1.) This morning I woke up, stark clothed, birds were chirping, bugs were bugging, and bacon was beckoning (baconing?).
2.) This morning I woke up stark....clothed. the birds were, chirping. The bugs, bugging and bacon? was beckoning. baconing.
3.) This morning I woke up stark clothed birds chirping bugs bugging and bacon BECKONING. (baconing!!)
Did you notice a significant difference between the mood and message of these 3 sentences? Are you making psychoanalytic postulations about my mental state based on my diction? If so, this may be the post for you. Actually i'm assuming that all people that read this blog have probably done the same thing so this blog post is definitely for you. Unless of course someone from the future stumbles upon this blog post in the mass ruins of the internet after the cloud gets too heavy with data and slams into the earth wiping out all life as we know it. Have you started your psycho analysis yet? that last statement was a good place to start.
Moving on:
Now for the meat, upon analyzing the different English iterations of the sentence:
Als Gregor Samsa eines Morgens aus unruhigen Träumen erwachte, fand er sich in seinem Bett zu einem ungeheuren Ungeziefer verwandelt.
OR (In English)
As Gregor Samsa awoke (woke) one morning from uneasy (agitated, Troubled) dream(s) he found himself transformed in his bed (No bed) into a gigantic (Giant, Enormous, monstrous) insect (Bug, Vermin)
ANALYSIS:
1.) Uneasy vs troubled vs agitated
Uneasy: I found the use of the term uneasy gives off the vibe of Gregor having a bigger problem, but he is disconnected from it. The issue is a world issue or a societal issue (Like stop signs or crosswalks, whats the deal with those things)
Troubled: is a word that makes it seem as if Gregor has a problem with something in his life, something he is tossing and turning over that he is connected to.
Agitated: indicates that hes frustrated with something and just is clenching his fists over this event.
These 3 words give you 3 different impressions as to what Gregor is like.
2.) Bug vs Insect vs Vermin
Bug: When you picture a bug, you picture a sort of cartoon image, drawn rather silly and lightheartedly, and sort of comedically.
Insect: When you picture an insect, you picture a massive creature with bristling, hairy legs chirping away with its pincers and antennae twitching. menacingly. Oh lord just imagine a massive cockroach in your bed. sort of like that orkin commercial with the insects knocking on your front door trying to get in your house.
Vermin: Vermin brings upon a far more striking and ominous image, like a massive dark rat scheming to lick your feet while youre sleeping. the word is also a mood word and it gives you an idea that he didnt literally "turn" into something. Its just a metaphor for his self hatred and body image.
3.) Bed vs No Bed
Bed: With the mention of bed, its as if Gregor woke up immediately from his dream and immediately realized that hed became this creature overnight. OR he was just in bed contemplating about life and was just disguisted with himself. a metaphorical "Creature"
No Bed: Without the mention of a bed, i can just imagine gregor getting up and doing all of his regular morning routines, having cereal, making the coffee, slipping the slippers on, brushing the teeth, trimming the nails, toasting the toast (not necessairily in that order) and then finally stepping out of the shower, and rubbing the mist off of the mirror and realizing he had transformed into a massive creature! (Cue Gregors scream). This could also be a sign of the absurd as he does this same monotonous, routine every. single. day.
4.) Giant vs Enormous vs Gigantic vs Monstrous
Giant: Giant is a word that gives the image of something fictional, as if from a childrens book or a novel.
Enormous: The word enormous is a word that is reserved for over the top, dinner stories told by your Dad. I can just see someone waving their hands about in an attempt to try and create the image to their audience.
Gigantic: Gigantic is a scientific, almost "clinical" description. When you describe something as gigantic, i can see a pulsating tumor, growing in size.
Monstrous: This is a rather terrifying description for something, probably a massive creature thats going around devouring babies and spewing racial epithets whilst painting phallic images. (Vulgar)
After my detailed, highly objective analysis it seems that the different word choices can make it seem as if Gregor either turned into an actual creature, to whatever degree of horror or shock value the words imply. OR He metaphorically turned into a creature, meaning he just woke up and found himself disgusting and has absolutely poor self-image of himself.
These two different interpretations make for two very different reads. One that is rather fictional and shock based, and another that is rather philosophical about self loathing and body image.
As for book interpretations in general, Unless you can ask the actual author for the definition in English (or whatever language you are translating into) this could be a huge problem. I personally think that the multiple attempts at interpretating the book makes for a much more diverse read. Instead of one form of the book there are now multiple, all with their own meanings. This could be a brilliant concept for movie adaptions of books, that is different based upon which interpretation you read. (Also if you are still reading, thank you for sticking it through my mad ramblings.)
Congratulations! You made it to the end!
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