# HG changeset patch # User Steve Losh # Date 1484614809 0 # Node ID 824673714b91a1d1e1c7a4039af18f0626f915f1 # Parent cbbc4741267dbbf0aa26d00f7fde406ede809f4e Add HB diff -r cbbc4741267d -r 824673714b91 Makefile --- a/Makefile Mon Jan 16 23:30:54 2017 +0000 +++ b/Makefile Tue Jan 17 01:00:09 2017 +0000 @@ -21,5 +21,5 @@ cp build/antipodes /opt/antipodes/antipodes deploy: build/magitek - rsync --exclude=build/magitek --exclude=.hg --exclude=database.sqlite -avz . silt:/home/sjl/magitek + rsync --exclude=build/magitek --exclude=.hg --exclude=database.sqlite --exclude=corpora -avz . silt:/home/sjl/magitek ssh silt make -C /home/sjl/magitek build/magitek diff -r cbbc4741267d -r 824673714b91 data/metamorphosis.txt --- a/data/metamorphosis.txt Mon Jan 16 23:30:54 2017 +0000 +++ /dev/null Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 +0000 @@ -1,1949 +0,0 @@ -I - - -One morning, when Gregor Samsa woke from troubled dreams, he found -himself transformed in his bed into a horrible vermin. He lay on -his armour-like back, and if he lifted his head a little he could -see his brown belly, slightly domed and divided by arches into stiff -sections. The bedding was hardly able to cover it and seemed ready -to slide off any moment. His many legs, pitifully thin compared -with the size of the rest of him, waved about helplessly as he -looked. - -"What's happened to me?" he thought. It wasn't a dream. His room, -a proper human room although a little too small, lay peacefully -between its four familiar walls. A collection of textile samples -lay spread out on the table - Samsa was a travelling salesman - and -above it there hung a picture that he had recently cut out of an -illustrated magazine and housed in a nice, gilded frame. It showed -a lady fitted out with a fur hat and fur boa who sat upright, -raising a heavy fur muff that covered the whole of her lower arm -towards the viewer. - -Gregor then turned to look out the window at the dull weather. -Drops of rain could be heard hitting the pane, which made him feel -quite sad. "How about if I sleep a little bit longer and forget all -this nonsense", he thought, but that was something he was unable to -do because he was used to sleeping on his right, and in his present -state couldn't get into that position. However hard he threw -himself onto his right, he always rolled back to where he was. He -must have tried it a hundred times, shut his eyes so that he -wouldn't have to look at the floundering legs, and only stopped when -he began to feel a mild, dull pain there that he had never felt -before. - -"Oh, God", he thought, "what a strenuous career it is that I've -chosen! Travelling day in and day out. Doing business like this -takes much more effort than doing your own business at home, and on -top of that there's the curse of travelling, worries about making -train connections, bad and irregular food, contact with different -people all the time so that you can never get to know anyone or -become friendly with them. It can all go to Hell!" He felt a -slight itch up on his belly; pushed himself slowly up on his back -towards the headboard so that he could lift his head better; found -where the itch was, and saw that it was covered with lots of little -white spots which he didn't know what to make of; and when he tried -to feel the place with one of his legs he drew it quickly back -because as soon as he touched it he was overcome by a cold shudder. - -He slid back into his former position. "Getting up early all the -time", he thought, "it makes you stupid. You've got to get enough -sleep. Other travelling salesmen live a life of luxury. For -instance, whenever I go back to the guest house during the morning -to copy out the contract, these gentlemen are always still sitting -there eating their breakfasts. I ought to just try that with my -boss; I'd get kicked out on the spot. But who knows, maybe that -would be the best thing for me. If I didn't have my parents to -think about I'd have given in my notice a long time ago, I'd have -gone up to the boss and told him just what I think, tell him -everything I would, let him know just what I feel. He'd fall right -off his desk! And it's a funny sort of business to be sitting up -there at your desk, talking down at your subordinates from up there, -especially when you have to go right up close because the boss is -hard of hearing. Well, there's still some hope; once I've got the -money together to pay off my parents' debt to him - another five or -six years I suppose - that's definitely what I'll do. That's when -I'll make the big change. First of all though, I've got to get up, -my train leaves at five." - -And he looked over at the alarm clock, ticking on the chest of -drawers. "God in Heaven!" he thought. It was half past six and the -hands were quietly moving forwards, it was even later than half -past, more like quarter to seven. Had the alarm clock not rung? He -could see from the bed that it had been set for four o'clock as it -should have been; it certainly must have rung. Yes, but was it -possible to quietly sleep through that furniture-rattling noise? -True, he had not slept peacefully, but probably all the more deeply -because of that. What should he do now? The next train went at -seven; if he were to catch that he would have to rush like mad and -the collection of samples was still not packed, and he did not at -all feel particularly fresh and lively. And even if he did catch -the train he would not avoid his boss's anger as the office -assistant would have been there to see the five o'clock train go, he -would have put in his report about Gregor's not being there a long -time ago. The office assistant was the boss's man, spineless, and -with no understanding. What about if he reported sick? But that -would be extremely strained and suspicious as in fifteen years of -service Gregor had never once yet been ill. His boss would -certainly come round with the doctor from the medical insurance -company, accuse his parents of having a lazy son, and accept the -doctor's recommendation not to make any claim as the doctor believed -that no-one was ever ill but that many were workshy. And what's -more, would he have been entirely wrong in this case? Gregor did in -fact, apart from excessive sleepiness after sleeping for so long, -feel completely well and even felt much hungrier than usual. - -He was still hurriedly thinking all this through, unable to decide -to get out of the bed, when the clock struck quarter to seven. -There was a cautious knock at the door near his head. "Gregor", -somebody called - it was his mother - "it's quarter to seven. -Didn't you want to go somewhere?" That gentle voice! Gregor was -shocked when he heard his own voice answering, it could hardly be -recognised as the voice he had had before. As if from deep inside -him, there was a painful and uncontrollable squeaking mixed in with -it, the words could be made out at first but then there was a sort -of echo which made them unclear, leaving the hearer unsure whether -he had heard properly or not. Gregor had wanted to give a full -answer and explain everything, but in the circumstances contented -himself with saying: "Yes, mother, yes, thank-you, I'm getting up -now." The change in Gregor's voice probably could not be noticed -outside through the wooden door, as his mother was satisfied with -this explanation and shuffled away. But this short conversation -made the other members of the family aware that Gregor, against -their expectations was still at home, and soon his father came -knocking at one of the side doors, gently, but with his fist. -"Gregor, Gregor", he called, "what's wrong?" And after a short -while he called again with a warning deepness in his voice: "Gregor! -Gregor!" At the other side door his sister came plaintively: -"Gregor? Aren't you well? Do you need anything?" Gregor answered to -both sides: "I'm ready, now", making an effort to remove all the -strangeness from his voice by enunciating very carefully and putting -long pauses between each, individual word. His father went back to -his breakfast, but his sister whispered: "Gregor, open the door, I -beg of you." Gregor, however, had no thought of opening the door, -and instead congratulated himself for his cautious habit, acquired -from his travelling, of locking all doors at night even when he was -at home. - -The first thing he wanted to do was to get up in peace without being -disturbed, to get dressed, and most of all to have his breakfast. -Only then would he consider what to do next, as he was well aware -that he would not bring his thoughts to any sensible conclusions by -lying in bed. He remembered that he had often felt a slight pain in -bed, perhaps caused by lying awkwardly, but that had always turned -out to be pure imagination and he wondered how his imaginings would -slowly resolve themselves today. He did not have the slightest -doubt that the change in his voice was nothing more than the first -sign of a serious cold, which was an occupational hazard for -travelling salesmen. - -It was a simple matter to throw off the covers; he only had to blow -himself up a little and they fell off by themselves. But it became -difficult after that, especially as he was so exceptionally broad. -He would have used his arms and his hands to push himself up; but -instead of them he only had all those little legs continuously -moving in different directions, and which he was moreover unable to -control. If he wanted to bend one of them, then that was the first -one that would stretch itself out; and if he finally managed to do -what he wanted with that leg, all the others seemed to be set free -and would move about painfully. "This is something that can't be -done in bed", Gregor said to himself, "so don't keep trying to do -it". - -The first thing he wanted to do was get the lower part of his body -out of the bed, but he had never seen this lower part, and could not -imagine what it looked like; it turned out to be too hard to move; -it went so slowly; and finally, almost in a frenzy, when he -carelessly shoved himself forwards with all the force he could -gather, he chose the wrong direction, hit hard against the lower -bedpost, and learned from the burning pain he felt that the lower -part of his body might well, at present, be the most sensitive. - -So then he tried to get the top part of his body out of the bed -first, carefully turning his head to the side. This he managed -quite easily, and despite its breadth and its weight, the bulk of -his body eventually followed slowly in the direction of the head. -But when he had at last got his head out of the bed and into the -fresh air it occurred to him that if he let himself fall it would be -a miracle if his head were not injured, so he became afraid to carry -on pushing himself forward the same way. And he could not knock -himself out now at any price; better to stay in bed than lose -consciousness. - -It took just as much effort to get back to where he had been -earlier, but when he lay there sighing, and was once more watching -his legs as they struggled against each other even harder than -before, if that was possible, he could think of no way of bringing -peace and order to this chaos. He told himself once more that it -was not possible for him to stay in bed and that the most sensible -thing to do would be to get free of it in whatever way he could at -whatever sacrifice. At the same time, though, he did not forget to -remind himself that calm consideration was much better than rushing -to desperate conclusions. At times like this he would direct his -eyes to the window and look out as clearly as he could, but -unfortunately, even the other side of the narrow street was -enveloped in morning fog and the view had little confidence or cheer -to offer him. "Seven o'clock, already", he said to himself when the -clock struck again, "seven o'clock, and there's still a fog like -this." And he lay there quietly a while longer, breathing lightly -as if he perhaps expected the total stillness to bring things back -to their real and natural state. - -But then he said to himself: "Before it strikes quarter past seven -I'll definitely have to have got properly out of bed. And by then -somebody will have come round from work to ask what's happened to me -as well, as they open up at work before seven o'clock." And so he -set himself to the task of swinging the entire length of his body -out of the bed all at the same time. If he succeeded in falling out -of bed in this way and kept his head raised as he did so he could -probably avoid injuring it. His back seemed to be quite hard, and -probably nothing would happen to it falling onto the carpet. His -main concern was for the loud noise he was bound to make, and which -even through all the doors would probably raise concern if not -alarm. But it was something that had to be risked. - -When Gregor was already sticking half way out of the bed - the new -method was more of a game than an effort, all he had to do was rock -back and forth - it occurred to him how simple everything would be -if somebody came to help him. Two strong people - he had his father -and the maid in mind - would have been more than enough; they would -only have to push their arms under the dome of his back, peel him -away from the bed, bend down with the load and then be patient and -careful as he swang over onto the floor, where, hopefully, the -little legs would find a use. Should he really call for help -though, even apart from the fact that all the doors were locked? -Despite all the difficulty he was in, he could not suppress a smile -at this thought. - -After a while he had already moved so far across that it would have -been hard for him to keep his balance if he rocked too hard. The -time was now ten past seven and he would have to make a final -decision very soon. Then there was a ring at the door of the flat. -"That'll be someone from work", he said to himself, and froze very -still, although his little legs only became all the more lively as -they danced around. For a moment everything remained quiet. -"They're not opening the door", Gregor said to himself, caught in -some nonsensical hope. But then of course, the maid's firm steps -went to the door as ever and opened it. Gregor only needed to hear -the visitor's first words of greeting and he knew who it was - the -chief clerk himself. Why did Gregor have to be the only one -condemned to work for a company where they immediately became highly -suspicious at the slightest shortcoming? Were all employees, every -one of them, louts, was there not one of them who was faithful and -devoted who would go so mad with pangs of conscience that he -couldn't get out of bed if he didn't spend at least a couple of -hours in the morning on company business? Was it really not enough -to let one of the trainees make enquiries - assuming enquiries were -even necessary - did the chief clerk have to come himself, and did -they have to show the whole, innocent family that this was so -suspicious that only the chief clerk could be trusted to have the -wisdom to investigate it? And more because these thoughts had made -him upset than through any proper decision, he swang himself with -all his force out of the bed. There was a loud thump, but it wasn't -really a loud noise. His fall was softened a little by the carpet, -and Gregor's back was also more elastic than he had thought, which -made the sound muffled and not too noticeable. He had not held his -head carefully enough, though, and hit it as he fell; annoyed and in -pain, he turned it and rubbed it against the carpet. - -"Something's fallen down in there", said the chief clerk in the room -on the left. Gregor tried to imagine whether something of the sort -that had happened to him today could ever happen to the chief clerk -too; you had to concede that it was possible. But as if in gruff -reply to this question, the chief clerk's firm footsteps in his -highly polished boots could now be heard in the adjoining room. -From the room on his