Metamorphosis

A BBC Radio 4 reading

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Metamorphosis

By: Franz Kafka

Narrated by: Benedict Cumberbatch

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About this listen

Benedict Cumberbatch reads Franz Kafka's famous story of man-turned-insect, Metamorphosis

Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2018

After a night of troubled dreams, Gregor Samsa wakes to discover that he has turned into a huge, monstrous, cockroach-like creature, with an armour-plated back and multiple limbs.

Gradually, he comes to terms with his new state - but his parents and sister are horrified and increasingly revolted. To them, Gregor is unclean, verminous and entirely repellent, and as he becomes more and more of a burden, their horror turns to a terrible indifference...

First published in 1915, Kafka's surreal existential novella explores concepts such as the absurdity of life, alienation and the disconnect between mind and body. Read by Benedict Cumberbatch (Sherlock, Star Trek, The Imitation Game), this tale - often described as one of the greatest in the history of fiction - is chilling, captivating and darkly comic.

©2018 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd (P)2018 BBC Studios Distribution Ltd

Classics

Fiction

Genre Fiction

Literary Fiction

Mind-bending

Funny

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For such a short story, Metamorphosis packs a powerful emotional punch, which is made all the greater by Benedict Cumberbatch's beautiful narration. He draws every ounce of feeling from the words, without ever crossing the line into melodrama.