Metamorphosis p.37-38 AP style close reading

            When Gregor first sees his father after his transformation he first believes there is a dramatic difference in him, yet his father has not changed to such a degree. His father has gotten new clothes and a job, but he is still a weak old man. His father is an extremely dynamic character because he is “furious and happy at the same time” when he sees Gregor (37). He is furious at Gregor and what he has become, yet he is happy because he believes that since he is not the man in the house with the job, he is stronger than his son. In this excerpt there is a contrast between the two sides of his father, the weak and the strong. He wants to show that he is strong, but the old side of him which is weak disables him from doing this completely.

            Gregor notices a huge difference in the mannerisms of his father which he say may be because “he has been so preoccupied by the new sensation of crawling around” (37). He wonders if this is actually the same father would used to “lie wearily, buried in his bed” (37). He father now appears strong and energetic in contrast to the man who was extremely slow when they used to take walks together. Gregor sees a huge difference in the way his father is dressed and the way he is standing. He wears a “high, stiff collared” jacket, but his “pronounced double chin unfurled” (37). He wears this uniform which creates pictures of a strong man going to work, yet his double chin which shows laziness is still pronounced. While Gregor is amazed at this transformation, the lazy father he used to know is still there inside.

            His father wants to fight Gregor because Gregor has become a burden to the family, yet he cannot muster himself to do that showing that he really has not undergone much of a transformation. Although he raises his feet to possibly kick Gregor “he most likely himself had no idea of what he intended to do” (37). As he continues to try to fight Gregor, his old self begins to overcome him. His father becomes extremely short of breath and “for every step his father took he had to execute a number of movements” (38). Although his father wants to fight Gregor and show his strength over the family, his weakness disables him from doing so. In the end he ends up throwing fruit at Gregor. Although the fruit has a detrimental effect on Gregor, his father only threw it weakly. It is a bit comical that he is throwing fruit because that shows absolutely no strength because any human could do that. He father did come close to killing Gregor with the fruit though, and his mother had to “beg[…] him to save Gregor’s life” (38). Although he wounded Gregor and exerts his strength over the family, his weakness that Gregor remembers does not go away.