The Bullying Epidemic

Franz Kafka was a 20th-century absurd novelist. Franz Kafka struggled with the effects bullying can have on a person and would bring light to this subject in a number of his writings. In one of Kafka’s novels, “The Metamorphosis” he writes “And now he saw him, nearest the door, pressing his hand over his mouth and moving slowly back, as if an invisible constant force was pushing him away” (Kafka). Kafka depicts that the feeling of “constant force” that is pushing him back is the weight he carries from feeling different and isolating himself from those around him because of the effects of bullying. In Franz Kafka's writings, it is indicated that Kafka suffered from social anxiety, as well as struggled with extremely self-perception as well as low self-esteem, which are indicators that an individual has suffered or suffers from the effects of bullying. Considering how much evidence there was in Franz Kafka’s writing to suggest he was impacted by the effects of bullying which would cause damage to his self-perception, Franz Kafka would have felt that bullying is a social epidemic that should be stopped for the greater good. In Franz Kafka’s novels, it was clear Kafka faced the impacts of bullying in his life and how that took a toll on him and the people he holds dear to him. Today, given how Franz Kafka suffered from the ramifications of bullying, Franz Kafka would have certainly agreed on how much bullying can affect how individuals view themselves and lose their sense of identity to bullying, for this, Kafka would have acknowledged bullying as a social epidemic. There were pretty strong arguments to suggest Franz Kafka suffered from bullying. In a diary from 1910, Franz Kafka opened up about being ridiculed for his height. Upon hearing this, it would create an insecurity for Kafka, that he would not be able to shake off as he would go on to state “this imperfection is not congenital and therefore so much the more painful to bear” (Kafka). Awful comments like these would tarnish Franz Kafka’s self-esteem and would lead him down a nasty path of self-hatred, self-pity and the feeling of not feeling worthy. Bullying can lead to individuals suffering from low self-esteem and this can cause a victim of bullying to view themselves in a negative way. Franz Kafka made it known in his writings that he was an individual who suffered from low self-esteem and would not view himself lightly. In the novel The Metamorphosis, Franz Kafka writes about a man named Gregor Samsa, an overworked salesman who magically transforms into an insect. Scared at first because he would not be able to live his normal life and provide for his family, Gregor Samsa slowly starts to get used to his life as an insect as he relieves himself from all responsibilities and pressure he once had, having to provide for his family and himself (Kafka). Soon his family no longer wants Gregor at home, as they are afraid of him, and he is afraid people will see him. Furthermore, he would state that at times he would feel that he could not make anyone “understand what is happening inside me. I cannot even explain it to myself.” (Kafka), depicting his feeling of being lost, not truly knowing his own identity and depicting poor self-esteem. Kafka’s writings would also provide that his low self-perception would lead to a fear of not being liked, which in return, would cause him to feel anxious in fear, which aligns with the symptoms individuals show when affected by the ramifications and malice actions of bullying. Franz Kafka made it very evident in his writings that he was an individual that suffered from anxiety, more specifically social anxiety. "Bullying victimization was also related to social anxiety through shame via self-esteem" (Wu 1). As a result of people taunting Franz Kafka’s appearance or aspects of his person as a whole, this would ultimately result in Kafka’s developing social anxiety. Franz Kafka touches more on this in his novel, The Metamorphosis, where signs can be depicted in his novel about his struggles living with social anxiety and trying to work through it day by day. Franz Kafka speaks about how he is “Incapable of living with people, of speaking. Complete immersion in myself, thinking of myself. Apathetic, witless, fearful. I have nothing to say to anyone — never.” (Kafka). Kafka goes on to state that “Nervous states of the worst sort of control me without pause” (Kafka 1), these examples resemble how critical Franz Kafka had fallen to his social anxiety, how Kafka is seen as not willing to socialize and interact with anybody because of his fear and nervous state, all clear signs of bigger problems that are rooted from bullying. According to the National Institute of Mental Health social anxiety can be best described as a “persistent fear of one or more social performance or the possible scrutiny of others” (Social Anxiety Disorder – NIMH 1). This description of social anxiety aligns very well with what Franz Kafka's would touch on in his writings. Kafka's inability to not able or wanting to talk to others out of fear or his nervous state are only a few common characteristics that are associated with individuals who suffer from social anxiety, which can be rooted in bullying. Franz Kafka would have agreed that bullying is a social epidemic. Kafka would show clear signs in his short stories, and even novels of being bullied and showed how those actions affected him as a person and how bullying would take a toll on him later down in life. Even though in many of his writings, Kafka would not make a stance on such issue, he would have agreed that bullying should not be tolerated and can lead to very destructive behavior, whether through negative self-perceptions or even causing more underlying problems like social anxiety or damaging your low self-esteem.  Kafka’s writings show us insight on how an individual can fall into a dark place quickly with such malice actions from others.  

 

Works Cited Page  

“Social Anxiety Disorder.” National Institute of Mental Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/social-anxiety-disorder. “The Metamorphosis Quotes by Franz Kafka.” Goodreads, Goodreads, https://www.goodreads.com/work/quotes/2373750-die-verwandlung. University of Pennsylvania - School of Arts & Sciences | School of Arts ... https://www.sas.upenn.edu/~cavitch/pdf-library/Kafka_Metamorphosis.pdf. Wu, Xinyue, et al. “Bullying Victimization and Adolescents' Social Anxiety: Roles of Shame and Self-Esteem - Child Indicators Research.” SpringerLink, Springer Netherlands, 25 Sept. 2020, https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s12187-020-09777-x.