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Public Shaming In Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis

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In the "Metamorphosis" Kafka uses metaphors to show several ways that public shaming can lead to the harm of one’s self-esteem; eventually leading to complete isolation. Throughout the story Gregor was isolated from his social life, his family life, and his professional life. The amount of shame that Gregor encountered also led to the lack of communication between him and the members of his family. Although Gregor experienced extreme isolation and self-hate due to public shame, he is one of many people who deal with the pressure of society on a daily basis. The amount of shame and doubt is experienced by people in our society every day and has become somewhat of a norm. Three of the most recognized and publicly shamed people of our time are: Caitlyn Jenner, Kim Kardashian, and Monica Lewinski. Notice the three individuals named are women. Within society it is most common to see public shaming and scapegoating towards women. In the text “Metamorphosis”, the author Kafka was able to portray the unseen public shaming of a male. Kafka was efficient in relating the relevance of public shaming by objectifying the person Gregor was and the person he became. The objectiveness has played an important role in the text, as it serves as a barrier between Gregor and his family.
As you analyze the text further, you are able to recognize how Kafka …show more content…

Caitlyn Jenner encountered the isolation that Gregor experienced throughout most of the text. Kim Kardashian experienced the social perspective and pressure that Gregor experienced from his family and professional life. Monica Lewinski underwent the ultimate scapegoating like Gregor they were blamed for the actions and decisions of others. The amount of blame that both Gregor and Monica encountered led to their punishing isolation which ultimately lead to the abundance of

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