Reflection on Siddhartha Chapters 1-6

As I first began to read Siddhartha I was intrigued by the willpower of Siddhartha, and how he refused to follow popular doctrines, and focus his energy on connecting with his inner self. Siddhartha was born a Brahmins's son, and had many expectations to follow. "Joy leaped into his father's heart at the thought of his son, this studious boy with his thirst for knowledge; he envisioned him growing up to be a great wise man and priest, a prince among Brahmins" (Hesse 3-4). Siddhartha's father's wish was that he will be successful, though Siddhartha still feels as though he is missing something. He is not reaching full potential with the current instruction his has been given. He believes that he can teach himself. He already knows how influential he can be from his experiences with Govinda, who practically worships him. "His mind was not content, his soul not at peace, his heart restless" (Hesse 5). Siddhartha began to realize that knowledge isn't everything, books are great but they did nothing in finding peace within yourself. "...but was there value in knowing all these things without knowing the One, the Only thing, that which was important above all else, that was indeed, the sole matter of importance" (Hesse 6). This "One and only thing" was inner self and essence that could radiate off of someone.

            One of the biggest struggles in this novel is the mistake of constant soul searching. Govinda feels that he always needs to follow the best doctrine, and do everything "by the book". Siddhartha has to let Govinda go to find himself in the teachings of Buddha, instead of following him. This was a very selfless move because Govinda loved Siddhartha so much that it would be more of a loss to him because he is losing his lifelong companion. "Be satisfied, Govinfa! The teachings of the Sublime One are excellent; how could I find an error in them?" (Hesse 28). In this line Siddhartha is basically saying that one person can find Buddha's teachings great and others may not have the same reaction. He wants him to go because it will benefit Govinda, and lead him closer to reaching nirvana. "I won't let my life and my thought begin with Atman and the world's sorrows. No more killing myself, no more chopping myself into bits in the hope of finding a secret hidden among the debris. I will no longer follow Yoga- Veda, or Atharva- Veda, or the ascetics, or any other doctrine. I'll be my own teacher, my own pupil. I'll study myself, learn the secret that is Siddhartha" (Hesse 35). Once Siddhartha will find this secret to himself, it will open up more doors and allow himself to see the world with fresh eyes. Siddhartha has much more self discovering to come though, for now he is on the right track. 

Kafka's Metaphor

The Metamorphosis, written by Franz Kafka is a short story that profiles Gregor Samsa. Throughout the story there are hints of existentialism, modernism, vampirism, and communism. Though existentialism is most prominent. From the existentialist view every action that a person commits has a consequence. The story is a metaphor for life in general. The main idea of the story is to go through life without the influence of modern society and understand the consequences of actions. Gregor in The Metamorphosis goes through life under the spell of his manager who symbolizes corporate hell in the modern world. Gregor is isolated from his family and disconnects with everyone that he knows for his demanding job. This is the classic example of people in society today so it is very important to go through life without regrets and without constant pressure and deadlines. Kafka purposely made Gregor a selfless, hardworking man that gets handed a large burden, and becomes stuck with a terrible spell. This is ironic because of how unfair life is, sometimes the worst things happen to the best people therefore it is important to live life the fullest because the future is dark and questionable. And there is always a repercussion for any action, whether that be good or bad.

Existentialism is philosophical thinking that begins with the human subject. One of the first existential philosophers Soren Kierkegaard, suggested that each person is responsible for giving meaning to life and living it with passion.  For example, Gregor continued to work for his family to pay off debt. "Day in, day out, on the road. The stresses of selling are much greater than the actual work going on at head office, and, in addition to that, I still have to cope with the problems of travelling, the worries about train connections, irregular bad food, temporary and constantly changing human relationships, which never come from the heart. To hell with it all!” (Kafka 1). Gregor has hit rock bottom with his work load, and driven himself to the ground. Soon his outsides will match his distraught insides, in reaction to the less than glamorous life that he has lived thus far.  Gregor's work has made him into a repulsive being who has become unable to communicate with his family. Gregor allowed his problems to build up and become intolerable. "What Kafka seems able to do better than just about anyone else is to orchestrate the pressure's increase in such a way that it becomes intolerable at the precise instant it is released" (Laughing With Kafka 1). Gregor had been living this life that was hazardous to his own state of mind, his work load continued to build up until one day everything came full circle and he became a bug in reaction to his work overload. Towards the end of the story Gregor has a revelation, and realizes that without work he has nothing to identify himself with. " 'What now?' Gregor asked himself and looked around him in the darkness" (Kafka 23). This is a very existential statement made by Gregor. He is asking himself what to do with life now, though there is nothing left. He has shut completely down, with the rotten apple lodged in his back that represents the "rotten knowledge that was once there. All of these examples again represent the consequence of all actions.

