Page 71 - the-metamorphosis

of his suffering condition, he had to guide himself through
the difficulty of turning around with his head, in this pro-
cess lifting and banging it against the floor several times.
He paused and looked around. His good intentions seem
to have been recognized. The fright had only lasted for a
moment. Now they looked at him in silence and sorrow.
His mother lay in her chair, with her legs stretched out and
pressed together; her eyes were almost shut from weariness.
The father and sister sat next to one another. The sister had
set her hands around the father’s neck.
‘ Now perhaps I can actually turn myself around,’
thought Gregor and began the task again. He couldn’t stop
puffing at the effort and had to rest now and then.
Besides no on was urging him on. It was all left to him
on his own. When he had completed turning around, he
immediately began to wander straight back. He was aston-
ished at the great distance which separated him from his
room and did not understand in the least how in his weak-
ness he had covered the same distance a short time before,
almost without noticing it. Constantly intent only on creep-
ing along quickly, he hardly paid any attention to the fact
that no word or cry from his family interrupted him.
Only when he was already in the door did he turn his
head, not completely, because he felt his neck growing
stiff. At any rate he still saw that behind him nothing had
changed. Only the sister was standing up. His last glimpse
brushed over the mother who was now completely asleep.
Hardly was he inside his room when the door was pushed
shut very quickly, bolted fast, and barred. Gregor was star-

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