Metamorphosis | Page 8

report everything accurately, then? It's quite possible for someone to be
temporarily unable to work, but that's just the right time to remember
what's been achieved in the past and consider that later on, once the
difficulty has been removed, he will certainly work with all the more
diligence and concentration. You're well aware that I'm seriously in
debt to our employer as well as having to look after my parents and my
sister, so that I'm trapped in a difficult situation, but I will work my
way out of it again. Please don't make things any harder for me than
they are already, and don't take sides against me at the office. I know
that nobody likes the travellers. They think we earn an enormous wage
as well as having a soft time of it. That's just prejudice but they have no
particular reason to think better it. But you, sir, you have a better

overview than the rest of the staff, in fact, if I can say this in confidence,
a better overview than the boss himself - it's very easy for a
businessman like him to make mistakes about his employees and judge
them more harshly than he should. And you're also well aware that we
travellers spend almost the whole year away from the office, so that we
can very easily fall victim to gossip and chance and groundless
complaints, and it's almost impossible to defend yourself from that sort
of thing, we don't usually even hear about them, or if at all it's when we
arrive back home exhausted from a trip, and that's when we feel the
harmful effects of what's been going on without even knowing what
caused them. Please, don't go away, at least first say something to show
that you grant that I'm at least partly right!"
But the chief clerk had turned away as soon as Gregor had started to
speak, and, with protruding lips, only stared back at him over his
trembling shoulders as he left. He did not keep still for a moment while
Gregor was speaking, but moved steadily towards the door without
taking his eyes off him. He moved very gradually, as if there had been
some secret prohibition on leaving the room. It was only when he had
reached the entrance hall that he made a sudden movement, drew his
foot from the living room, and rushed forward in a panic. In the hall, he
stretched his right hand far out towards the stairway as if out there,
there were some supernatural force waiting to save him.
Gregor realised that it was out of the question to let the chief clerk go
away in this mood if his position in the firm was not to be put into
extreme danger. That was something his parents did not understand
very well; over the years, they had become convinced that this job
would provide for Gregor for his entire life, and besides, they had so
much to worry about at present that they had lost sight of any thought
for the future. Gregor, though, did think about the future. The chief
clerk had to be held back, calmed down, convinced and finally won
over; the future of Gregor and his family depended on it! If only his
sister were here! She was clever; she was already in tears while Gregor
was still lying peacefully on his back. And the chief clerk was a lover
of women, surely she could persuade him; she would close the front
door in the entrance hall and talk him out of his shocked state. But his

sister was not there, Gregor would have to do the job himself.
And without considering that he still was not familiar with how well he
could move about in his present state, or that his speech still might not -
or probably would not - be understood, he let go of the door; pushed
himself through the opening; tried to reach the chief clerk on the
landing who, ridiculously, was holding on to the banister with both
hands; but Gregor fell immediately over and, with a little scream as he
sought something to hold onto, landed on his numerous little legs.
Hardly had that happened than, for the first time that day, he began to
feel alright with his body; the little legs had the solid ground under
them; to his pleasure, they did exactly as he told them; they were even
making the effort to carry him where he wanted to go; and he was soon
believing that all his sorrows would soon be finally at an end. He held
back the urge to move but swayed from side to side as he crouched
there on the floor. His mother was not far away in front of