The story by Franz Kafka gives us a horrific version of transformation whereas the seasonal cycles of Spring and Summer give us the caterpillars that become butterflies, worms that become moths, and antlions that become lacewings.
Embryologists say that ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny – that is, the development of an embryo passes through the stages of development of the species that preceded it. Human embryos, for example, pass through stages that look like fish, amphibians, reptiles, and ultimately mammals before they are distinguishable as humans. Something similar is true of most species’ embryos.
Tonight, we watched the movie, Uglies on MAX. It’s a story about a future in which humans undergo a surgically imposed metamorphosis at age 16. Prior to that age, children are considered ugly – imperfect with flaws that can be surgically remediated. I know what that is like, and you probably do too.
As for the transformation, I’m thinking of our American Oligarchy here – a nose job for Ivanka, some chin surgery for Elon, you get the idea. Cosmetic surgery as an intervention to address our adolescent narcissistic injuries is nothing new.
So, in this story, on your 16th birthday, you can undergo a surgical metamorphosis that promotes you from an Ugly to a Pretty. Of course, this is Sci-Fi, and nothing is ever what it seems. And that’s what the story is about.
This movie has been described as part Hunger Games and part Divergent. I would add that it is also part Fahrenheit 451 and part Franz Kafka’s Metamorphosis as well. I recommend it.