the start of the novella, Gregor maintains hope that he will one day live a happier life:

Once I’ve got together the money to pay off the parents’ debt to him—that should take another five or six years— ... Then I’ll make the big break.

He has hope that, once his family debt is paid, he will be able to make life and career decisions based on his own happiness. He will be able to live for his own dreams rather than having to take care of his family.

The word "window" comes up twenty-six times in Kafka's novella. Gregor regularly approaches his window to think about the world outside. Most of Gregor's window-side musings are pessimistic:

he directed his gaze as precisely as he could toward the window, but unfortunately there was little confident cheer to be had from a glance at the morning mist ...

Gregor looks out the window because he once looked at the world with some hope. He goes through great effort, as a bug, to make it possible to gaze out the window. He desperately wants to see something worth hoping in:

He undertook the very difficult task of shoving a chair over to the window. Then he ... leaned against the window to look out, ... with some memory or other of the satisfaction which that used to bring him ...

However, no matter where he looks, he no longer sees any small ounce of hope for the future:

he could have believed that from his window he was peering out at a featureless wasteland, in which the gray heaven and the gray earth had merged and were indistinguishable.

Gregor's sister seems to be aware that Gregor is compelled by his window. When cleaning his room, she returns his chair to the spot by the window and leaves it open. She assists him in his search for hope.

The weather is rainy much of the time Gregor is looking out the window. Late in the story, when the cleaning lady is in his room, he hears "a hard downpour" of rain.

By this point, Gregor's time as a bug has made him even less content with living. He is utterly miserable as a bug, just as he was as a traveling salesman:

Gregor was so bitter that he turned towards her, as if for an attack, although slowly and weakly.

Only at the very end of the story does Gregor see anything hopeful out of his window: a dawn sun.

From the window he witnessed the beginning of the general dawning outside. Then without willing it, his head sank all the way down, and from his nostrils flowed out weakly out his last breath.

This final glance seems to show hope; yet, immediately it's contrasted with Gregor's death. Perhaps there is more joy and hope in Gregor's death than readers immediately consider. Gregor is no longer trapped in a cycle of drudgery and miserable work. He is additionally freed from his life as a bug.

Throughout the narrative, Gregor looks out his window searching for hope. However, the only hopeful thing he sees is a morning sun that appears just before he dies.

I find it useful to think of Kafka's The Metamorphosis in terms of the manner in which any individual comes to understand their own identity through external social influence. The juxtaposition of the internal and the external is symbolized by the view from Gregor's window. Gregor's physical metamorphosis has already taken place at the beginning of the story as he finds himself in "his room, a real room meant for human habitation." If we think of this physical transformation as an externalization of everything that Gregor internalized in order to provide for his thankless family, then we can see how the familiarity of his room has transformed into a prison. The window is the only view of the external world, and Gregor can only see the rain falling on the hospital across the street. The hospital symbolizes yet another institution that can no longer help Gregor return to the life that he had grown to loathe as the "torment of traveling." The weather outside of the window reflects the transition of the power dynamic within the family's apartment as Gregor's transformation becomes increasingly burdensome for everyone.

At the beginning of Part II, Grete, Gregor's sister, walks into Gregor's room as he stares out the window. The rain has begun to subside, and Gregor has temporarily forgotten what he has become. Grete's presence reminds him that he should feel shame for his grotesque appearance and that Grete no longer sees her brother as the man who promised to send her to the musical conservatory. He is simply a burden. The sun doesn't fully enter the room until the end of Part III, once Gregor has been swept into the dustbin and the family can leave the apartment together. The family has freed themselves of their dependence on Gregor, and Grete can leave the confines of the apartment and stretch. Gregor's sacrifice becomes a rebirth. It's possible to view this as a social allegory for the Prague that Kafka knew in the early twentieth century as it relates to politics and the economy.

The view out Gregor's window is simply that of the buildings across the street. When he first tries to look out his window on the morning of his transformation, it is dark, grey, and rainy. The rain obscures his vision, and of course parallels his own mood. When he has lived with his change for awhile, he returns to looking out the window, but it offers him no satisfaction.

