This blog post reflects on the meaning of humanity within a society dominated by science and technology, through Franz Kafka’s ‘The Metamorphosis’.
Waking up one morning, Gregor discovers he has become a bug. Transformed into a bug, Gregor finds himself unwelcome anywhere human hands reach, ultimately rejected even by his own family, becoming a true superfluous human. If one focuses solely on the grotesque ‘bug’ and takes the story lightly, it remains merely a bizarre novel. However, if we consider who Gregor might be in the society we live in, whether we are Gregor, or whether we are the people who reject Gregor, Kafka’s work becomes profound and weighty.
In a society of advanced science and technology where it’s proven impossible for a human to become a bug overnight, what does it mean to become a bug like Gregor? What does it signify to become an entity different from others, unable to communicate anywhere? To find the answer, we must look beyond the bug’s hideous exterior and observe the inner workings of a cold society driven by efficiency and money.
Science and technology, developed for efficiency and economy, enabled humans to work faster but demanded modern people sacrifice their humanity—and we gave it up far too easily. Communication technology allowed us to reach more people faster but robbed us of genuine human connection. Efficient technology enabled us to process the same amount of work faster, yet simultaneously created more complex and greater volumes of work. Advances in lighting and computer technology have enabled us to work later into the night. ‘Thanks’ to this, office workers can now become ‘efficient’ individuals who work in the office past 11 PM instead of spending time with their families. Furthermore, ‘thanks’ to the unimaginable progress in mobile phone technology, we can connect with hundreds of people on a small screen instead of focusing on the one person right in front of us. Without looking far, even now many young people spend precious hours in libraries mastering the vast and magnificent science and technology developed from the past. While embracing science and technology allowed us to gain efficiency and economy, it simultaneously imposed new shackles on our humanity.
Escaping the harsh side effects created by science and technology to reclaim our humanity means also giving up some of the convenience they provide. In a modern society that pursues efficiency and economy in everything, communicating solely in the language of science and technology, it means speaking the language of humanity alone. That is, transforming into a form different from the human ideal tailored to modern society. But precisely when we step back from science, technology, efficiency, and economy to recover our humanity, might we not become like Gregor, a bug within society?
In a company that functions like a giant machine, pursuing scientific efficiency and technological economy, when we refuse to be the most efficient part and reject overtime to find our humanity, we appear to our employer as an incommunicable insect. And if we lose our job and loaf around the house, we become an insect to our family. Moreover, when we look away from our phones for a few hours to escape the oppression of communication technology, acquaintances will criticize us for slow message replies. When this repeats, we become beings like Gregor, incapable of communication.
That is why we cannot transform. Fearing to become insects, we still blindly trust the convenience offered by science and technology. Under the banner of “technology that enhances human life,” our humanity itself remains unexpressed. While serving “science that guarantees a better tomorrow,” we fail to care for our individual lives. We cannot speak of humanity in any language other than science and technology.
Gregor sensed his life was wrong. He felt he must change his existence as a mere ‘function’—a company part, a formal family member. He likely strove to reclaim his humanity, seeking the human essence buried beneath the society of science and technology. Yet because of this, upon waking one morning from a restless dream, Gregor discovered people now regarded him as a hideous insect.
A hundred years after Gregor became an insect in Kafka’s novel, the meaning of individual humanity continues to fade amidst increasingly complex science and technology. To reclaim our humanity, we must undergo a metamorphosis. But after transforming, might we not wake the next morning to discover ourselves as insects? For us, who may go a day without speaking to another person but never a day without glancing at our phone screens, a metamorphosis that avoids becoming an insect still seems beyond our reach.
