The Metamorphosis was one of the few pieces of fiction Kafka published during his lifetime he never finished any of the full length novels he had written. All of Kafka's work was also banned in his home country of Czechoslovakia (now split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia) because of Kafka's preference for writing in German rather than Czech. The Metamorphosis was banned under both the Soviet and Nazi regimes, with the Soviet Union describing the story as 'decadent' and 'despairing'. Kafka intentionally decided not to name Gregor as a specific insect, wishing to emphasis the emotional impact of the change on Gregor rather than the physical aspects. Gregor is referred to in the original text as 'ungeziefer', which does not translate directly as 'insect' in English - its literal meaning is "unclean animal not suitable for sacrifice", leading to lots of speculation amongst readers as to what Gregor has been transformed into. The focus of the story is the sudden 'metamorphosis' of the lead character Gregor Samsa, a travelling salesman, into a unnamed insect-like creature. Since then, a number of translations have come into being - if you go into a library or bookshop, you're likely to find at least six different translations of the story, each with their own slight differences in language and phrasing. The novella's first translation into English appeared in the 1930's. It is Kafka's most well-known piece of work and is considered to be one of the most influential stories of the 20th century. The Metamorphosis, or ' Die Verwandlung' in Franz Kafka's native language German, was first published in 1915. Our next Evening Read-In is just around the corner (this very evening at 9pm - get your tea and biscuits and laptop charged up now to listen in) to get in the mood, here are a few facts that you may not already know about this Read-In's chosen story, The Metamorphosis.
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