Inferencing
"'Oh, God,' he thought, 'what a strenuous career it is that I've chosen!'"
Why did Samsa turn into a bug?
Why does Samsa keep his job?
He needs to support his parents
"One morning, when Gregor Samsa woke from troubled dreams, he found himself transformed in his bed into a horrible vermin."
Vermin
bugs / pests
What is a main theme of Kafka's Metamorphosis?
That workers are undervalued / overworked etc
What worries Gregor most about his transformation?
That he won't be able to get up and go to work
As Gregor lies in bed, he thinks about how his pains always turned out to be imaginary? What can we infer Gregor thinks about his transformation?
That it isn't real
How does Samsa's boss treat him?
Very badly, etc.
"And it's a funny sort of business to be sitting up there at your desk, talking down at your subordinates from up there..."
Subordinates
persons of a lower rank or under another's authority
How does Samsa's transformation support the theme?
Shows how society treats him / how he feels like a bug
How does Gregor initially react to being a bug?
Try to go back to sleep / roll over
Based on how everyone reacts when they see Gregor at the end, we can infer that...
Gregor really is a bug!
What can we infer about Gregor if we know he hasn't taken a sick day in 15 years?
He's a very hard worker
"At the other side door his sister came plaintively: 'Gregor? Aren't you well?'
Plaintively
sadly
How does the depiction of the boss support the theme?
He is very big and mean
What is Gregor's job?
Traveling salesman
When Gregor wakes up and says "What happened?" we can infer that he...
Doesn't realize he's turned into a bug or doesn't know why
What are the men who visit Gregor at the end like?
Mean, authoritative, etc.
"'I'm ready now,' making an effort to remove all the strangeness from his voice by enunciating very carefully..."
Enunciate
pronounce clearly
How does the clock / hourglass imagery support the theme?
Shows Gregor's preoccupation with time and how it rules his life
What do other salesmen do that he cannot do?
Relax / eat breakfast
What can we infer about Gregor's plan to "get up, get dressed, and most important, have a good breakfast"?
That he doesn't realize he's a bug or that he will fail at the plan
Kuper's use of clocks/hourglasses show that Gregor is...
Obsessed with time
Strenuous
difficult
What is a direct quote from the text that demonstrates the theme?
***
How long does Gregor think it will take him before he can quit?
5-6 years