           
Acts of communion have notoriously brought people together throughout all of time. Sharing food or giving communion is often looked at as a religious or a sacred act.  A person usually shares food with a person that they can trust. "Two people are at dinner and a third comes up, quite unwished for, and one or more of the first two refuse to eat. They place their napkins on their plates, or say something about losing their appetite, or simply get up and walk away. Immediately we know what they think about the interloper." (How to Read Literature like a Professor 'Nice to Eat with You: Acts of Communion' 11). This statement relates back to how Crete would exclusively give food to Gregor, and his parents wanted nothing to do with it. This food that Crete would give to Gregor was often rotten, and leftover from the previous night. " There were old half-rotten vegetables, bones from the evening meal, covered with a white sauce which had almost solidified, some raisins and almonds, cheese which Gregor had declared inedible two days earlier, a slice of dry bread, a slice with butter, and a slice of salted bread smeared with butter" (Kafka 10). This rotten food, which was the only food available for Gregor, was slowing aiding in the decay of his body. This goes to show that food that is originally supposed to nourish the human body can also decay it and destroy it. The rotten food that Gregor is forced to eat is symbolic of the processed foods that society has "forced" onto the lower income people that perhaps cannot afford to purchase organic or healthy food. " Specifically, Tom and his lady friend, Mrs. Waters, dine at an inn, chomping, gnawing, sucking on bones, licking fingers; a more leering, slurping, groaning, and, in short, sexual meal has never been consumed. While it doesn’t feel particularly important thematically and, moreover, it’s as far from traditional notions of communion as we can get, it nevertheless constitutes a shared experience. What else is the eating about in that scene except consuming the other’s body? Think of it as a consuming desire" (How to Read Literature like a Professor 'Nice to Eat with You: Acts of Communion' 10). The way in which communion is consumed is also symbolic and has an underlying meaning. Just like how Gregor refuses to eat in front of his sister, this means that he obviously does not trust her enough. He would also eat his meals very fast which symbolized his lack of enjoyment of the food, because food is one of the greatest pleasures in life.

           
Vampirism includes characteristics like selfishness, exploitation and the refusal to accept the natural being of others. All of these characteristics explain Gregor's fathers attitude towards Gregor. "That’s pretty much what the vampire does, after all. He wakes up in the morning – actually the evening, now that I think about it – and says something like, “In order to remain undead, I must steal the life force of someone whose fate matters less to me than my own" (How to Read Literature like a Professor 'Nice to Eat with You: Acts of Vampirism' 16). Gregor's father snatches Gregor's potential for a career from him, and forces him to work in order to pay off his own personal debt. He treats Gregor like a peasant, unworthy of his attention or any recognition inside his own home. Modernism in the metamorphosis plays a very large role. Gregor's everyday life has a Modernists concern with the alienating effects of modern society. A person can easily be trapped if they don't change direction in their life for the better. Just like how Gregor never questioned or traveled different direction away from his parents. Gregor was likely sick for a long time though Gregor's parents didn't realize until later on. " "Alas," said the mouse, "the world is growing smaller every day. At the beginning it was so big that I was afraid, I kept running and running, and I was glad when at last I saw walls far away to the right and left, but these long walls have narrowed so quickly that I am in the last chamber already, and there in the corner stands the trap that I must run into," "You only need to change your direction," said the cat, and ate it up" (Laughing with Kafka 1). This quote is suggesting that if a person doesn't change direction in life they will eventually end up consumed by modernist society, just like Gregor. Humor in the Metamorphosis is very hard to understand because it is so blunt. It is definitely not vulgar like most humor in modern societies, therefore that is why most people have a hard time understanding it. " There's no recursive word-play or verbal stunt-pilotry, little in the way of wisecracks or mordant lampoon. There is no body-function humor in Kafka, nor sexual entendre, nor stylized attempts to rebel by offending convention "(Laughing with Kafka 2). Kafka uses more underlying irony than anything throughout the story which aids in the complexity of the story.