Then he crept up on the window sill and, braced on the chair, leaned against the window to look out, obviously with some memory or other of the liberating sense which looking out the window used to bring him in earlier times. For, in fact, from day to day he perceived things with less and less clarity, even those only a short distance away: the hospital across the street, the all-too-frequent sight of which he had previously cursed, was not visible at all any more, and if he had not been very well aware that he lived in the quiet but completely urban Charlotte Street, he could have believed that from his window he was peering out at a featureless wasteland, in which the gray heaven and the gray earth had merged and were indistinguishable.

So what he first saw after his transformation has becomes his world. His vision is slowly going, and his life has merged into meaningless greys. However, this new world offers him satisfaction which was lacking in his previous life. As a traveling salesman, Gregor's only joy came in knowing that he was providing for his family. After he changes, he soon finds out that this belief isn't exactly true; in that his father had squirrelled away some money, more than enough to keep the family living, and that Gregor could have quit his job long before, if only his father would have told him.

But that's part of Gregor's tale. his family (parents especially) are useless, parasitic, even cruel people, who have sucked his youth and vitality from him for nothing. As an insect, Gregor takes pleasure in eating and sleeping, but also in subtly torturing those who have made his life so difficult.

Gregor understandably doesn’t react well to his transformation at first. His new body is entirely different and therefore takes some getting used to. It is interesting that Gregor does not directly question his transformation, but immediately focuses on how he is going to deal with it, which comes across as surprising to the reader.

Firstly, Gregor struggles physically and practically with his transformation, failing to perform even the simplest of tasks, such as moving, walking, and eating. For example, he must open the door with his mouth and is unable to get out of bed or walk at first due to the fact his “many legs ... flickered helplessly before his eyes.” Another key difference Gregor must adapt to is the fact he cannot talk. His voice is completely transformed:

Gregor was startled when he heard his own voice in reply; no doubt, it was unmistakably his previous voice, but merging into it as though from low down came an uncontrollable, painful squealing which allowed his words to remain articulate literally for only a moment.

As such, Gregor must adapt not only to his physical changes but also to the fact that he cannot communicate:

His speech had not been understood.

This lack of communication causes many issues for Gregor and makes it impossible for him to explain his situation or understand what is happening to him.

There are many interpretations about what Gregor’s transformation might mean. One argument is that Gregor’s adaption to his new body is a metaphor for the struggle of injured soldiers returning from World War I and the difficulties they faced in adapting to their new bodies. This argument is supported by the historical context of this text, which was written during World War I, and also the fact that Kafka himself was involved in the establishment of a psychiatric hospital for veterans and victims of shell shock, suggesting that he had a personal insight regarding the impact of warfare on soldiers. In the text, it is made explicit that Gregor himself participated in military service:

a photograph of Gregor from his time in the reserve hung on the wall, showing him as a lieutenant ... smiling light-heartedly, demanding respect for his stance and uniform.

Elsewhere in the text, Gregor is described as having an “armor-like back” and is compared to a “disabled veteran.” This is just one interpretation of what Gregor’s adaption to his new body might symbolize, but it is worth considering.

Although Gregor does not react well to his transformation at first, he gets used to his new form surprisingly quickly and seems almost relieved. We might interpret Gregor’s transformation as a metaphor for his rejection of the “human” aspects of his life. This includes aspects of normal human life such as work, family, money, and responsibility. His life as a traveling salesman is depicted as being mundane and alienating. Even when Gregor realizes he has transformed into an insect, his first thoughts regard his lateness to work. The fact he is so stressed and frightened about work shows us how much pressure he is under at his workplace. Gregor is a classic example of someone who is trapped in a job that is not fulfilling. He continues working due to money and pressure from his family; he is unhappy due to external societal pressures and expectations.

As an insect, however, Gregor can spend his days sleeping and eating, and he does not have to worry as much about these human problems. Perhaps Gregor’s transformation is a result of the intense pressure he has been under for the past five years, during which he has been the sole provider for his family. Before his transformation, Gregor is depended on by his whole family, but as an insect, Gregor is dependent on others. As such, in his insect form, there is significantly less pressure on him. In this sense, his life as an insect might be bringing him more satisfaction than his previous life.

