Franz Kafka, in his short story "The Metamorphosis", and Harry Mulisch, in his novel The Assault, use dark and solitary diction and images to create the isolation within the protagonists. The setting symbolizes how the protagonist's isolation continues to expand throughout the book. At the beginning of both novels the setting is more open and light, unlike the isolation of the characters which is less delimited and complex. As the settings become smaller and the characters become lonelier, Anton and Gregor's isolation becomes more pronounced. Gregor gradually becomes isolated from his family, causing his transformation to proceed rapidly, while Anton's family grows, but his isolation conflicts with himself, causing the setting to continue to enclose them, emphasizing the effects that the their isolation takes over them. of “The Metamorphosis”, begins with Gregor's transformation and the reason behind it. Gregor shows the first signs of isolation when he was still human, as a traveling salesman. Gregor isolated himself because he was always alone and away from his home and family when he worked in “a grueling job [where he finds himself] day after day, on the road, [having] the torture of travelling… no lasting relationships or intimacy ” (Kafka 4). The setting at this point symbolized the freedom of being a human, but trapped in the city, as he must leave his family to work to provide for them. As the book progresses, the setting changes along with the protagonist. In the middle of the story, the setting symbolizes the progression of the protagonist's isolation. For example, Gregor turned into a cockroach and was completely isolated from the outside world and his family, as well as his sister. Aft...... middle of paper....... The setting causes Anton to protect himself from those he loves and keep his feelings to himself, slowly closing in on himself inch by inch, as well as And. fear of loving someone and losing them like she did when she was younger. Although Gregor is different from Anton, as he is isolated from his own family and Anton isolates him from his past, they both end up alone and locked in their physical problems. surrounding environment along with their mental thoughts. The setting plays a key role in the novels by connecting the environments in which it shows how the protagonists isolate themselves from their own thoughts and the memories of the people around them. Works Cited Kafka, Franz. “The Metamorphosis”. The Metamorphosis. Trans. Ed. Stanley Corngold. New York: Bantam Books, 1972. Mulisch, Harry. The Assault. Trans. Claire Nicolas White. New York: Pantheon Books, 1985.