right, Gregor's sister whispered to him to let -him know: "Gregor, the chief clerk is here." "Yes, I know", said -Gregor to himself; but without daring to raise his voice loud enough -for his sister to hear him. - -"Gregor", said his father now from the room to his left, "the chief -clerk has come round and wants to know why you didn't leave on the -early train. We don't know what to say to him. And anyway, he -wants to speak to you personally. So please open up this door. I'm -sure he'll be good enough to forgive the untidiness of your room." -Then the chief clerk called "Good morning, Mr. Samsa". "He isn't -well", said his mother to the chief clerk, while his father -continued to speak through the door. "He isn't well, please believe -me. Why else would Gregor have missed a train! The lad only ever -thinks about the business. It nearly makes me cross the way he -never goes out in the evenings; he's been in town for a week now but -stayed home every evening. He sits with us in the kitchen and just -reads the paper or studies train timetables. His idea of relaxation -is working with his fretsaw. He's made a little frame, for -instance, it only took him two or three evenings, you'll be amazed -how nice it is; it's hanging up in his room; you'll see it as soon -as Gregor opens the door. Anyway, I'm glad you're here; we wouldn't -have been able to get Gregor to open the door by ourselves; he's so -stubborn; and I'm sure he isn't well, he said this morning that he -is, but he isn't." "I'll be there in a moment", said Gregor slowly -and thoughtfully, but without moving so that he would not miss any -word of the conversation. "Well I can't think of any other way of -explaining it, Mrs. Samsa", said the chief clerk, "I hope it's -nothing serious. But on the other hand, I must say that if we -people in commerce ever become slightly unwell then, fortunately or -unfortunately as you like, we simply have to overcome it because of -business considerations." "Can the chief clerk come in to see you -now then?", asked his father impatiently, knocking at the door -again. "No", said Gregor. In the room on his right there followed -a painful silence; in the room on his left his sister began to cry. - -So why did his sister not go and join the others? She had probably -only just got up and had not even begun to get dressed. And why was -she crying? Was it because he had not got up, and had not let the -chief clerk in, because he was in danger of losing his job and if -that happened his boss would once more pursue their parents with the -same demands as before? There was no need to worry about things like -that yet. Gregor was still there and had not the slightest -intention of abandoning his family. For the time being he just lay -there on the carpet, and no-one who knew the condition he was in -would seriously have expected him to let the chief clerk in. It was -only a minor discourtesy, and a suitable excuse could easily be -found for it later on, it was not something for which Gregor could -be sacked on the spot. And it seemed to Gregor much more sensible -to leave him now in peace instead of disturbing him with talking at -him and crying. But the others didn't know what was happening, they -were worried, that would excuse their behaviour. - -The chief clerk now raised his voice, "Mr. Samsa", he called to him, -"what is wrong? You barricade yourself in your room, give us no more -than yes or no for an answer, you are causing serious and -unnecessary concern to your parents and you fail - and I mention -this just by the way - you fail to carry out your business duties in -a way that is quite unheard of. I'm speaking here on behalf of your -parents and of your employer, and really must request a clear and -immediate explanation. I am astonished, quite astonished. I -thought I knew you as a calm and sensible person, and now you -suddenly seem to be showing off with peculiar whims. This morning, -your employer did suggest a possible reason for your failure to -appear, it's true - it had to do with the money that was recently -entrusted to you - but I came near to giving him my word of honour -that that could not be the right explanation. But now that I see -your incomprehensible stubbornness I no longer feel any wish -whatsoever to intercede on your behalf. And nor is your position -all that secure. I had originally intended to say all this to you -in private, but since you cause me to waste my time here for no good -reason I don't see why your parents should not also learn of it. -Your turnover has been very unsatisfactory of late; I grant you that -it's not the time of year to do especially good business, we -recognise that; but there simply is no time of year to do no -business at all, Mr. Samsa, we cannot allow there to be." - -"But Sir", called Gregor, beside himself and forgetting all else in -the excitement, "I'll open up immediately, just a moment. I'm -slightly unwell, an attack of dizziness, I haven't been able to get -up. I'm still in bed now. I'm quite fresh again now, though. I'm -just getting out of bed. Just a moment. Be patient! It's not quite -as easy as I'd thought. I'm quite alright now, though. It's -shocking, what can suddenly happen to a person! I was quite alright -last night, my parents know about it, perhaps better than me, I had -a small symptom of it last night already. They must have noticed -it. I don't know why I didn't let you know at work! But you always -think you can get over an illness without staying at home. Please, -don't make my parents suffer! There's no basis for any of the -accusations you're making; nobody's ever said a word to me about any -of these things. Maybe you haven't read the latest contracts I sent -in. I'll set off with the eight o'clock train, as well, these few -hours of rest have given me strength. You don't need to wait, sir; -I'll be in the office soon after you, and please be so good as to -tell that to the boss and recommend me to him!" - -And while Gregor gushed out these words, hardly knowing what he was -saying, he made his way over to the chest of drawers - this was -easily done, probably because of the practise he had already had in -bed - where he now tried to get himself upright. He really did want -to open the door, really did want to let them see him and to speak -with the chief clerk; the others were being so insistent, and he was -curious to learn what they would say when they caught sight of him. -If they were shocked then it would no longer be Gregor's -responsibility and he could rest. If, however, they took everything -calmly he would still have no reason to be upset, and if he hurried -he really could be at the station for eight o'clock. The first few -times he tried to climb up on the smooth chest of drawers he just -slid down again, but he finally gave himself one last swing and -stood there upright; the lower part of his body was in serious pain -but he no longer gave any attention to it. Now he let himself fall -against the back of a nearby chair and held tightly to the edges of -it with his little legs. By now he had also calmed down, and kept -quiet so that he could listen to what the chief clerk was saying. - -"Did you understand a word of all that?" the chief clerk asked his -parents, "surely he's not trying to make fools of us". "Oh, God!" -called his mother, who was already in tears, "he could be seriously -ill and we're making him suffer. Grete! Grete!" she then cried. -"Mother?" his sister called from the other side. They communicated -across Gregor's room. "You'll have to go for the doctor straight -away. Gregor is ill. Quick, get the doctor. Did you hear the way -Gregor spoke just now?" "That was the voice of an animal", said the -chief clerk, with a calmness that was in contrast with his mother's -screams. "Anna! Anna!" his father called into the kitchen through -the entrance hall, clapping his hands, "get a locksmith here, now!" -And the two girls, their skirts swishing, immediately ran out -through the hall, wrenching open the front door of the flat as they -went. How had his sister managed to get dressed so quickly? There -was no sound of the door banging shut again; they must have left it -open; people often do in homes where something awful has happened. - -Gregor, in contrast, had become much calmer. So they couldn't -understand his words any more, although they seemed clear enough to -him, clearer than before - perhaps his ears had become used to the -sound. They had realised, though, that there was something wrong -with him, and were ready to help. The first response to his -situation had been confident and wise, and that made him feel -better. He felt that he had been drawn back in among people, and -from the doctor and the locksmith he expected great and surprising -achievements - although he did not really distinguish one from the -other. Whatever was said next would be crucial, so, in order to -make his voice as clear as possible, he coughed a little, but taking -care to do this not too loudly as even this might well sound -different from the way that a human coughs and he was no longer sure -he could judge this for himself. Meanwhile, it had become very -quiet in the next room. Perhaps his parents were sat at the table -whispering with the chief clerk, or perhaps they were all pressed -against the door and listening. - -Gregor slowly pushed his way over to the door with the chair. Once -there he let go of it and threw himself onto the door, holding -himself upright against it using the adhesive on the tips of his -legs. He rested there a little while to recover from the effort -involved and then set himself to the task of turning the key in the -lock with his mouth. He seemed, unfortunately, to have no proper -teeth - how was he, then, to grasp the key? - but the lack of teeth -was, of course, made up for with a very strong jaw; using the jaw, -he really was able to start the key turning, ignoring the fact that -he must have been causing some kind of damage as a brown fluid came -from his mouth, flowed over the key and dripped onto the floor. -"Listen", said the chief clerk in the next room, "he's turning the -key." Gregor was greatly encouraged by this; but they all should -have been calling to him, his father and his mother too: "Well done, -Gregor", they should have cried, "keep at it, keep hold of the -lock!" And with the idea that they were all excitedly following his -efforts, he bit on the key with all his strength, paying no -attention to the pain he was causing himself. As the key turned -round he turned around the lock with it, only holding himself -upright with his mouth, and hung onto the key or pushed it down -again with the whole weight of his body as needed. The clear sound -of the lock as it snapped back was Gregor's sign that he could break -his concentration, and as he regained his breath he said to himself: -"So, I didn't need the locksmith after all". Then he lay his head on -the handle of the door to open it completely. - -Because he had to open the door in this way, it was already wide -open before he could be seen. He had first to slowly turn himself -around one of the double doors, and he had to do it very carefully -if he did not want to fall flat on his back before entering the -room. He was still occupied with this difficult movement, unable to -pay attention to anything else, when he heard the chief clerk -exclaim a loud "Oh!", which sounded like the soughing of the wind. -Now he also saw him - he was the nearest to the door - his hand -pressed against his open mouth and slowly retreating as if driven by -a steady and invisible force. Gregor's mother, her hair still -dishevelled from bed despite the chief clerk's being there, looked -at his father. Then she unfolded her arms, took two steps forward -towards Gregor and sank down onto the floor into her skirts that -spread themselves out around her as her head disappeared down onto -her breast. His father looked hostile, and clenched his fists as if -wanting to knock Gregor back into his room. Then he looked -uncertainly round the living room, covered his eyes with his hands -and wept so that his powerful chest shook. - -So Gregor did not go into the room, but leant against the inside of -the other door which was still held bolted in place. In this way -only half of his body could be seen, along with his head above it -which he leant over to one side as he peered out at the others. -Meanwhile the day had become much lighter; part of the endless, -grey-black building on the other side of the street - which was a -hospital - could be seen quite clearly with the austere and regular -line of windows piercing its facade; the rain was still -falling, now throwing down large, individual droplets which hit the -ground one at a time. The washing up from breakfast lay on the -table; there was so much of it because, for Gregor's father, -breakfast was the most important meal of the day and he would -stretch it out for several hours as he sat reading a number of -different newspapers. On the wall exactly opposite there was -photograph of Gregor when he was a lieutenant in the army, his sword -in his hand and a carefree smile on his face as he called forth -respect for his uniform and bearing. The door to the entrance hall -was open and as the front door of the flat was also open he could -see onto the landing and the stairs where they began their way down -below. - -"Now, then", said Gregor, well aware that he was the only one to -have kept calm, "I'll get dressed straight away now, pack up my -samples and set off. Will you please just let me leave? You can -see", he said to the chief clerk, "that I'm not stubborn and I -like to do my job; being a commercial traveller is arduous but -without travelling I couldn't earn my living. So where are you -going, in to the office? Yes? Will you report everything accurately, -then? It's quite possible for someone to be temporarily unable to -work, but that's just the right time to remember what's been -achieved in the past and consider that later on, once the difficulty -has been removed, he will certainly work with all the more diligence -and concentration. You're well aware that I'm seriously in debt to -our employer as well as having to look after my parents and my -sister, so that I'm trapped in a difficult situation, but I will -work my way out of it again. Please don't make things any harder -for me than they are already, and don't take sides against me at the -office. I know that nobody likes the travellers. They think we -earn an enormous wage as well as having a soft time of it. That's -just prejudice but they have no particular reason to think better of -it. But you, sir, you have a better overview than the rest of the -staff, in fact, if I can say this in confidence, a better overview -than the boss himself - it's very easy for a businessman like him to -make mistakes about his employees and judge them more harshly than -he should. And you're also well aware that we travellers spend -almost the whole year away from the office, so that we can very -easily fall victim to gossip and chance and groundless complaints, -and it's almost impossible to defend yourself from that sort of -thing, we don't usually even hear about them, or if at all it's when -we arrive back home exhausted from a trip, and that's when we feel -the harmful effects of what's been going on without even knowing -what caused them. Please, don't go away, at least first say -something to show that you grant that I'm at least partly right!" - -But the chief clerk had turned away as soon as Gregor had started to -speak, and, with protruding lips, only stared back at him over his -trembling shoulders as he left. He did not keep still for a moment -while Gregor was speaking, but moved steadily towards the door -without taking his eyes off him. He moved very gradually, as if -there had been some secret prohibition on leaving the room. It was -only when he had reached the entrance hall that he made a sudden -movement, drew his foot from the living room, and rushed forward in -a panic. In