Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka and The Outsider by Albert Cammus Essay Example

expresses:

"All he thinks about is work!"

Gregor's life revolves around work. He has the burden of supporting his whole family, even though they are capable of working but refuse to do so, taking advantage of Gregor's efforts. Sadly, his financial contributions are not valued.

Both the family and Gregor had recently adjusted to the situation.

Despite living comfortably, Gregor's family burdens him with the entire workload without any assistance. He endures this without complaint and remains committed to a job he does not enjoy. Furthermore, he must work an extra six years to repay his parents' debt to the company. Despite his dissatisfaction, quitting is not an option for him.

"I wish I didn't have to engage in such an exhausting job!"

Because of his job demands, he lacks a social life and any friends or hobbies. In his free time, he reads the newspaper and sometimes does woodwork. Metaphorically speaking, he lives like a cockroach, adopting an insect-like lifestyle. Unlike Mersault in "The Outsider," Gregor transforms into an insect due to his strict conformity to societal norms.

Mersault chooses to defy societal norms and becomes an outcast, prioritizing his own desires and thoughts over the expectations imposed by society. One instance that exemplifies this is his behavior at his mother's funeral. During the trial, he is accused of not conforming to societal expectations during the ceremony. Instead of grieving, Mersault refrains from shedding tears and instead smokes, drinks coffee, and even takes a nap.

"I wanted to smoke a cigarette but hesitated about whether it was appropriate to do so in front of my mother.

After careful consideration, I decided that it wasn't significant."

Meursault disregards societal expectations and only responds to his own needs. Society expects him to show emotion, be respectful towards his mother, and view the dead body, but he chooses not to do any of these things simply because he doesn't want to. As a result, society judges him as an evil person who lacks emotions and doesn't care about his mother's death. Meursault fails to comprehend the social consequences of his actions. His behavior towards society is also evident in his relationship with Marie. Although he likes her and enjoys her company, he doesn't behave like most people by lying to please her when she asks important questions according to society's standards. For instance, when Marie asks him if he loved her, Meursault responds:

"I informed her that it held no significance, but personally, I doubted it"

Instead of avoiding hurting Marie`s feelings and pleasing her with lies, he speaks openly and does not lie. This contrasts heavily with Gregor's reactions. Gregor is constantly lying to please people and very few times he speaks openly. He is always pushed around by people because Gregor fails to impose authority and speak his mind of what he thinks is wrong. We can take as an example his reaction when the chief Clerk comes to look for him when he is late to work. He is threatened to be fired, and he has never been late to work before. Still, he apologizes and intends to please the chief Clerk using excuses.

"My intention was to depart on the train scheduled for eight o'clock."