Metamorphosis: Tone

In Franz Kafka's Metamorphosis, tone is used heavily to reflect Gregor's human perspective and his reality of being a cockroach. Although Gregor is instantly transformed into a giant bug, his view of life and human feelings do not fade. Tone is used to show his life as a bug: in the beginning, Gregor was slightly optimistic because he's being taken care of by his brave sister, and he has hope that he will just wake up one morning and be human again.

Progressively through the story, the tone becomes more somber. Gregor had almost become abandoned and was saddened at the fact he could not provide his family money and send his sister to the Conservatory as he had promised. In between, the tone becomes hysterical when his human possessions are moved, and his mother faints. In the end, the tone is satirical: Gregor succumbs to his pain and dies, which sets his family free and allows them to move away. While imagery was a strong reflection of the tone, tone is what held the writing in the novel together.