the hall, he stretched his right hand far out towards -the stairway as if out there, there were some supernatural force -waiting to save him. - -Gregor realised that it was out of the question to let the chief -clerk go away in this mood if his position in the firm was not to be -put into extreme danger. That was something his parents did not -understand very well; over the years, they had become convinced that -this job would provide for Gregor for his entire life, and besides, -they had so much to worry about at present that they had lost sight -of any thought for the future. Gregor, though, did think about the -future. The chief clerk had to be held back, calmed down, convinced -and finally won over; the future of Gregor and his family depended -on it! If only his sister were here! She was clever; she was already -in tears while Gregor was still lying peacefully on his back. And -the chief clerk was a lover of women, surely she could persuade him; -she would close the front door in the entrance hall and talk him out -of his shocked state. But his sister was not there, Gregor would -have to do the job himself. And without considering that he still -was not familiar with how well he could move about in his present -state, or that his speech still might not - or probably would not - -be understood, he let go of the door; pushed himself through the -opening; tried to reach the chief clerk on the landing who, -ridiculously, was holding on to the banister with both hands; but -Gregor fell immediately over and, with a little scream as he sought -something to hold onto, landed on his numerous little legs. Hardly -had that happened than, for the first time that day, he began to -feel alright with his body; the little legs had the solid ground -under them; to his pleasure, they did exactly as he told them; they -were even making the effort to carry him where he wanted to go; and -he was soon believing that all his sorrows would soon be finally at -an end. He held back the urge to move but swayed from side to side -as he crouched there on the floor. His mother was not far away in -front of him and seemed, at first, quite engrossed in herself, but -then she suddenly jumped up with her arms outstretched and her -fingers spread shouting: "Help, for pity's sake, Help!" The way she -held her head suggested she wanted to see Gregor better, but the -unthinking way she was hurrying backwards showed that she did not; -she had forgotten that the table was behind her with all the -breakfast things on it; when she reached the table she sat quickly -down on it without knowing what she was doing; without even seeming -to notice that the coffee pot had been knocked over and a gush of -coffee was pouring down onto the carpet. - -"Mother, mother", said Gregor gently, looking up at her. He had -completely forgotten the chief clerk for the moment, but could not -help himself snapping in the air with his jaws at the sight of the -flow of coffee. That set his mother screaming anew, she fled from -the table and into the arms of his father as he rushed towards her. -Gregor, though, had no time to spare for his parents now; the chief -clerk had already reached the stairs; with his chin on the banister, -he looked back for the last time. Gregor made a run for him; he -wanted to be sure of reaching him; the chief clerk must have -expected something, as he leapt down several steps at once and -disappeared; his shouts resounding all around the staircase. The -flight of the chief clerk seemed, unfortunately, to put Gregor's -father into a panic as well. Until then he had been relatively self -controlled, but now, instead of running after the chief clerk -himself, or at least not impeding Gregor as he ran after him, -Gregor's father seized the chief clerk's stick in his right hand -(the chief clerk had left it behind on a chair, along with his hat -and overcoat), picked up a large newspaper from the table with his -left, and used them to drive Gregor back into his room, stamping his -foot at him as he went. Gregor's appeals to his father were of no -help, his appeals were simply not understood, however much he humbly -turned his head his father merely stamped his foot all the harder. -Across the room, despite the chilly weather, Gregor's mother had -pulled open a window, leant far out of it and pressed her hands to -her face. A strong draught of air flew in from the street towards -the stairway, the curtains flew up, the newspapers on the table -fluttered and some of them were blown onto the floor. Nothing would -stop Gregor's father as he drove him back, making hissing noises at -him like a wild man. Gregor had never had any practice in moving -backwards and was only able to go very slowly. If Gregor had only -been allowed to turn round he would have been back in his room -straight away, but he was afraid that if he took the time to do that -his father would become impatient, and there was the threat of a -lethal blow to his back or head from the stick in his father's hand -any moment. Eventually, though, Gregor realised that he had no -choice as he saw, to his disgust, that he was quite incapable of -going backwards in a straight line; so he began, as quickly as -possible and with frequent anxious glances at his father, to turn -himself round. It went very slowly, but perhaps his father was able -to see his good intentions as he did nothing to hinder him, in fact -now and then he used the tip of his stick to give directions from a -distance as to which way to turn. If only his father would stop -that unbearable hissing! It was making Gregor quite confused. When -he had nearly finished turning round, still listening to that -hissing, he made a mistake and turned himself back a little the way -he had just come. He was pleased when he finally had his head in -front of the doorway, but then saw that it was too narrow, and his -body was too broad to get through it without further difficulty. In -his present mood, it obviously did not occur to his father to open -the other of the double doors so that Gregor would have enough space -to get through. He was merely fixed on the idea that Gregor should -be got back into his room as quickly as possible. Nor would he ever -have allowed Gregor the time to get himself upright as preparation -for getting through the doorway. What he did, making more noise -than ever, was to drive Gregor forwards all the harder as if there -had been nothing in the way; it sounded to Gregor as if there was -now more than one father behind him; it was not a pleasant -experience, and Gregor pushed himself into the doorway without -regard for what might happen. One side of his body lifted itself, -he lay at an angle in the doorway, one flank scraped on the white -door and was painfully injured, leaving vile brown flecks on it, -soon he was stuck fast and would not have been able to move at all -by himself, the little legs along one side hung quivering in the air -while those on the other side were pressed painfully against the -ground. Then his father gave him a hefty shove from behind which -released him from where he was held and sent him flying, and heavily -bleeding, deep into his room. The door was slammed shut with the -stick, then, finally, all was quiet. - - - -II - - -It was not until it was getting dark that evening that Gregor awoke -from his deep and coma-like sleep. He would have woken soon -afterwards anyway even if he hadn't been disturbed, as he had had -enough sleep and felt fully rested. But he had the impression that -some hurried steps and the sound of the door leading into the front -room being carefully shut had woken him. The light from the -electric street lamps shone palely here and there onto the ceiling -and tops of the furniture, but down below, where Gregor was, it was -dark. He pushed himself over to the door, feeling his way clumsily -with his antennae - of which he was now beginning to learn the value -- in order to see what had been happening there. The whole of his -left side seemed like one, painfully stretched scar, and he limped -badly on his two rows of legs. One of the legs had been badly -injured in the events of that morning - it was nearly a miracle that -only one of them had been - and dragged along lifelessly. - -It was only when he had reached the door that he realised what it -actually was that had drawn him over to it; it was the smell of -something to eat. By the door there was a dish filled with -sweetened milk with little pieces of white bread floating in it. He -was so pleased he almost laughed, as he was even hungrier than he -had been that morning, and immediately dipped his head into the -milk, nearly covering his eyes with it. But he soon drew his head -back again in disappointment; not only did the pain in his tender -left side make it difficult to eat the food - he was only able to -eat if his whole body worked together as a snuffling whole - but the -milk did not taste at all nice. Milk like this was normally his -favourite drink, and his sister had certainly left it there for him -because of that, but he turned, almost against his own will, away -from the dish and crawled back into the centre of the room. - -Through the crack in the door, Gregor could see that the gas had -been lit in the living room. His father at this time would normally -be sat with his evening paper, reading it out in a loud voice to -Gregor's mother, and sometimes to his sister, but there was now not -a sound to be heard. Gregor's sister would often write and tell him -about this reading, but maybe his father had lost the habit in -recent times. It was so quiet all around too, even though there -must have been somebody in the flat. "What a quiet life it is the -family lead", said Gregor to himself, and, gazing into the darkness, -felt a great pride that he was able to provide a life like that in -such a nice home for his sister and parents. But what now, if all -this peace and wealth and comfort should come to a horrible and -frightening end? That was something that Gregor did not want to -think about too much, so he started to move about, crawling up and -down the room. - -Once during that long evening, the door on one side of the room was -opened very slightly and hurriedly closed again; later on the door -on the other side did the same; it seemed that someone needed to -enter the room but thought better of it. Gregor went and waited -immediately by the door, resolved either to bring the timorous -visitor into the room in some way or at least to find out who it -was; but the door was opened no more that night and Gregor waited in -vain. The previous morning while the doors were locked everyone had -wanted to get in there to him, but now, now that he had opened up -one of the doors and the other had clearly been unlocked some time -during the day, no-one came, and the keys were in the other sides. - -It was not until late at night that the gaslight in the living room -was put out, and now it was easy to see that his parents and sister had -stayed awake all that time, as they all could be distinctly heard as -they went away together on tip-toe. It was clear that no-one would -come into Gregor's room any more until morning; that gave him plenty -of time to think undisturbed about how he would have to re-arrange -his life. For some reason, the tall, empty room where he was forced -to remain made him feel uneasy as he lay there flat on the floor, -even though he had been living in it for five years. Hardly aware -of what he was doing other than a slight feeling of shame, he -hurried under the couch. It pressed down on his back a little, and -he was no longer able to lift his head, but he nonetheless felt -immediately at ease and his only regret was that his body was too -broad to get it all underneath. - -He spent the whole night there. Some of the time he passed in a -light sleep, although he frequently woke from it in alarm because of -his hunger, and some of the time was spent in worries and vague -hopes which, however, always led to the same conclusion: for the -time being he must remain calm, he must show patience and the -greatest consideration so that his family could bear the -unpleasantness that he, in his present condition, was forced to -impose on them. - -Gregor soon had the opportunity to test the strength of his -decisions, as early the next morning, almost before the night had -ended, his sister, nearly fully dressed, opened the door from the -front room and looked anxiously in. She did not see him straight -away, but when she did notice him under the couch - he had to be -somewhere, for God's sake, he couldn't have flown away - she was so -shocked that she lost control of herself and slammed the door shut -again from outside. But she seemed to regret her behaviour, as she -opened the door again straight away and came in on tip-toe as if -entering the room of someone seriously ill or even of a stranger. -Gregor had pushed his head forward, right to the edge of the couch, -and watched her. Would she notice that he had left the milk as it -was, realise that it was not from any lack of hunger and bring him -in some other food that was more suitable? If she didn't do it -herself he would rather go hungry than draw her attention to it, -although he did feel a terrible urge to rush forward from under the -couch, throw himself at his sister's feet and beg her for something -good to eat. However, his sister noticed the full dish immediately -and looked at it and the few drops of milk splashed around it with -some surprise. She immediately picked it up - using a rag, -not her bare hands - and carried it out. Gregor was extremely -curious as to what she would bring in its place, imagining the -wildest possibilities, but he never could have guessed what his -sister, in her goodness, actually did bring. In order to test his -taste, she brought him a whole selection of things, all spread out -on an old newspaper. There were old, half-rotten vegetables; bones -from the evening meal, covered in white sauce that had gone hard; a -few raisins and almonds; some cheese that Gregor had declared -inedible two days before; a dry roll and some bread spread with -butter and salt. As well as all that she had poured some water into -the dish, which had probably been permanently set aside for Gregor's -use, and placed it beside them. Then, out of consideration for -Gregor's feelings, as she knew that he would not eat in front of -her, she hurried out again and even turned the key in the lock so -that Gregor would know he could make things as comfortable for -himself as he liked. Gregor's little legs whirred, at last he could -eat. What's more, his injuries must already have completely healed -as he found no difficulty in moving. This amazed him, as more than -a month earlier he had cut his finger slightly with a knife, he -thought of how his finger had still hurt the day before yesterday. -"Am I less sensitive than I used to be, then?", he thought, and was -already sucking greedily at the cheese which had immediately, almost -compellingly, attracted him much more than the other foods on the -newspaper. Quickly one after another, his eyes watering with -pleasure, he consumed the cheese, the vegetables and the sauce; the -fresh foods, on the other hand, he didn't like at all, and even -dragged the things he did want to eat a little way away from them -because he couldn't stand the smell. Long after he had finished -eating and lay lethargic in the same place, his sister slowly turned -the key in the lock as a sign to him that he should withdraw. He -was immediately startled, although he had been half asleep, and he -hurried back under the couch. But he needed great self-control to -stay there even for the short time that his sister was in the room, -as eating so much food had rounded out his body a little and he -could hardly breathe in that narrow space. Half suffocating, he -watched with bulging eyes as his sister unselfconsciously took a -broom and swept up the left-overs, mixing them in with the food he -had not even touched at all as if