Metamorphosis

Metamorphosis, first published in 1915, is the story of Gregor Samsa, a young traveling salesman who lives with his family and financially supports his parents and younger sister. One morning he awakes to discover that during the night he has been transformed into a horrible vermin. Although somewhat of a horror genre, the story is often very funny as Gregor, his family and those around him deal with their own transformations as a result of this odd predicament.

The analogies of this story are unending. The Metamorphosis has been stated to represent Gregor's personal alienation and the effect of his deadening job, the problems in his family and how the demands placed on him have forced him to become a terrible being and the alienation of aged or disabled individuals confined to a bedridden state of existence.

The Metamorphosis, though sometimes emotionally disturbing in its content, is an important and classic work to include in your listening library.