Meeting Expectations for No Rewards

Though "hate" may be too strong of a word, I agree with expert 4. Gregor, who has sacrificed that last six or seven years and planned on the next six or seven was very rarely appreciated for his sacrifices. It almost became expected within the family that he would provide for them. With the stress in the workplace of unkind bosses and the pressure at home to provide for the entire family, there is no doubt to why Gregor turned into a bug. Gregor is never even given the opportunity to say what he really wants to do with his life. The one person in his family that Gregor can slightly connect with about their true ambitions is his sister. However, he even feels a responsibility with her to send her to the Conservatory.

With all of the stress and commitment in his life, there is no doubt that he did not think his life was perfect. But by no means does this mean he wanted to turn into a bug. As we see when Gregor’s boss came to his house to inquire about his absence from work, he is still desperate to help his family. Not understanding that none of the humans understand what he is saying, he gives a long speech to the boss about how dedicated he is to his work and his family and demanded another chance. Though he does not like his career or the pressure he faces, Gregor had accepted it and felt a great amount of guilt when he could no longer provide for the family.

His family also did not wish to have contact with him post bug-transformation. The one person that he would have expected to care for him and spend time with him was his sister. And she gradually began seeing Grogor less and less. Our first image of her was that she was caring for him and cleaning for him. But as time went on, and Gregor did not change back, she was mostly the one behind separating him from the family. First thrugh moving all of his furniture out of his room, then by using his room for storage, and finally by suggesting that the family finds a way to get rid of him. Even after the family members have to begin working, they do not acknowledge how hard he worked. They more than anything feel sorry for themselves because now they will have to do work.

I do not believe that his family “hates” him because that is a strong word, but I do however believe that he was unappreciated and under loved. Perhaps the transformation was not only a lesson for Gregor about how he should live his life the way he wishes too, but also for his family not to take him for granted. In the end, Gregor died for his family so that they would not have to care for him anymore and so he wouldn’t cause any more problems for them. This final sacrifice shows the family that their son really was inside the heart of the gigantic bug and that somehow they should have been more accepting and caring. In the end, Gregor could also not live for himself, because even as a bug, he felt the great expectations on his shoulders and ever good thing he meant to accomplish back fired. He and his family all learned a valuable lesson in the end, not to take life and help for granted (581).