it could not be used any more. -She quickly dropped it all into a bin, closed it with its wooden -lid, and carried everything out. She had hardly turned her back -before Gregor came out again from under the couch and stretched -himself. - -This was how Gregor received his food each day now, once in the -morning while his parents and the maid were still asleep, and the -second time after everyone had eaten their meal at midday as his -parents would sleep for a little while then as well, and Gregor's -sister would send the maid away on some errand. Gregor's father and -mother certainly did not want him to starve either, but perhaps it -would have been more than they could stand to have any more -experience of his feeding than being told about it, and perhaps his -sister wanted to spare them what distress she could as they were -indeed suffering enough. - -It was impossible for Gregor to find out what they had told the -doctor and the locksmith that first morning to get them out of the -flat. As nobody could understand him, nobody, not even his sister, -thought that he could understand them, so he had to be content to -hear his sister's sighs and appeals to the saints as she moved about -his room. It was only later, when she had become a little more used -to everything - there was, of course, no question of her ever -becoming fully used to the situation - that Gregor would sometimes -catch a friendly comment, or at least a comment that could be -construed as friendly. "He's enjoyed his dinner today", she might -say when he had diligently cleared away all the food left for him, -or if he left most of it, which slowly became more and more -frequent, she would often say, sadly, "now everything's just been -left there again". - -Although Gregor wasn't able to hear any news directly he did listen -to much of what was said in the next rooms, and whenever he heard -anyone speaking he would scurry straight to the appropriate door and -press his whole body against it. There was seldom any conversation, -especially at first, that was not about him in some way, even if -only in secret. For two whole days, all the talk at every mealtime -was about what they should do now; but even between meals they spoke -about the same subject as there were always at least two members of -the family at home - nobody wanted to be at home by themselves and -it was out of the question to leave the flat entirely empty. And on -the very first day the maid had fallen to her knees and begged -Gregor's mother to let her go without delay. It was not very clear -how much she knew of what had happened but she left within a quarter -of an hour, tearfully thanking Gregor's mother for her dismissal as -if she had done her an enormous service. She even swore -emphatically not to tell anyone the slightest about what had -happened, even though no-one had asked that of her. - -Now Gregor's sister also had to help his mother with the cooking; -although that was not so much bother as no-one ate very much. -Gregor often heard how one of them would unsuccessfully urge another -to eat, and receive no more answer than "no thanks, I've had enough" -or something similar. No-one drank very much either. His sister -would sometimes ask his father whether he would like a beer, hoping -for the chance to go and fetch it herself. When his father then -said nothing she would add, so that he would not feel selfish, that -she could send the housekeeper for it, but then his father would -close the matter with a big, loud "No", and no more would be said. - -Even before the first day had come to an end, his father had -explained to Gregor's mother and sister what their finances and -prospects were. Now and then he stood up from the table and took -some receipt or document from the little cash box he had saved from -his business when it had collapsed five years earlier. Gregor heard -how he opened the complicated lock and then closed it again after he -had taken the item he wanted. What he heard his father say was some -of the first good news that Gregor heard since he had first been -incarcerated in his room. He had thought that nothing at all -remained from his father's business, at least he had never told him -anything different, and Gregor had never asked him about it anyway. -Their business misfortune had reduced the family to a state of total -despair, and Gregor's only concern at that time had been to arrange -things so that they could all forget about it as quickly as -possible. So then he started working especially hard, with a fiery -vigour that raised him from a junior salesman to a travelling -representative almost overnight, bringing with it the chance to earn -money in quite different ways. Gregor converted his success at work -straight into cash that he could lay on the table at home for the -benefit of his astonished and delighted family. They had been good -times and they had never come again, at least not with the same -splendour, even though Gregor had later earned so much that he was -in a position to bear the costs of the whole family, and did bear -them. They had even got used to it, both Gregor and the family, -they took the money with gratitude and he was glad to provide it, -although there was no longer much warm affection given in return. -Gregor only remained close to his sister now. Unlike him, she was -very fond of music and a gifted and expressive violinist, it was his -secret plan to send her to the conservatory next year even though it -would cause great expense that would have to be made up for in some -other way. During Gregor's short periods in town, conversation with -his sister would often turn to the conservatory but it was only ever -mentioned as a lovely dream that could never be realised. Their -parents did not like to hear this innocent talk, but Gregor thought -about it quite hard and decided he would let them know what he -planned with a grand announcement of it on Christmas day. - -That was the sort of totally pointless thing that went through his -mind in his present state, pressed upright against the door and -listening. There were times when he simply became too tired to -continue listening, when his head would fall wearily against the -door and he would pull it up again with a start, as even the -slightest noise he caused would be heard next door and they would -all go silent. "What's that he's doing now", his father would say -after a while, clearly having gone over to the door, and only then -would the interrupted conversation slowly be taken up again. - -When explaining things, his father repeated himself several times, -partly because it was a long time since he had been occupied with -these matters himself and partly because Gregor's mother did not -understand everything the first time. From these repeated explanations -Gregor learned, to his pleasure, that despite all their misfortunes -there was still some money available from the old days. It was not -a lot, but it had not been touched in the meantime and some interest -had accumulated. Besides that, they had not been using up all the -money that Gregor had been bringing home every month, keeping only a -little for himself, so that that, too, had been accumulating. -Behind the door, Gregor nodded with enthusiasm in his pleasure at -this unexpected thrift and caution. He could actually have used -this surplus money to reduce his father's debt to his boss, and the -day when he could have freed himself from that job would have come -much closer, but now it was certainly better the way his father had -done things. - -This money, however, was certainly not enough to enable the family -to live off the interest; it was enough to maintain them for, -perhaps, one or two years, no more. That's to say, it was money -that should not really be touched but set aside for emergencies; -money to live on had to be earned. His father was healthy but old, -and lacking in self confidence. During the five years that he had -not been working - the first holiday in a life that had been full of -strain and no success - he had put on a lot of weight and become -very slow and clumsy. Would Gregor's elderly mother now have to go -and earn money? She suffered from asthma and it was a strain for her -just to move about the home, every other day would be spent -struggling for breath on the sofa by the open window. Would his -sister have to go and earn money? She was still a child of -seventeen, her life up till then had been very enviable, consisting -of wearing nice clothes, sleeping late, helping out in the business, -joining in with a few modest pleasures and most of all playing the -violin. Whenever they began to talk of the need to earn money, -Gregor would always first let go of the door and then throw himself -onto the cool, leather sofa next to it, as he became quite hot with -shame and regret. - -He would often lie there the whole night through, not sleeping a -wink but scratching at the leather for hours on end. Or he might go -to all the effort of pushing a chair to the window, climbing up onto -the sill and, propped up in the chair, leaning on the window to -stare out of it. He had used to feel a great sense of freedom from -doing this, but doing it now was obviously something more remembered -than experienced, as what he actually saw in this way was becoming -less distinct every day, even things that were quite near; he had -used to curse the ever-present view of the hospital across the -street, but now he could not see it at all, and if he had not known -that he lived in Charlottenstrasse, which was a quiet street despite -being in the middle of the city, he could have thought that he was -looking out the window at a barren waste where the grey sky and the -grey earth mingled inseparably. His observant sister only needed to -notice the chair twice before she would always push it back to its -exact position by the window after she had tidied up the room, and -even left the inner pane of the window open from then on. - -If Gregor had only been able to speak to his sister and thank her -for all that she had to do for him it would have been easier for him -to bear it; but as it was it caused him pain. His sister, -naturally, tried as far as possible to pretend there was nothing -burdensome about it, and the longer it went on, of course, the -better she was able to do so, but as time went by Gregor was also -able to see through it all so much better. It had even become very -unpleasant for him, now, whenever she entered the room. No sooner -had she come in than she would quickly close the door as a -precaution so that no-one would have to suffer the view into -Gregor's room, then she would go straight to the window and pull it -hurriedly open almost as if she were suffocating. Even if it was -cold, she would stay at the window breathing deeply for a little -while. She would alarm Gregor twice a day with this running about -and noise making; he would stay under the couch shivering the whole -while, knowing full well that she would certainly have liked to -spare him this ordeal, but it was impossible for her to be in the -same room with him with the windows closed. - -One day, about a month after Gregor's transformation when his sister -no longer had any particular reason to be shocked at his appearance, -she came into the room a little earlier than usual and found him -still staring out the window, motionless, and just where he would be -most horrible. In itself, his sister's not coming into the room -would have been no surprise for Gregor as it would have been -difficult for her to immediately open the window while he was still -there, but not only did she not come in, she went straight back and -closed the door behind her, a stranger would have thought he had -threatened her and tried to bite her. Gregor went straight to hide -himself under the couch, of course, but he had to wait until midday -before his sister came back and she seemed much more uneasy than -usual. It made him realise that she still found his appearance -unbearable and would continue to do so, she probably even had to -overcome the urge to flee when she saw the little bit of him that -protruded from under the couch. One day, in order to spare her even -this sight, he spent four hours carrying the bedsheet over to the -couch on his back and arranged it so that he was completely covered -and his sister would not be able to see him even if she bent down. -If she did not think this sheet was necessary then all she had to do -was take it off again, as it was clear enough that it was no -pleasure for Gregor to cut himself off so completely. She left the -sheet where it was. Gregor even thought he glimpsed a look of -gratitude one time when he carefully looked out from under the sheet -to see how his sister liked the new arrangement. - -For the first fourteen days, Gregor's parents could not bring -themselves to come into the room to see him. He would often hear -them say how they appreciated all the new work his sister was doing -even though, before, they had seen her as a girl who was somewhat -useless and frequently been annoyed with her. But now the two of -them, father and mother, would often both wait outside the door of -Gregor's room while his sister tidied up in there, and as soon as -she went out again she would have to tell them exactly how -everything looked, what Gregor had eaten, how he had behaved this -time and whether, perhaps, any slight improvement could be seen. -His mother also wanted to go in and visit Gregor relatively soon but -his father and sister at first persuaded her against it. Gregor -listened very closely to all this, and approved fully. Later, -though, she had to be held back by force, which made her call out: -"Let me go and see Gregor, he is my unfortunate son! Can't you -understand I have to see him?", and Gregor would think to himself -that maybe it would be better if his mother came in, not every day -of course, but one day a week, perhaps; she could understand -everything much better than his sister who, for all her courage, was -still just a child after all, and really might not have had an -adult's appreciation of the burdensome job she had taken on. - -Gregor's wish to see his mother was soon realised. Out of -consideration for his parents, Gregor wanted to avoid being seen at -the window during the day, the few square meters of the floor did -not give him much room to crawl about, it was hard to just lie -quietly through the night, his food soon stopped giving him any -pleasure at all, and so, to entertain himself, he got into the habit -of crawling up and down the walls and ceiling. He was especially -fond of hanging from the ceiling; it was quite different from lying -on the floor; he could breathe more freely; his body had a light -swing to it; and up there, relaxed and almost happy, it might happen -that he would surprise even himself by letting go of the ceiling and -landing on the floor with a crash. But now, of course, he had far -better control of his body than before and, even with a fall as -great as that, caused himself no damage. Very soon his sister -noticed Gregor's new way of entertaining himself - he had, after -all, left traces of the adhesive from his feet as he crawled about - -and got it into her head to make it as easy as possible for him by -removing the furniture that got in his way, especially the chest of -drawers and the desk. Now, this was not something that she would be -able to do by herself; she did not dare to ask for help from her -father; the sixteen year old maid had carried on bravely since the -cook had left but she certainly would not have helped in this, she -had even asked to be allowed to keep the kitchen locked at all times -and never to have to open the door unless it was especially -important; so his sister had no choice but to choose some time when -Gregor's father was not there and fetch his mother to help her. As -she approached the room, Gregor could hear his mother express her -joy, but once at the door she went silent. First, of course, his -sister came in and looked