Travelling salesman Gregor Samsa wakes up one morning to find that he has become a giant bug. The transformation affects the entire family—his father is angry, his mother is sad, and his sister wants him gone so she can continue her life as before. In the end it's not only Gregor that experiences great change, as his loved ones are forced to break out of their lethargy and find new purpose in their lives.

Exploring the ideas of transformation, identity, and family, Kafka's inspiration for his best-known work came from real life. As he wrote in his diary, "I am living with my family, the dearest people, and yet I am more estranged from them than from a stranger"—words that Gregor Samsa could have written himself.

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