The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka

One morning, Gregor Samsa wakes from restless dreams to discover he has been transformed into a massive insect. Lying on his tough, armor-like back, he notices his rounded, segmented belly, barely covered by the slipping quilt. His thin, frail legs flail helplessly before his eyes, a stark contrast to his bulky new form.

With this strange, unsettling, and unexpectedly humorous opening, Franz Kafka introduces his iconic novella, *The Metamorphosis*. The story follows a young man who, after his shocking transformation into a beetle-like creature, becomes a source of shame for his family and a stranger in his own home—an emblem of alienation. Both darkly comic and profoundly poignant, *The Metamorphosis* explores themes of guilt, inadequacy, and isolation, cementing its status as a cornerstone of 20th-century literature. As W.H. Auden aptly remarked, "Kafka is important to us because his predicament is the predicament of modern man."