round to see that everything in the room -was alright; and only then did she let her mother enter. Gregor had -hurriedly pulled the sheet down lower over the couch and put more -folds into it so that everything really looked as if it had just -been thrown down by chance. Gregor also refrained, this time, from -spying out from under the sheet; he gave up the chance to see his -mother until later and was simply glad that she had come. "You can -come in, he can't be seen", said his sister, obviously leading her -in by the hand. The old chest of drawers was too heavy for a pair -of feeble women to be heaving about, but Gregor listened as they -pushed it from its place, his sister always taking on the heaviest -part of the work for herself and ignoring her mother's warnings that -she would strain herself. This lasted a very long time. After -labouring at it for fifteen minutes or more his mother said it would -be better to leave the chest where it was, for one thing it was too -heavy for them to get the job finished before Gregor's father got -home and leaving it in the middle of the room it would be in his way -even more, and for another thing it wasn't even sure that taking the -furniture away would really be any help to him. She thought just -the opposite; the sight of the bare walls saddened her right to her -heart; and why wouldn't Gregor feel the same way about it, he'd been -used to this furniture in his room for a long time and it would make -him feel abandoned to be in an empty room like that. Then, quietly, -almost whispering as if wanting Gregor (whose whereabouts she did -not know) to hear not even the tone of her voice, as she was -convinced that he did not understand her words, she added "and by -taking the furniture away, won't it seem like we're showing that -we've given up all hope of improvement and we're abandoning him to -cope for himself? I think it'd be best to leave the room exactly the -way it was before so that when Gregor comes back to us again he'll -find everything unchanged and he'll be able to forget the time in -between all the easier". - -Hearing these words from his mother made Gregor realise that the -lack of any direct human communication, along with the monotonous -life led by the family during these two months, must have made him -confused - he could think of no other way of explaining to himself -why he had seriously wanted his room emptied out. Had he really -wanted to transform his room into a cave, a warm room fitted out -with the nice furniture he had inherited? That would have let him -crawl around unimpeded in any direction, but it would also have let -him quickly forget his past when he had still been human. He had -come very close to forgetting, and it had only been the voice of his -mother, unheard for so long, that had shaken him out of it. Nothing -should be removed; everything had to stay; he could not do without -the good influence the furniture had on his condition; and if the -furniture made it difficult for him to crawl about mindlessly that -was not a loss but a great advantage. - -His sister, unfortunately, did not agree; she had become used to the -idea, not without reason, that she was Gregor's spokesman to his -parents about the things that concerned him. This meant that his -mother's advice now was sufficient reason for her to insist on -removing not only the chest of drawers and the desk, as she had -thought at first, but all the furniture apart from the all-important -couch. It was more than childish perversity, of course, or the -unexpected confidence she had recently acquired, that made her -insist; she had indeed noticed that Gregor needed a lot of room to -crawl about in, whereas the furniture, as far as anyone could see, -was of no use to him at all. Girls of that age, though, do become -enthusiastic about things and feel they must get their way whenever -they can. Perhaps this was what tempted Grete to make Gregor's -situation seem even more shocking than it was so that she could do -even more for him. Grete would probably be the only one who would -dare enter a room dominated by Gregor crawling about the bare walls -by himself. - -So she refused to let her mother dissuade her. Gregor's mother -already looked uneasy in his room, she soon stopped speaking and -helped Gregor's sister to get the chest of drawers out with what -strength she had. The chest of drawers was something that Gregor -could do without if he had to, but the writing desk had to stay. -Hardly had the two women pushed the chest of drawers, groaning, out -of the room than Gregor poked his head out from under the couch to -see what he could do about it. He meant to be as careful and -considerate as he could, but, unfortunately, it was his mother who -came back first while Grete in the next room had her arms round the -chest, pushing and pulling at it from side to side by herself -without, of course, moving it an inch. His mother was not used to -the sight of Gregor, he might have made her ill, so Gregor hurried -backwards to the far end of the couch. In his startlement, though, -he was not able to prevent the sheet at its front from moving a -little. It was enough to attract his mother's attention. She stood -very still, remained there a moment, and then went back out to -Grete. - -Gregor kept trying to assure himself that nothing unusual was -happening, it was just a few pieces of furniture being moved after -all, but he soon had to admit that the women going to and fro, their -little calls to each other, the scraping of the furniture on the -floor, all these things made him feel as if he were being assailed -from all sides. With his head and legs pulled in against him and -his body pressed to the floor, he was forced to admit to himself -that he could not stand all of this much longer. They were emptying -his room out; taking away everything that was dear to him; they had -already taken out the chest containing his fretsaw and other tools; -now they threatened to remove the writing desk with its place -clearly worn into the floor, the desk where he had done his homework -as a business trainee, at high school, even while he had been at -infant school--he really could not wait any longer to see whether -the two women's intentions were good. He had nearly forgotten they -were there anyway, as they were now too tired to say anything while -they worked and he could only hear their feet as they stepped -heavily on the floor. - -So, while the women were leant against the desk in the other room -catching their breath, he sallied out, changed direction four times -not knowing what he should save first before his attention was -suddenly caught by the picture on the wall - which was already -denuded of everything else that had been on it - of the lady dressed -in copious fur. He hurried up onto the picture and pressed himself -against its glass, it held him firmly and felt good on his hot -belly. This picture at least, now totally covered by Gregor, would -certainly be taken away by no-one. He turned his head to face the -door into the living room so that he could watch the women when they -came back. - -They had not allowed themselves a long rest and came back quite -soon; Grete had put her arm around her mother and was nearly -carrying her. "What shall we take now, then?", said Grete and -looked around. Her eyes met those of Gregor on the wall. Perhaps -only because her mother was there, she remained calm, bent her face -to her so that she would not look round and said, albeit hurriedly -and with a tremor in her voice: "Come on, let's go back in the -living room for a while?" Gregor could see what Grete had in mind, -she wanted to take her mother somewhere safe and then chase him down -from the wall. Well, she could certainly try it! He sat unyielding -on his picture. He would rather jump at Grete's face. - -But Grete's words had made her mother quite worried, she stepped to -one side, saw the enormous brown patch against the flowers of the -wallpaper, and before she even realised it was Gregor that she saw -screamed: "Oh God, oh God!" Arms outstretched, she fell onto the -couch as if she had given up everything and stayed there immobile. -"Gregor!" shouted his sister, glowering at him and shaking her fist. - That was the first word she had spoken to him directly since his -transformation. She ran into the other room to fetch some kind of -smelling salts to bring her mother out of her faint; Gregor wanted -to help too - he could save his picture later, although he stuck -fast to the glass and had to pull himself off by force; then he, -too, ran into the next room as if he could advise his sister like in -the old days; but he had to just stand behind her doing nothing; she -was looking into various bottles, he startled her when she turned -round; a bottle fell to the ground and broke; a splinter cut -Gregor's face, some kind of caustic medicine splashed all over him; -now, without delaying any longer, Grete took hold of all the bottles -she could and ran with them in to her mother; she slammed the door -shut with her foot. So now Gregor was shut out from his mother, -who, because of him, might be near to death; he could not open the -door if he did not want to chase his sister away, and she had to -stay with his mother; there was nothing for him to do but wait; and, -oppressed with anxiety and self-reproach, he began to crawl about, -he crawled over everything, walls, furniture, ceiling, and finally -in his confusion as the whole room began to spin around him he fell -down into the middle of the dinner table. - -He lay there for a while, numb and immobile, all around him it was -quiet, maybe that was a good sign. Then there was someone at the -door. The maid, of course, had locked herself in her kitchen so -that Grete would have to go and answer it. His father had arrived -home. "What's happened?" were his first words; Grete's appearance -must have made everything clear to him. She answered him with -subdued voice, and openly pressed her face into his chest: "Mother's -fainted, but she's better now. Gregor got out." "Just as I -expected", said his father, "just as I always said, but you women -wouldn't listen, would you." It was clear to Gregor that Grete had -not said enough and that his father took it to mean that something -bad had happened, that he was responsible for some act of violence. -That meant Gregor would now have to try to calm his father, as he -did not have the time to explain things to him even if that had been -possible. So he fled to the door of his room and pressed himself -against it so that his father, when he came in from the hall, could -see straight away that Gregor had the best intentions and would go -back into his room without delay, that it would not be necessary to -drive him back but that they had only to open the door and he would -disappear. - -His father, though, was not in the mood to notice subtleties like -that; "Ah!", he shouted as he came in, sounding as if he were both -angry and glad at the same time. Gregor drew his head back from the -door and lifted it towards his father. He really had not imagined -his father the way he stood there now; of late, with his new habit -of crawling about, he had neglected to pay attention to what was -going on the rest of the flat the way he had done before. He really -ought to have expected things to have changed, but still, still, was -that really his father? The same tired man as used to be laying -there entombed in his bed when Gregor came back from his business -trips, who would receive him sitting in the armchair in his -nightgown when he came back in the evenings; who was hardly even -able to stand up but, as a sign of his pleasure, would just raise -his arms and who, on the couple of times a year when they went for a -walk together on a Sunday or public holiday wrapped up tightly in -his overcoat between Gregor and his mother, would always labour his -way forward a little more slowly than them, who were already walking -slowly for his sake; who would place his stick down carefully and, -if he wanted to say something would invariably stop and gather his -companions around him. He was standing up straight enough now; -dressed in a smart blue uniform with gold buttons, the sort worn by -the employees at the banking institute; above the high, stiff collar -of the coat his strong double-chin emerged; under the bushy -eyebrows, his piercing, dark eyes looked out fresh and alert; his -normally unkempt white hair was combed down painfully close to his -scalp. He took his cap, with its gold monogram from, probably, some -bank, and threw it in an arc right across the room onto the sofa, -put his hands in his trouser pockets, pushing back the bottom of his -long uniform coat, and, with look of determination, walked towards -Gregor. He probably did not even know himself what he had in mind, -but nonetheless lifted his feet unusually high. Gregor was amazed -at the enormous size of the soles of his boots, but wasted no time -with that - he knew full well, right from the first day of his new -life, that his father thought it necessary to always be extremely -strict with him. And so he ran up to his father, stopped when his -father stopped, scurried forwards again when he moved, even -slightly. In this way they went round the room several times -without anything decisive happening, without even giving the -impression of a chase as everything went so slowly. Gregor remained -all this time on the floor, largely because he feared his father -might see it as especially provoking if he fled onto the wall or -ceiling. Whatever he did, Gregor had to admit that he certainly -would not be able to keep up this running about for long, as for -each step his father took he had to carry out countless movements. -He became noticeably short of breath, even in his earlier life his -lungs had not been very reliable. Now, as he lurched about in his -efforts to muster all the strength he could for running he could -hardly keep his eyes open; his thoughts became too slow for him to -think of any other way of saving himself than running; he almost -forgot that the walls were there for him to use although, here, they -were concealed behind carefully carved furniture full of notches and -protrusions - then, right beside him, lightly tossed, something flew -down and rolled in front of him. It was an apple; then another one -immediately flew at him; Gregor froze in shock; there was no longer -any point in running as his father had decided to bombard him. He -had filled his pockets with fruit from the bowl on the sideboard and -now, without even taking the time for careful aim, threw one apple -after another. These little, red apples rolled about on the floor, -knocking into each other as if they had electric motors. An apple -thrown without much force glanced against Gregor's back and slid off -without doing any harm. Another one however, immediately following -it, hit squarely and lodged in his back; Gregor wanted to drag -himself away, as if he could remove the surprising, the incredible -pain by changing his position; but he felt as if nailed to the spot -and spread himself out, all his senses in confusion. The last thing -he saw was the door of his room being pulled open, his sister was -screaming, his mother ran out in front of her in her blouse (as his -sister had taken off some of her clothes after she had fainted to -make it easier for her to breathe), she ran to his father, her -skirts unfastened and sliding one after another to the ground, -stumbling over the skirts she pushed herself to his father, her arms -around him, uniting herself with him totally - now Gregor lost his -ability to see anything - her hands behind his father's head begging -him to spare Gregor's life. - - - -III - - -No-one dared to remove the apple lodged in Gregor's flesh, so it -remained there as a visible reminder of his injury. He had suffered -it there for more than a month, and his condition seemed serious -enough to remind even his father that Gregor, despite his current -sad and