The Metamorphosis

The Metamorphosis is a novella by Franz Kafka, written in German and first published in 1915. It follows Gregor Samsa, whose unexplained transformation into a monstrous insect-like creature makes communication with his family increasingly difficult.

This work tells the story of a salesman who wakes one morning to find himself inexplicably transformed into an enormous insect.

Gregor is a young traveling salesman whose income supports his parents and sister. But suddenly, after the "metamorphosis", he wakes up transformed into a huge insect-like creature. This prevents him from continuing to work and forces the rest of his family to work in order to survive. His strange situation and the rejection he faces from those around him lead him to seclude himself and isolate himself socially.

Although its original title in German, Die Verwandlung, translates as "the transformation", in English it was decided to translate it as "metamorphosis".

This edition of The Metamorphosis is based on David Wyllie's translation.