamorphosis, Kafka not only demonstrates specified gender roles in society, he also uses Grete to illustrate how the gender boundary limits growth. A feminist critic could view Grete’s roles before and after as Kafka’s way of promoting balance in gender roles. Gregor’s sister Grete gave illustration to the way society view gender roles and how unbalance things can become. Gregor portrays Grete, in the beginning, as a female that is not superior by using subsidiary terms that suggested her status being less than a man. Kafka uses words such as modest, child, and playing to describe his seventeen year old sister. Kafka writes, “His sister, who at seventeen was still a child, and whose lifestyle up to that point consisted of dressing herself neatly, sleeping late and above all playing the violin.” Gregor’s transformation caused Grete to step up because of Gregor’s inability to work; this changed her gender role as a female. Although her role seemed to only be taking care of her brother, she gained value within the family. Kafka states, “He often heard them praise his sister’s current industry, whereas they had previously complained a great deal about her, as she had then seemed to them a rather idle girl.” This shows equalization in gender roles and how society boundaries can hold back people from success. The author expressed, through Gregor’s crisis, how the norm of gender roles hindered both male and female. Gregor worked himself to his death and Grete became complacent. Grete demonstrated overcoming gender obstacles and showed how beneficial steeping out of the norm can become. I love how Kafka is encouraging people to live outside of the norm for gender roles and set goals without limits.

Kafka, Franz. Metamorphosis. Trans. and Ed. Stanley Corngold. New York: Bantam, 1972. Print.

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