revolting form, was a family member who could not be treated -as an enemy. On the contrary, as a family there was a duty to -swallow any revulsion for him and to be patient, just to be patient. - -Because of his injuries, Gregor had lost much of his mobility - -probably permanently. He had been reduced to the condition of an -ancient invalid and it took him long, long minutes to crawl across -his room - crawling over the ceiling was out of the question - but -this deterioration in his condition was fully (in his opinion) made -up for by the door to the living room being left open every evening. - He got into the habit of closely watching it for one or two hours -before it was opened and then, lying in the darkness of his room -where he could not be seen from the living room, he could watch the -family in the light of the dinner table and listen to their -conversation - with everyone's permission, in a way, and thus quite -differently from before. - -They no longer held the lively conversations of earlier times, of -course, the ones that Gregor always thought about with longing when -he was tired and getting into the damp bed in some small hotel room. - All of them were usually very quiet nowadays. Soon after dinner, -his father would go to sleep in his chair; his mother and sister -would urge each other to be quiet; his mother, bent deeply under the -lamp, would sew fancy underwear for a fashion shop; his sister, who -had taken a sales job, learned shorthand and French in the evenings -so that she might be able to get a better position later on. -Sometimes his father would wake up and say to Gregor's mother -"you're doing so much sewing again today!", as if he did not know -that he had been dozing - and then he would go back to sleep again -while mother and sister would exchange a tired grin. - -With a kind of stubbornness, Gregor's father refused to take his -uniform off even at home; while his nightgown hung unused on its peg -Gregor's father would slumber where he was, fully dressed, as if -always ready to serve and expecting to hear the voice of his -superior even here. The uniform had not been new to start with, but -as a result of this it slowly became even shabbier despite the -efforts of Gregor's mother and sister to look after it. Gregor -would often spend the whole evening looking at all the stains on -this coat, with its gold buttons always kept polished and shiny, -while the old man in it would sleep, highly uncomfortable but -peaceful. - -As soon as it struck ten, Gregor's mother would speak gently to his -father to wake him and try to persuade him to go to bed, as he -couldn't sleep properly where he was and he really had to get his -sleep if he was to be up at six to get to work. But since he had -been in work he had become more obstinate and would always insist on -staying longer at the table, even though he regularly fell asleep -and it was then harder than ever to persuade him to exchange the -chair for his bed. Then, however much mother and sister would -importune him with little reproaches and warnings he would keep -slowly shaking his head for a quarter of an hour with his eyes -closed and refusing to get up. Gregor's mother would tug at his -sleeve, whisper endearments into his ear, Gregor's sister would -leave her work to help her mother, but nothing would have any effect -on him. He would just sink deeper into his chair. Only when the -two women took him under the arms he would abruptly open his eyes, -look at them one after the other and say: "What a life! This is what -peace I get in my old age!" And supported by the two women he would -lift himself up carefully as if he were carrying the greatest load -himself, let the women take him to the door, send them off and carry -on by himself while Gregor's mother would throw down her needle and -his sister her pen so that they could run after his father and -continue being of help to him. - -Who, in this tired and overworked family, would have had time to -give more attention to Gregor than was absolutely necessary? The -household budget became even smaller; so now the maid was dismissed; -an enormous, thick-boned charwoman with white hair that flapped -around her head came every morning and evening to do the heaviest -work; everything else was looked after by Gregor's mother on top of -the large amount of sewing work she did. Gregor even learned, -listening to the evening conversation about what price they had -hoped for, that several items of jewellery belonging to the family -had been sold, even though both mother and sister had been very fond -of wearing them at functions and celebrations. But the loudest -complaint was that although the flat was much too big for their -present circumstances, they could not move out of it, there was no -imaginable way of transferring Gregor to the new address. He could -see quite well, though, that there were more reasons than -consideration for him that made it difficult for them to move, it -would have been quite easy to transport him in any suitable crate -with a few air holes in it; the main thing holding the family back -from their decision to move was much more to do with their total -despair, and the thought that they had been struck with a misfortune -unlike anything experienced by anyone else they knew or were related -to. They carried out absolutely everything that the world expects -from poor people, Gregor's father brought bank employees their -breakfast, his mother sacrificed herself by washing clothes for -strangers, his sister ran back and forth behind her desk at the -behest of the customers, but they just did not have the strength to -do any more. And the injury in Gregor's back began to hurt as much -as when it was new. After they had come back from taking his father -to bed Gregor's mother and sister would now leave their work where -it was and sit close together, cheek to cheek; his mother would -point to Gregor's room and say "Close that door, Grete", and then, -when he was in the dark again, they would sit in the next room and -their tears would mingle, or they would simply sit there staring -dry-eyed at the table. - -Gregor hardly slept at all, either night or day. Sometimes he would -think of taking over the family's affairs, just like before, the -next time the door was opened; he had long forgotten about his boss -and the chief clerk, but they would appear again in his thoughts, -the salesmen and the apprentices, that stupid teaboy, two or three -friends from other businesses, one of the chambermaids from a -provincial hotel, a tender memory that appeared and disappeared -again, a cashier from a hat shop for whom his attention had been -serious but too slow, - all of them appeared to him, mixed together -with strangers and others he had forgotten, but instead of helping -him and his family they were all of them inaccessible, and he was -glad when they disappeared. Other times he was not at all in the -mood to look after his family, he was filled with simple rage about -the lack of attention he was shown, and although he could think of -nothing he would have wanted, he made plans of how he could get into -the pantry where he could take all the things he was entitled to, -even if he was not hungry. Gregor's sister no longer thought about -how she could please him but would hurriedly push some food or other -into his room with her foot before she rushed out to work in the -morning and at midday, and in the evening she would sweep it away -again with the broom, indifferent as to whether it had been eaten or -- more often than not - had been left totally untouched. She still -cleared up the room in the evening, but now she could not have been -any quicker about it. Smears of dirt were left on the walls, here -and there were little balls of dust and filth. At first, Gregor -went into one of the worst of these places when his sister arrived -as a reproach to her, but he could have stayed there for weeks -without his sister doing anything about it; she could see the dirt -as well as he could but she had simply decided to leave him to it. -At the same time she became touchy in a way that was quite new for -her and which everyone in the family understood - cleaning up -Gregor's room was for her and her alone. Gregor's mother did once -thoroughly clean his room, and needed to use several bucketfuls of -water to do it - although that much dampness also made Gregor ill -and he lay flat on the couch, bitter and immobile. But his mother -was to be punished still more for what she had done, as hardly had -his sister arrived home in the evening than she noticed the change -in Gregor's room and, highly aggrieved, ran back into the living -room where, despite her mothers raised and imploring hands, she -broke into convulsive tears. Her father, of course, was startled -out of his chair and the two parents looked on astonished and -helpless; then they, too, became agitated; Gregor's father, standing -to the right of his mother, accused her of not leaving the cleaning -of Gregor's room to his sister; from her left, Gregor's sister -screamed at her that she was never to clean Gregor's room again; -while his mother tried to draw his father, who was beside himself -with anger, into the bedroom; his sister, quaking with tears, -thumped on the table with her small fists; and Gregor hissed in -anger that no-one had even thought of closing the door to save him -the sight of this and all its noise. - -Gregor's sister was exhausted from going out to work, and looking -after Gregor as she had done before was even more work for her, but -even so his mother ought certainly not to have taken her place. -Gregor, on the other hand, ought not to be neglected. Now, though, -the charwoman was here. This elderly widow, with a robust bone -structure that made her able to withstand the hardest of things in -her long life, wasn't really repelled by Gregor. Just by chance one -day, rather than any real curiosity, she opened the door to Gregor's -room and found herself face to face with him. He was taken totally -by surprise, no-one was chasing him but he began to rush to and fro -while she just stood there in amazement with her hands crossed in -front of her. From then on she never failed to open the door -slightly every evening and morning and look briefly in on him. At -first she would call to him as she did so with words that she -probably considered friendly, such as "come on then, you old -dung-beetle!", or "look at the old dung-beetle there!" Gregor never -responded to being spoken to in that way, but just remained where he -was without moving as if the door had never even been opened. If -only they had told this charwoman to clean up his room every day -instead of letting her disturb him for no reason whenever she felt -like it! One day, early in the morning while a heavy rain struck the -windowpanes, perhaps indicating that spring was coming, she began to -speak to him in that way once again. Gregor was so resentful of it -that he started to move toward her, he was slow and infirm, but it -was like a kind of attack. Instead of being afraid, the charwoman -just lifted up one of the chairs from near the door and stood there -with her mouth open, clearly intending not to close her mouth until -the chair in her hand had been slammed down into Gregor's back. -"Aren't you coming any closer, then?", she asked when Gregor turned -round again, and she calmly put the chair back in the corner. - -Gregor had almost entirely stopped eating. Only if he happened to -find himself next to the food that had been prepared for him he -might take some of it into his mouth to play with it, leave it there -a few hours and then, more often than not, spit it out again. At -first he thought it was distress at the state of his room that -stopped him eating, but he had soon got used to the changes made -there. They had got into the habit of putting things into this room -that they had no room for anywhere else, and there were now many -such things as one of the rooms in the flat had been rented out to -three gentlemen. These earnest gentlemen - all three of them had -full beards, as Gregor learned peering through the crack in the door -one day - were painfully insistent on things' being tidy. This -meant not only in their own room but, since they had taken a room in -this establishment, in the entire flat and especially in the -kitchen. Unnecessary clutter was something they could not tolerate, -especially if it was dirty. They had moreover brought most of their -own furnishings and equipment with them. For this reason, many -things had become superfluous which, although they could not be -sold, the family did not wish to discard. All these things found -their way into Gregor's room. The dustbins from the kitchen found -their way in there too. The charwoman was always in a hurry, and -anything she couldn't use for the time being she would just chuck in -there. He, fortunately, would usually see no more than the object -and the hand that held it. The woman most likely meant to fetch the -things back out again when she had time and the opportunity, or to -throw everything out in one go, but what actually happened was that -they were left where they landed when they had first been thrown -unless Gregor made his way through the junk and moved it somewhere -else. At first he moved it because, with no other room free where -he could crawl about, he was forced to, but later on he came to -enjoy it although moving about in that way left him sad and tired to -death, and he would remain immobile for hours afterwards. - -The gentlemen who rented the room would sometimes take their evening -meal at home in the living room that was used by everyone, and so -the door to this room was often kept closed in the evening. But -Gregor found it easy to give up having the door open, he had, after -all, often failed to make use of it when it was open and, without -the family having noticed it, lain in his room in its darkest -corner. One time, though, the charwoman left the door to the living -room slightly open, and it remained open when the gentlemen who -rented the room came in in the evening and the light was put on. -They sat up at the table where, formerly, Gregor had taken his meals -with his father and mother, they unfolded the serviettes and picked -up their knives and forks. Gregor's mother immediately appeared in -the doorway with a dish of meat and soon behind her came his sister -with a dish piled high with potatoes. The food was steaming, and -filled the room with its smell. The gentlemen bent over the dishes -set in front of them as if they wanted to test the food before -eating it, and the gentleman in the middle, who seemed to count as -an authority for the other two, did indeed cut off a piece of meat -while it was still in its dish, clearly wishing to establish whether -it was sufficiently cooked or whether it should be sent back to the -kitchen. It was to his satisfaction, and Gregor's mother and -sister, who had been looking on anxiously, began to breathe again -and smiled. - -The family themselves ate in the kitchen. Nonetheless, Gregor's -father came into the living room before he went into the kitchen, -bowed once with his cap in his hand and did his round of the table. -The gentlemen stood as one, and mumbled something into their beards. - Then, once they were alone, they ate in near perfect silence. It -seemed remarkable to Gregor that above all the various noises of -eating their chewing teeth could still be heard, as if they had -wanted to show Gregor that you need teeth in order to eat and it was -not possible to perform anything with jaws that are toothless -however nice they might be. "I'd like to eat something", said -Gregor anxiously, "but not anything like they're eating. They do -feed themselves. And here I am, dying!" - -Throughout all this time, Gregor could not remember having heard the -violin being played, but this evening it began to be heard from the -kitchen. The three gentlemen had already finished their meal, the -one in the middle had produced a