TITLE:
Three Classics with Metamorphosis as a Common Theme
AUTHORS:
Karl-Erik Andersson
KEYWORDS:
Metamorphosis, Identity, Human Condition, Literary Motif, Cultural Anxieties
JOURNAL NAME:
Advances in Literary Study,
Vol.14 No.2,
March
25,
2026
ABSTRACT: This study examines three canonical literary works in which metamorphosis functions as a central thematic and structural device. Although differing in historical context, genre, and narrative form, the selected texts use transformation to explore fundamental questions of identity, power, and the human condition. Metamorphosis appears not only as a physical change but also as a symbolic process through which social alienation, moral conflict, and existential uncertainty are articulated. By comparing how transformation operates within each work, the study highlights metamorphosis as a timeless literary motif that bridges myth, modernity, and psychological realism, revealing its enduring capacity to reflect cultural anxieties and philosophical concerns.