Meet Franz Kafka

1
Meet Franz Kafka

• The Metamorphosis
• English 10

2
The Early Years

• Kafka was born in Prague to a middle class Jewish
  family on July 3, 1883.

• Kafka had a strained relationship with his
  overbearing father. Family conflicts became a
  common theme in Kafkas fiction.

3
Education

• Kafka showed an early interest in literature, but
  at the age of eighteen he attended the German
  University to study law.
• After graduating, he worked in a government
  insurance office
• This photo was taken in 1906,
• the year Kafka graduated
• from law school.

4
Kafkas Writing

• Kafkas stories feature
• bizarre situations and
• characters that are often
• lonely and searching for
• meaning.

• The Metamorphosis was one of Kafkas few works
  published during his lifetime.

5
A few important facts

• Like Gregor, the main character in The
  Metamorphosis, Kafka had a strenuous job and
  lived at home with his parents.
• Kafka was a minority in his society
• He was Jewish in a predominately Christian part
  of the world, and his family spoke German,
  whereas the official language of Prague was Czech.

6
The Metamorphosis

• The Metamorphosis is generally categorized as a
  novella.
• A novella is longer and more complex than a
  short story, but has a simpler, shorter plot line
  than a novel.
• The novella usually focuses on fewer characters
  and a single chain of events that takes place in
  a short period of time.

7
What is a metamorphosis?

• According to Merriam-Webster dictionary
• A change of physical form, structure or
  substance.
• A fundamental change in form and often habits of
  an animal accompanying the transformation of a
  larva into an adult.

8
A man wakes up as a giant bug

• The Metamorphosis is about Gregor Samsa who
  awakes one morning turned into an insect-like
  creature and how this transformation affects
  those around him.
• As you read this puzzling novella, keep in mind
  that literature scholars and critics have argued
  for centuries about what exactly it means.

9
Lets Review!

• What is Kafkas first name?
• Franz
• The Metamorphosis is categorized as what type of
  fiction?
• Novella
• True or false? Kafka studied literature in
  college.
• False. He studied law.

10

• True or False The Metamorphosis was published
  during Kafkas lifetime.
• True
• What does metamorphosis mean?
• A change of physical form, structure or
  substance transformation.
• What language did Kafka speak and write in?
• German