newspaper, given a page to each of -the others, and now they leant back in their chairs reading them and -smoking. When the violin began playing they became attentive, stood -up and went on tip-toe over to the door of the hallway where they -stood pressed against each other. Someone must have heard them in -the kitchen, as Gregor's father called out: "Is the playing perhaps -unpleasant for the gentlemen? We can stop it straight away." "On -the contrary", said the middle gentleman, "would the young lady not -like to come in and play for us here in the room, where it is, after -all, much more cosy and comfortable?" "Oh yes, we'd love to", -called back Gregor's father as if he had been the violin player -himself. The gentlemen stepped back into the room and waited. -Gregor's father soon appeared with the music stand, his mother with -the music and his sister with the violin. She calmly prepared -everything for her to begin playing; his parents, who had never -rented a room out before and therefore showed an exaggerated -courtesy towards the three gentlemen, did not even dare to sit on -their own chairs; his father leant against the door with his right -hand pushed in between two buttons on his uniform coat; his mother, -though, was offered a seat by one of the gentlemen and sat - leaving -the chair where the gentleman happened to have placed it - out of -the way in a corner. - -His sister began to play; father and mother paid close attention, -one on each side, to the movements of her hands. Drawn in by the -playing, Gregor had dared to come forward a little and already had -his head in the living room. Before, he had taken great pride in -how considerate he was but now it hardly occurred to him that he had -become so thoughtless about the others. What's more, there was now -all the more reason to keep himself hidden as he was covered in the -dust that lay everywhere in his room and flew up at the slightest -movement; he carried threads, hairs, and remains of food about on -his back and sides; he was much too indifferent to everything now to -lay on his back and wipe himself on the carpet like he had used to -do several times a day. And despite this condition, he was not too -shy to move forward a little onto the immaculate floor of the living -room. - -No-one noticed him, though. The family was totally preoccupied with -the violin playing; at first, the three gentlemen had put their -hands in their pockets and come up far too close behind the music -stand to look at all the notes being played, and they must have -disturbed Gregor's sister, but soon, in contrast with the family, -they withdrew back to the window with their heads sunk and talking -to each other at half volume, and they stayed by the window while -Gregor's father observed them anxiously. It really now seemed very -obvious that they had expected to hear some beautiful or -entertaining violin playing but had been disappointed, that they had -had enough of the whole performance and it was only now out of -politeness that they allowed their peace to be disturbed. It was -especially unnerving, the way they all blew the smoke from their -cigarettes upwards from their mouth and noses. Yet Gregor's sister -was playing so beautifully. Her face was leant to one side, -following the lines of music with a careful and melancholy -expression. Gregor crawled a little further forward, keeping his -head close to the ground so that he could meet her eyes if the -chance came. Was he an animal if music could captivate him so? It -seemed to him that he was being shown the way to the unknown -nourishment he had been yearning for. He was determined to make his -way forward to his sister and tug at her skirt to show her she might -come into his room with her violin, as no-one appreciated her -playing here as much as he would. He never wanted to let her out of -his room, not while he lived, anyway; his shocking appearance -should, for once, be of some use to him; he wanted to be at every -door of his room at once to hiss and spit at the attackers; his -sister should not be forced to stay with him, though, but stay of -her own free will; she would sit beside him on the couch with her -ear bent down to him while he told her how he had always intended to -send her to the conservatory, how he would have told everyone about -it last Christmas - had Christmas really come and gone already? - if -this misfortune hadn't got in the way, and refuse to let anyone -dissuade him from it. On hearing all this, his sister would break -out in tears of emotion, and Gregor would climb up to her shoulder -and kiss her neck, which, since she had been going out to work, she -had kept free without any necklace or collar. - -"Mr. Samsa!", shouted the middle gentleman to Gregor's father, -pointing, without wasting any more words, with his forefinger at -Gregor as he slowly moved forward. The violin went silent, the -middle of the three gentlemen first smiled at his two friends, -shaking his head, and then looked back at Gregor. His father seemed -to think it more important to calm the three gentlemen before -driving Gregor out, even though they were not at all upset and -seemed to think Gregor was more entertaining than the violin playing -had been. He rushed up to them with his arms spread out and -attempted to drive them back into their room at the same time as -trying to block their view of Gregor with his body. Now they did -become a little annoyed, and it was not clear whether it was his -father's behaviour that annoyed them or the dawning realisation that -they had had a neighbour like Gregor in the next room without -knowing it. They asked Gregor's father for explanations, raised -their arms like he had, tugged excitedly at their beards and moved -back towards their room only very slowly. Meanwhile Gregor's sister -had overcome the despair she had fallen into when her playing was -suddenly interrupted. She had let her hands drop and let violin and -bow hang limply for a while but continued to look at the music as if -still playing, but then she suddenly pulled herself together, lay -the instrument on her mother's lap who still sat laboriously -struggling for breath where she was, and ran into the next room -which, under pressure from her father, the three gentlemen were more -quickly moving toward. Under his sister's experienced hand, the -pillows and covers on the beds flew up and were put into order and -she had already finished making the beds and slipped out again -before the three gentlemen had reached the room. Gregor's father -seemed so obsessed with what he was doing that he forgot all the -respect he owed to his tenants. He urged them and pressed them -until, when he was already at the door of the room, the middle of -the three gentlemen shouted like thunder and stamped his foot and -thereby brought Gregor's father to a halt. "I declare here and -now", he said, raising his hand and glancing at Gregor's mother and -sister to gain their attention too, "that with regard to the -repugnant conditions that prevail in this flat and with this family" -- here he looked briefly but decisively at the floor - "I give -immediate notice on my room. For the days that I have been living -here I will, of course, pay nothing at all, on the contrary I will -consider whether to proceed with some kind of action for damages -from you, and believe me it would be very easy to set out the -grounds for such an action." He was silent and looked straight -ahead as if waiting for something. And indeed, his two friends -joined in with the words: "And we also give immediate notice." With -that, he took hold of the door handle and slammed the door. - -Gregor's father staggered back to his seat, feeling his way with his -hands, and fell into it; it looked as if he was stretching himself -out for his usual evening nap but from the uncontrolled way his head -kept nodding it could be seen that he was not sleeping at all. -Throughout all this, Gregor had lain still where the three gentlemen -had first seen him. His disappointment at the failure of his plan, -and perhaps also because he was weak from hunger, made it impossible -for him to move. He was sure that everyone would turn on him any -moment, and he waited. He was not even startled out of this state -when the violin on his mother's lap fell from her trembling fingers -and landed loudly on the floor. - -"Father, Mother", said his sister, hitting the table with her hand -as introduction, "we can't carry on like this. Maybe you can't see -it, but I can. I don't want to call this monster my brother, all I -can say is: we have to try and get rid of it. We've done all that's -humanly possible to look after it and be patient, I don't think -anyone could accuse us of doing anything wrong." - -"She's absolutely right", said Gregor's father to himself. His -mother, who still had not had time to catch her breath, began to -cough dully, her hand held out in front of her and a deranged -expression in her eyes. - -Gregor's sister rushed to his mother and put her hand on her -forehead. Her words seemed to give Gregor's father some more -definite ideas. He sat upright, played with his uniform cap between -the plates left by the three gentlemen after their meal, and -occasionally looked down at Gregor as he lay there immobile. - -"We have to try and get rid of it", said Gregor's sister, now -speaking only to her father, as her mother was too occupied with -coughing to listen, "it'll be the death of both of you, I can see it -coming. We can't all work as hard as we have to and then come home -to be tortured like this, we can't endure it. I can't endure it any -more." And she broke out so heavily in tears that they flowed down -the face of her mother, and she wiped them away with mechanical hand -movements. - -"My child", said her father with sympathy and obvious understanding, -"what are we to do?" - -His sister just shrugged her shoulders as a sign of the helplessness -and tears that had taken hold of her, displacing her earlier -certainty. - -"If he could just understand us", said his father almost as a -question; his sister shook her hand vigorously through her tears as -a sign that of that there was no question. - -"If he could just understand us", repeated Gregor's father, closing -his eyes in acceptance of his sister's certainty that that was quite -impossible, "then perhaps we could come to some kind of arrangement -with him. But as it is ..." - -"It's got to go", shouted his sister, "that's the only way, Father. -You've got to get rid of the idea that that's Gregor. We've only -harmed ourselves by believing it for so long. How can that be -Gregor? If it were Gregor he would have seen long ago that it's not -possible for human beings to live with an animal like that and he -would have gone of his own free will. We wouldn't have a brother -any more, then, but we could carry on with our lives and remember -him with respect. As it is this animal is persecuting us, it's -driven out our tenants, it obviously wants to take over the whole -flat and force us to sleep on the streets. Father, look, just -look", she suddenly screamed, "he's starting again!" In her alarm, -which was totally beyond Gregor's comprehension, his sister even -abandoned his mother as she pushed herself vigorously out of her -chair as if more willing to sacrifice her own mother than stay -anywhere near Gregor. She rushed over to behind her father, who had -become excited merely because she was and stood up half raising his -hands in front of Gregor's sister as if to protect her. - -But Gregor had had no intention of frightening anyone, least of all -his sister. All he had done was begin to turn round so that he -could go back into his room, although that was in itself quite -startling as his pain-wracked condition meant that turning round -required a great deal of effort and he was using his head to help -himself do it, repeatedly raising it and striking it against the -floor. He stopped and looked round. They seemed to have realised -his good intention and had only been alarmed briefly. Now they all -looked at him in unhappy silence. His mother lay in her chair with -her legs stretched out and pressed against each other, her eyes -nearly closed with exhaustion; his sister sat next to his father -with her arms around his neck. - -"Maybe now they'll let me turn round", thought Gregor and went back -to work. He could not help panting loudly with the effort and had -sometimes to stop and take a rest. No-one was making him rush any -more, everything was left up to him. As soon as he had finally -finished turning round he began to move straight ahead. He was -amazed at the great distance that separated him from his room, and -could not understand how he had covered that distance in his weak -state a little while before and almost without noticing it. He -concentrated on crawling as fast as he could and hardly noticed that -there was not a word, not any cry, from his family to distract him. -He did not turn his head until he had reached the doorway. He did -not turn it all the way round as he felt his neck becoming stiff, -but it was nonetheless enough to see that nothing behind him had -changed, only his sister had stood up. With his last glance he saw -that his mother had now fallen completely asleep. - -He was hardly inside his room before the door was hurriedly shut, -bolted and locked. The sudden noise behind Gregor so startled him -that his little legs collapsed under him. It was his sister who had -been in so much of a rush. She had been standing there waiting and -sprung forward lightly, Gregor had not heard her coming at all, and -as she turned the key in the lock she said loudly to her parents "At -last!". - -"What now, then?", Gregor asked himself as he looked round in the -darkness. He soon made the discovery that he could no longer move -at all. This was no surprise to him, it seemed rather that being -able to actually move around on those spindly little legs until then -was unnatural. He also felt relatively comfortable. It is true -that his entire body was aching, but the pain seemed to be slowly -getting weaker and weaker and would finally disappear altogether. -He could already hardly feel the decayed apple in his back or the -inflamed area around it, which was entirely covered in white dust. -He thought back of his family with emotion and love. If it was -possible, he felt that he must go away even more strongly than his -sister. He remained in this state of empty and peaceful rumination -until he heard the clock tower strike three in the morning. He -watched as it slowly began to get light everywhere outside the -window too. Then, without his willing it, his head sank down -completely, and his last breath flowed weakly from his nostrils. - -When the cleaner came in early in the morning - they'd often asked -her not to keep slamming the doors but with her strength and in her -hurry she still did, so that everyone in the flat knew when she'd -arrived and from then on it was impossible to sleep in peace - she -made her usual brief look in on Gregor and at first found nothing -special. She thought he was laying there so still on purpose, -playing the martyr; she attributed all possible understanding to -him. She happened to be holding the long broom in her hand, so she -tried to tickle Gregor with it from the doorway. When she had no -success with that she tried to make a nuisance of herself and poked -at him a little, and only when she found she could shove him across -the floor with no resistance at all did she start to pay attention. -She soon realised what had really happened, opened her eyes wide, -whistled to herself, but did not waste time to yank open the bedroom -doors and shout loudly into the darkness of the bedrooms: "Come and -'ave a look at this, it's dead, just lying there, stone dead!" - -Mr. and Mrs. Samsa sat upright there in their marriage bed and had -to make an effort to get over the shock caused by the cleaner before -they could grasp what she was saying. But then, each from his own -side, they hurried