The Metamorphosis helps to explain some of the disconnects in modern day society. It profiles Gregor as the hardworking man who unfortunately gets dealt some unlucky cards. This is a metaphor for life in general, as life never plays out the way that a person expects it to. Kafka uses various techniques such as existential ideas that help to explain that a person shall always see repercussions for their actions throughout life. Kafka makes horrible things happen to Gregor so the reader can learn from them and not make the same mistakes again. It is most important to not allow existential and modernist views shape a person's life because they could end up running in one direction for ages without turning back, trapping themselves in a hole that is very difficult to come out of before it becomes too late. 

Reflections on Foster

David C. Foster Wallace was a very interesting man. He had a very different view on society and how literature is interpreted in today's world. I think that his view on acts of communion were very interesting. He believes that eating a meal together symbolizes people coming together and trust within that unit. People will only eat together if they trust each other. "Here’s the thing to remember about communions of all kinds: in the real world, breaking bread
together is an act of sharing and peace, since if you’re breaking bread you’re not breaking heads" (Foster 2). I can relate this idea back to metamorphosis where Gregor's sister always insisted on feeding Gregor, it was a symbol of trust and confidence though because she gave Gregor the left over food it was a sign of the little importance Gregor held in the family. "Two people are at dinner and a third comes up, quite unwished for, and one or more of the first two refuse to eat. They place their napkins on their plates, or say something about losing their appetite, or simply get up and walk away. Immediately we know what they think about the interloper" (Foster 8). Eatting together is a sacred thing therefore we should treat it as that, this is why eatting has such a large impact on literature.

The next thing that Foster talks about is acts of vampirism. "It just goes to show
that not all eating that happens in literature is friendly. Not only that, it doesn’t even always look like eating. Beyond here there be monsters" (Foster 12). In the metamorphosis Gregor didn't always eat with care, sometimes he wasn't even looked at when he ate and other times he was given the rotten leftovers symbolizing his position in his family. "So vampirism isn’t about vampires? Oh, it is. It is. But it’s also about things other than literal vampirism: selfishness, exploitation, a refusal to respect the autonomy of other people, just for starters. We’ll return to this list a bit later on" (Foster 15). Refusal to accept the annatomy of others was another popular idea in the metamorphosis. Gregor was looked at as nemesis and not given the time of day because of his size and him being a bug. This showed Gregor's families selfishness and respectfulness in general.

Metamorphosis Reflection

Gregor is the only person in his family that is hard-working, or that has any sense of work ethic. All he wants to do is please his family so they can live a comfortable life. "It struck him how easily it would be if someone could come to his aid" (Kafka 3). This shows how incredibly lazy his own family is, and how uncomfortable Gregor is with asking them for assistance of any kind. It is a luxury to have a servant girl, they could be using that extra money to pay off their debt but instead they use it for their own selfish good. But he has been isolating himself from his family for all of this time that it is not of Gregor's nature to ask for help in a situation like this. Some people think that Gregor dug himself into this hole, and it is up to him to move on from his family, though others think that he is a selfless person. "Must the manager himself come, and in the process must it be demonstrated to the entire innocent family that the investigation of this suspicious circumstance could be entrusted only to the intelligence of the manager?" (Kafka 4). At this moment in the story Gregor still looks to his family as helpless and in need of his economical assistance. He has yet to question their life style, and that is what makes Gregor such a noble, genuine person.

After a certain amount of time where Gregor became less and less useful to his family, he became more of an after thought. And he was no longer understood by anyone. "No request of Gregor's was of any use; no request would even be understood. No matter how willing he was to turn his head respectfully his father just stomped all the harder with his feet" (Kafka 8). Gregor cannot communicate with others because he is of a different mindset than his arrogant family. This alienation (a popular existential theme) is profiled throughout the story. "For instance, he cut out a small frame over the course of two or three evenings. You’d be amazed how pretty it is. It’s hanging right inside the room. You’ll see it immediately, as soon as Gregor opens the door. Anyway, I’m happy that you’re here, Mr. Manager. By ourselves, we would never have

made Gregor open the door. He’s so stubborn, and he’s certainly not well, although he denied that this morning" (Kafka 4). His entire family is extremely oblivious to the fact that Gregor is miserable in his own little "society" of his room. He is separating himself from the rest of the world. 

