VLADIMIR NABOKOV
365
tidiness, and a ll the odds and ends which they do no t need go into
Gregor's room. T hi s is exac tl y the op pos ite to wha t had been happen–
ing in the furniture scene o f pa rt two, scene seven , where there had been
an a ttemp t to move everything out of G regor's room . T hen we had the
ebb of the furnitu re, now the return fl ow, the jetsam washed back, a ll
kinds o f junk pouring in ; and cu r io usly enough G rego r, though a very
sick beetle-the app le wound is fes tering, and he is sta rving-finds
some bee tl e p leasure in craw ling among a ll tha t dusty rubbish. In thi s
fifth scene o f part three where a ll the changes come, the a ltera tion in
the famil y mea ls is dep ic ted . T he mec hanica l movement of the bea rded
automa tons is ma tched by the automa tic reaction o f the Sam sas. The
lodgers " set themse lves a t the top end o f the table where formerl y
Gregor and his fa ther and mo ther had ea ten their mea ls, unfo lded their
napkins a nd took knife and fo rk in hand. At once his mo ther a ppeared
in the other doorway with a dish o f mea t a nd close behind her his sister
with a di sh o f pota toes piled high . T he food steamed w ith a thick
vapor. T he lodgers bent over the food se t befo re them as if to scrutinize
it before ea ting, in fac t the ma n in the middle, who seemed to pass for
an author ity w ith the o ther two, cut a piece o f mea t as it lay on the dish ,
obviously to discover if it we re tender or should be sent back to the
kitchen . He showed sa ti sfac tio n , and G regor's mo ther and sister, who
had been wa tching anxio usly, brea thed free ly a nd began to smile."
Gregor's keen envio us interes t in la rge fee t will be reca ll ed ; now
toothl ess G regor is a lso interes ted in tee th. " It seemed rema rkable to
Gregor tha t among the va rio us no ises coming from the ta ble he could
always distinguish the sound of their mas tica ting tee th , as if this were a
sign to Gregor tha t one needed tee th in order to ea t, and tha t with
too thless jaws even o f the fin es t ma ke one could do no thing. 'I'm
hungry enough ,' sa id Gregor sadly to himse lf, 'but no t for tha t kind o f
food. How these lodgers a re stuffing themse lves, and here am I dying o f
starva tion !"
Scene VI:
In thi s grea t music scene the lodgers have hea rd Grete
play ing the vio lin in the kitchen, a nd in automa tic reac tion to the
entertainment va lue o f mu sic they sugges t tha t she play for them. The
three roomers and the th ree Samsas ga ther in the living room .
Without wishing to a ntagoni ze lovers o f music, I do wish to po int
out tha t taken in a genera l sense music, as perceived by its con sumers,
belongs to a more p rimiti ve, more anima l fo rm in the sca le o f a rts than
literature or pa inting. I a m ta king music as a whole, not in terms of
individua l crea tion , imag ina tion , and composition , all o f which of
course riva l the a rt of litera ture and pa inting, but in terms of the
