German writer Franz Kafka's and American J.D. Salinger's respective masterpieces, The Metamorphosis (1915) and The Catcher in the Rye (1951), examine the universal themes of personal relationships within the context of painful change. ... When Gregor's manager visits, the morning of Gregor's metamorphosis, Gregor says, "Sir! ... Kafka adds humor and irony with the modifier "if possible," which only serves to exacerbate Gregor's pain at being totally abandoned. ... Though Metamorphosis and Catcher are distinctively different in style and in content, the...

• Word Count: 1076
• Approx Pages: 4
• Grade Level: Undergraduate

"Metamorphosis," by Franz Kafka and "Pastoralia," by George Saunders are two pieces of literature that seem to vary in many aspects. ... Gregor, suffers from physical transformation as one day he wakes up from his sleep to realize that he's a vermin (Kafka 1). ... When he wakes up one fine day only to see himself being transformed into a vermin, rather than worrying about his physical state the only thing he is worried about is how he could get to work, or what his employers would think of him (Kafka 1). ... Another theme which crosses both these texts is the behavioral changes that happe...

• Word Count: 949
• Approx Pages: 4
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: Undergraduate