The Metamorphosis

How Gregor's family views money/ wealth.

Throughout the story there is a constant connection with the idea of wealth and being rich. This idea of wealth is more important to Gregor's mother and father than it is to anyone else in the story. "Gregor later earned so much money that he was in a position to bear the expenses of the entire family, costs which he, in fact, did bear. They had become quite accustomed to it, both the family and Gregor as well. They took the money with thanks, and he happily surrendered it, but a special warmth was no longer present"(Kafka 12). In this case money bought the family status, without it they felt incomplete. Once Gregor was deformed into a bug he became less important and no longer useful to his family. “ 'What a demanding job I’ve chosen! Day in, day out, on the road. The stresses of selling are much greater than the actual work going on at head office, and, in addition to that, I still have to cope with the problems of travelling, the worries about train connections, irregular bad food, temporary and constantly changing human relationships, which never come from the heart' " (Kafka 1). His family has forced him into this job with the added stress of paying off his fathers debt. It is torture for Gregor and not something that he enjoys. His father is giving his own problems to someone else to deal with. "Once I’ve got together the money to pay off my parents’ debt to him—that should take another five or six years—I’ll do it for sure" (Kafka 1).
Gregor is a burden to his family until he pays off his fathers debt so he can continue to lead a lavish life style. Gregor has in a way put his own life and freedom at a hault in order to serve his family. Maybe Gregor was turned into a bug not to punish Gregor but to punish his own father, for now he can no longer rely on his son financially.

Gregor's Isolation and connection to his bedroom.

From the begining Gregor isolates himself from all means of life. He lives in a small bedroom and only separates himself from his house when he is at work. His family in many ways contributes to his isolation. "When he had completed turning around, he immediately began to wander straight back. He was astonished at the great distance which separated him from his room and did not understand in the least how in his weakness he had covered the same
distance a short time before, almost without noticing it" (Kafka 24). Gregor feels a connection to his bedroom, it is somewhere he can go and be safe, away from the threats of his father, for the most part. It is the familiarity of his bedroom which makes him feel so comfortable. "But the high, open room, in which he was compelled to lie flat on the floor, made him anxious, without his being able to figure out the reason, for he had lived in the room for five years" (Kafka 10). As Gregor became less useful to his family, he began to feel more and more like a guest in his own home. It was more of a privilege for him to stay there. So he went to his bedroom to escape from the pressure and sometimes connect and speak with his sister which was very much to be kept a secret from his father. "...the father heaped reproaches on the mother that she had not left the cleaning of Gregor’s room to the sister and, turning to his left, he shouted at the sister that
she would no longer be allowed to clean Gregor’s room ever again. The sister, shaken by her crying fit, pounded on the table with her tiny fists, and Gregor hissed at all this, angry that no one thought about shutting the door and sparing him the sight of this commotion" (Kafka 20). Gregor's father does not want Gregor to be in contact with anyone, not even his own sister. He is ashamed at the sight of him and feels that he should stay alone in his bedroom without any outside connections. Gregor has little connection with his own family so he has developed a connection with the unknown. Such as framing pictures of strangers because he doesn't have anyone else to connect with.

 One other thing that I noticed in the story was how people can adapt to maybe unnatural or unaccepted things. Just like how Gregors family adapted to their lavish style of living. An outsider looking in might say that their life is extravagant though they might not see it themselves because they have been living the same way for so long they don't know the difference. Gregor's father was extremely conceded and relied on others to support him financially, therefore they began to rely on Gregor for support and after a while they stopped seeing realistically how they were abusing Gregor. Towards the end of the story Gregor is no longer so stressed out about being a bug because he has adapted to it, and learned to live with it. It seems to me that at the end of story Gregor is no longer over thinking every single move he makes and is more at ease with his current state of being a bug.