This being said, Gregor’s life as an insect is shown to be similarly miserable and bleak. Although his new form offers him an escape from societal pressures and responsibilities, his insect body is seen as grotesque, meaning he is met with disgust and rejection by everyone who encounters him. Gregor internalizes this shame, and “burn[s] with shame and sorrow.” After reading about his life as an insect, the reader is left with a feeling of hopelessness, sadness, and pity. He is rejected by his family and entirely isolated, and he even suffers physical violence from his own father. Compounding this is the fact that he cannot talk, meaning that he becomes entirely secluded and isolated from any sense of community or human warmth. As such, Gregor is no happier than he was in his old life. This is part of what makes The Metamorphosis so bleak, as Gregor cannot find happiness or peace in either of his forms.

I always think that it is very ironic the way in which Gregor's life doesn't change that much in terms of the way that he is treated and viewed by those around him. He always was the bug that was an outcast in his world, forced to work in a job that he found deeply unsatisfying to support his family. In some ways, Gregor's life actually improves as a bug, as he does not have to work in such a demeaning profession.

It was strikes me hard that Gregor doesn't ever ask himself "why am I a bug?" He just immediately accepts that he is and figures it out from there.  He fairly quickly adapts to his form and learns how to walk using all of his legs. He was wholly dissatisfied with his life as a salesman -- always on the go, no lasting relationships, and even a lessening in the satisfaction he once took in being able to provide for his family. The metamorphosis is an interesting challenge for him, and while he feels bad for his family, he seems accepting of his new fate.

In Franz Kafka’s Metamorphosis, protagonist Gregor Samsa famously wakes up as a giant beetle. On the first day that Gregor wakes up, he looks out the window and both sees the rain and hears it on the metal window ledge. He notices the dreary view from the window before he even notices his transformation. As he looks out the window, Gregor also thinks about how he fears his boss and hates his job. The metal fixture on the window represents the post-industrial age that Gregor inhabits and corresponds to the fact that he feels alienated and exploited at his job.

The view from the window is one which features a gray sky and gray earth, which is symbolic of Gregor’s pre-transformation disposition. After he becomes a beetle, Gregor notices that he can no longer look out the window with the same perspective (i.e., he cannot stand up). This suggests the uniquely tragic circumstance in which Gregor finds himself; he never particularly enjoyed the view outside, though now, as a beetle, Gregor is robbed even of this despondent view. Nevertheless, he continues to look out the window, which is symbolic as a means of escape (if only a mental escape).

Affirming the window’s symbolism as an escape is that Gregor’s family members flock to it at various points in the novel. In particular, Gregor’s mother runs to the window when she is in his room, despite the fact that it is cold out. Likewise, Gregor’s sister opens the window to prevent herself from feeling suffocated. Both are trying to cope with Gregor’s transformation, and the window is a crutch for them. The fact that Gregor only looks out of the window while the others open it symbolizes Gregor’s extreme level of entrapment. He is physically trapped and demoralized in his condition as a beetle.

As Gregor tries to get himself up and moving after he has turned into a giant bug, feeling that he cannot possibly allow himself to simply remain in bed, the narrator says,

he directed his gaze as precisely as he could toward the window, but unfortunately there was little confident cheer to be had from a glance at the morning mist, which concealed even the other side of the narrow street.

Gregor's view of what is just outside his window is confined by the rain, blocked and incomplete. This is the way his life has felt ever since he took the job as a salesman. Although it seems that he was once confident and self-assured when he was a soldier, now, Gregor has no time for relationships or hobbies because he is always on the road, always working. His work has completely limited his ability to live a satisfying or fulfilling life, just as the rain and mist now limit his view outside. He has felt confined and incomplete in his own life ever since he became a salesman, and his view reflects this feeling.

The window of Gregor's room is actually mentioned towards the beginning of the story, when Gregor wakes up and becomes aware of his hideous transformation. As the majority of the action of this story takes place in Gregor's room, what he can actually see through his window is going to be important in terms of setting the tone and the mood of the novel. Note what the text tells us about the window:

Gregor's eyes then focused on the window, and the dismal weather--raindrops could be heard splattering on the metal ledge--made him feel quite melancholy.

Note the way that this operates as a pathetic fallacy, for, even before his transformation, Gregor's life was rather "dismal." It is no wonder therefore that the weather enacts his mood and his impressions of life by its dismal nature, making him feel quite "melancholy" because of the grey, oppressive rain that can be heard "splattering" on the ledge.