270: Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis

In this latest edition of "shortcut to the classics," the boys review Czechvar Lager, then review The Metamorphosis.  Special guest Longinus joins the show to contribute his literary expertise.  After a very brief biography of Kafka, the boys review the characters, the basic plot, and the structure of the book, then delve into its possible meanings.  Gregor, the main character, wakes up one morning as a bug, with predictable but rather amusing consequences for his job and his family.  In some ways, the story sounds like something a 5th grader would dream up. But there are interesting layers of meaning in the text, and plenty to think about. Pigweed, Crowhill, and Longinus discuss a few possible interpretations of the story.