out of bed. Mr. Samsa threw the blanket over his -shoulders, Mrs. Samsa just came out in her nightdress; and that is -how they went into Gregor's room. On the way they opened the door -to the living room where Grete had been sleeping since the three -gentlemen had moved in; she was fully dressed as if she had never -been asleep, and the paleness of her face seemed to confirm this. -"Dead?", asked Mrs. Samsa, looking at the charwoman enquiringly, -even though she could have checked for herself and could have known -it even without checking. "That's what I said", replied the -cleaner, and to prove it she gave Gregor's body another shove with -the broom, sending it sideways across the floor. Mrs. Samsa made a -movement as if she wanted to hold back the broom, but did not -complete it. "Now then", said Mr. Samsa, "let's give thanks to God -for that". He crossed himself, and the three women followed his -example. Grete, who had not taken her eyes from the corpse, said: -"Just look how thin he was. He didn't eat anything for so long. -The food came out again just the same as when it went in". Gregor's -body was indeed completely dried up and flat, they had not seen it -until then, but now he was not lifted up on his little legs, nor did -he do anything to make them look away. - -"Grete, come with us in here for a little while", said Mrs. Samsa -with a pained smile, and Grete followed her parents into the bedroom -but not without looking back at the body. The cleaner shut the door -and opened the window wide. Although it was still early in the -morning the fresh air had something of warmth mixed in with it. It -was already the end of March, after all. - -The three gentlemen stepped out of their room and looked round in -amazement for their breakfasts; they had been forgotten about. -"Where is our breakfast?", the middle gentleman asked the cleaner -irritably. She just put her finger on her lips and made a quick and -silent sign to the men that they might like to come into Gregor's -room. They did so, and stood around Gregor's corpse with their -hands in the pockets of their well-worn coats. It was now quite -light in the room. - -Then the door of the bedroom opened and Mr. Samsa appeared in his -uniform with his wife on one arm and his daughter on the other. All -of them had been crying a little; Grete now and then pressed her -face against her father's arm. - -"Leave my home. Now!", said Mr. Samsa, indicating the door and -without letting the women from him. "What do you mean?", asked the -middle of the three gentlemen somewhat disconcerted, and he smiled -sweetly. The other two held their hands behind their backs and -continually rubbed them together in gleeful anticipation of a loud -quarrel which could only end in their favour. "I mean just what I -said", answered Mr. Samsa, and, with his two companions, went in a -straight line towards the man. At first, he stood there still, -looking at the ground as if the contents of his head were -rearranging themselves into new positions. "Alright, we'll go -then", he said, and looked up at Mr. Samsa as if he had been -suddenly overcome with humility and wanted permission again from -Mr. Samsa for his decision. Mr. Samsa merely opened his eyes wide -and briefly nodded to him several times. At that, and without -delay, the man actually did take long strides into the front -hallway; his two friends had stopped rubbing their hands some time -before and had been listening to what was being said. Now they -jumped off after their friend as if taken with a sudden fear that -Mr. Samsa might go into the hallway in front of them and break the -connection with their leader. Once there, all three took their hats -from the stand, took their sticks from the holder, bowed without a -word and left the premises. Mr. Samsa and the two women followed -them out onto the landing; but they had had no reason to mistrust -the men's intentions and as they leaned over the landing they saw how -the three gentlemen made slow but steady progress down the many -steps. As they turned the corner on each floor they disappeared and -would reappear a few moments later; the further down they went, the -more that the Samsa family lost interest in them; when a butcher's -boy, proud of posture with his tray on his head, passed them on his -way up and came nearer than they were, Mr. Samsa and the women came -away from the landing and went, as if relieved, back into the flat. - -They decided the best way to make use of that day was for relaxation -and to go for a walk; not only had they earned a break from work but -they were in serious need of it. So they sat at the table and wrote -three letters of excusal, Mr. Samsa to his employers, Mrs. Samsa -to her contractor and Grete to her principal. The cleaner came in -while they were writing to tell them she was going, she'd finished -her work for that morning. The three of them at first just nodded -without looking up from what they were writing, and it was only when -the cleaner still did not seem to want to leave that they looked up -in irritation. "Well?", asked Mr. Samsa. The charwoman stood in -the doorway with a smile on her face as if she had some tremendous -good news to report, but would only do it if she was clearly asked -to. The almost vertical little ostrich feather on her hat, which -had been a source of irritation to Mr. Samsa all the time she had -been working for them, swayed gently in all directions. "What is it -you want then?", asked Mrs. Samsa, whom the cleaner had the most -respect for. "Yes", she answered, and broke into a friendly laugh -that made her unable to speak straight away, "well then, that thing -in there, you needn't worry about how you're going to get rid of it. - That's all been sorted out." Mrs. Samsa and Grete bent down over -their letters as if intent on continuing with what they were -writing; Mr. Samsa saw that the cleaner wanted to start describing -everything in detail but, with outstretched hand, he made it quite -clear that she was not to. So, as she was prevented from telling -them all about it, she suddenly remembered what a hurry she was in -and, clearly peeved, called out "Cheerio then, everyone", turned -round sharply and left, slamming the door terribly as she went. - -"Tonight she gets sacked", said Mr. Samsa, but he received no reply -from either his wife or his daughter as the charwoman seemed to have -destroyed the peace they had only just gained. They got up and went -over to the window where they remained with their arms around each -other. Mr. Samsa twisted round in his chair to look at them and sat -there watching for a while. Then he called out: "Come here, then. -Let's forget about all that old stuff, shall we. Come and give me a -bit of attention". The two women immediately did as he said, -hurrying over to him where they kissed him and hugged him and then -they quickly finished their letters. - -After that, the three of them left the flat together, which was -something they had not done for months, and took the tram out to the -open country outside the town. They had the tram, filled with warm -sunshine, all to themselves. Leant back comfortably on their seats, -they discussed their prospects and found that on closer examination -they were not at all bad - until then they had never asked each -other about their work but all three had jobs which were very good -and held particularly good promise for the future. The greatest -improvement for the time being, of course, would be achieved quite -easily by moving house; what they needed now was a flat that was -smaller and cheaper than the current one which had been chosen by -Gregor, one that was in a better location and, most of all, more -practical. All the time, Grete was becoming livelier. With all the -worry they had been having of late her cheeks had become pale, but, -while they were talking, Mr. and Mrs. Samsa were struck, almost -simultaneously, with the thought of how their daughter was -blossoming into a well built and beautiful young lady. They became -quieter. Just from each other's glance and almost without knowing -it they agreed that it would soon be time to find a good man for -her. And, as if in confirmation of their new dreams and good -intentions, as soon as they reached their destination Grete was the -first to get up and stretch out her young body. diff -r cbbc4741267d -r 824673714b91 magitek.asd --- a/magitek.asd Mon Jan 16 23:30:54 2017 +0000 +++ b/magitek.asd Tue Jan 17 01:00:09 2017 +0000 @@ -6,14 +6,25 @@ :license "MIT/X11" :version "1.0.0" - :depends-on (:losh + :depends-on ( + + :chancery :chirp - :sqlite + :cl-arrows + :clss + :drakma + :flexi-streams + :html-entities :iterate - :chancery + :jonathan + :losh :named-readtables + :plump + :sanitize :split-sequence - :cl-arrows) + :sqlite + + ) :serial t :components ((:module "vendor" :serial t @@ -25,5 +36,6 @@ (:file "twitter") (:file "markov") (:module "robots" - :components ((:file "git-commands"))) + :components ((:file "git-commands") + (:file "hacker-booze"))) (:file "main"))))) diff -r cbbc4741267d -r 824673714b91 package.lisp --- a/package.lisp Mon Jan 16 23:30:54 2017 +0000 +++ b/package.lisp Tue Jan 17 01:00:09 2017 +0000 @@ -32,7 +32,8 @@ :cl-arrows :magitek.quickutils) (:export - )) + :build-markov-generator + :generate-sentence)) (defpackage :magitek.robots.git-commands @@ -45,6 +46,14 @@ :magitek.quickutils) (:export :random-string)) +(defpackage :magitek.robots.hacker-booze + (:use + :cl + :iterate + :cl-arrows + :losh + :magitek.quickutils) + (:export :random-string)) (defpackage :magitek diff -r cbbc4741267d -r 824673714b91 src/markov.lisp --- a/src/markov.lisp Mon Jan 16 23:30:54 2017 +0000 +++ b/src/markov.lisp Tue Jan 17 01:00:09 2017 +0000 @@ -125,5 +125,3 @@ ;;;; Scratch ------------------------------------------------------------------ -(defparameter *text* (read-file-into-string "data/metamorphosis.txt")) -(defparameter *m* (build-markov-generator *text* 3)) diff -r cbbc4741267d -r 824673714b91 src/robots/hacker-booze.lisp --- /dev/null Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 1970 +0000 +++ b/src/robots/hacker-booze.lisp Tue Jan 17 01:00:09 2017 +0000 @@ -0,0 +1,182 @@ +(in-package :magitek.robots.hacker-booze) + +; https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eIFeTn5nJg + +;;;; Utils -------------------------------------------------------------------- +(defun tick (ch) + (write-char ch) + (finish-output)) + +(defun read-corpus (path) + (read-file-into-string path)) + +(defun write-corpus (corpus path) + (write-string-into-file corpus path + :if-exists :supersede)) + + +;;;; Hacker News -------------------------------------------------------------- +(defparameter *errors* 0) +(defparameter *stories-per-corpus* 20) +(defparameter *max-comments-per-story* 100) +(defparameter *hn-corpus-path* "corpora/hacker-news.txt") + +(defun firebase-get (url) + (-> url + drakma:http-request + (flex:octets-to-string :external-format :utf-8) + (jonathan:parse :as :hash-table))) + + +(defun hn-top () + (firebase-get "https://hacker-news.firebaseio.com/v0/topstories.json")) + +(defun hn-item (id) + (firebase-get + (format nil "https://hacker-news.firebaseio.com/v0/item/~d.json" id))) + + +(defun hn-story (story-id) + (hn-item story-id)) + +(defun hn-comment (story-id) + (hn-item story-id)) + +(defun hn-text (comment) + (-> (gethash "text" comment) + sanitize:clean + html-entities:decode-entities)) + + +(defun hn-comments (story-id) + (iterate + (with story = (hn-story story-id)) + (with children = (gethash "kids" story)) + (repeat *max-comments-per-story*) + ; (sleep 0.1) + (while children) + (for child-id = (pop children)) + (for child = (handler-case (hn-comment child-id) + (drakma::drakma-simple-error () (incf *errors*) nil))) + (if child + (progn + (tick #\.) + (collect child) + (setf children (append children (gethash "kids" child)))) + (tick #\x)) + (finally (terpri)))) + + +(defun rebuild-hn-corpus () + (write-corpus (-<> (hn-top) + (take *stories-per-corpus* <>) + (mapcan #'hn-comments <>) + (remove-if-not #'identity <>) + (mapcar #'hn-text <>) + (format nil "~{~a~%~}" <>)) + *hn-corpus-path*) + (values)) + +(defun read-hn-corpus () + (read-corpus *hn-corpus-path*)) + + +;;;; Beer --------------------------------------------------------------------- +(defparameter *ratebeer-pages* 5) +(defparameter *ratebeer-corpus-path* "corpora/ratebeer.txt") + + +(clss:define-pseudo-selector no-class (node) + (null (plump:attribute node "class"))) + +(defun ratebeer-get (page) + (-<> (format nil "http://www.ratebeer.com/beer-ratings/0/~d/" page) + drakma:http-request + plump:parse)) + +(defun ratebeer-clean (raw) + "Return a list of review strings." + (-<> raw + (clss:select "table.table td > span:no-class" <>) + (map 'list #'plump:text <>))) + + +(defun rebuild-ratebeer-corpus () + (write-corpus (iterate + (for page :from 1 :to *ratebeer-pages*) + (appending (ratebeer-clean (ratebeer-get page)) :into reviews) + (tick #\.) + (finally (return (format nil "~{~A~%~}" reviews)))) + *ratebeer-corpus-path*) + (values)) + +(defun read-ratebeer-corpus () + (read-corpus *ratebeer-corpus-path*)) + + +;;;; Wine --------------------------------------------------------------------- +(defparameter *wine-pages* 20) +(defparameter *wine-corpus-path* "corpora/wine.txt") + + +(defun wine-get-list (page-number) + (-<> (format nil "http://www.winemag.com/?s=&drink_type=wine&page=~D" + page-number) + drakma:http-request + plump:parse)) + +(defun wine-get-review (url) + (-<> url + drakma:http-request + plump:parse)) + + +(defun wine-clean-list (list-page) + (-<> list-page + (clss:select "a.review-listing" <>) + (map 'list (rcurry #'plump:attribute "href") <>))) + +(defun wine-clean-review (review-page) + (-<> review-page + (clss:select "#review .description" <>) + (elt <> 0) + (plump:text <>))) + + +(defun wine-get-reviews (page) + (iterate + (for review-link :in (wine-clean-list (wine-get-list page))) + (collect (wine-clean-review (wine-get-review review-link))) + (tick #\.) + (finally (terpri)))) + + +(defun rebuild-wine-corpus () + (write-corpus (iterate + (for page :from 1 :to *wine-pages*) + (appending (wine-get-reviews page) :into reviews) + (finally (return (format nil "~{~A~%~}" reviews)))) + *wine-corpus-path*) + (values)) + +(defun read-wine-corpus () + (read-corpus *wine-corpus-path*)) + + +;;;; Generate ----------------------------------------------------------------- +(defparameter *markov* nil) +(defparameter *markov-order* 2) + + +(defun load-corpora () + (setf *markov* + (magitek.markov:build-markov-generator + (concatenate 'string + (read-wine-corpus) + (read-hn-corpus)) + *markov-order*)) + (values)) + + +(defun random-string () + (magitek.markov:generate-sentence *markov*)) diff -r cbbc4741267d -r 824673714b91 vendor/make-quickutils.lisp --- a/vendor/make-quickutils.lisp Mon Jan 16 23:30:54 2017 +0000 +++ b/vendor/make-quickutils.lisp Tue Jan 17 01:00:09 2017 +0000 @@ -13,6 +13,7 @@ :rcurry :read-file-into-string :with-gensyms + :write-string-into-file ) :package "MAGITEK.QUICKUTILS") diff -r cbbc4741267d -r 824673714b91 vendor/quickutils.lisp --- a/vendor/quickutils.lisp Mon Jan 16 23:30:54 2017 +0000 +++ b/vendor/quickutils.lisp Tue Jan 17 01:00:09 2017 +0000 @@ -2,7 +2,7 @@ ;;;; See http://quickutil.org for details. ;;;; To regenerate: -;;;; (qtlc:save-utils-as "quickutils.lisp" :utilities '(:CURRY :ENSURE-BOOLEAN :ENSURE-GETHASH :ENSURE-LIST :N-GRAMS :ONCE-ONLY :RCURRY :READ-FILE-INTO-STRING :WITH-GENSYMS) :ensure-package T :package "MAGITEK.QUICKUTILS") +;;;; (qtlc:save-utils-as "quickutils.lisp" :utilities '(:CURRY :ENSURE-BOOLEAN :ENSURE-GETHASH :ENSURE-LIST :N-GRAMS :ONCE-ONLY :RCURRY :READ-FILE-INTO-STRING :WITH-GENSYMS :WRITE-STRING-INTO-FILE) :ensure-package T :package "MAGITEK.QUICKUTILS") (eval-when (:compile-toplevel :load-toplevel :execute) (unless (find-package "MAGITEK.QUICKUTILS") @@ -19,7 +19,9 @@ :RCURRY :WITH-OPEN-FILE* :WITH-INPUT-FROM-FILE :READ-FILE-INTO-STRING - :STRING-DESIGNATOR :WITH-GENSYMS)))) + :STRING-DESIGNATOR :WITH-GENSYMS + :WITH-OUTPUT-TO-FILE + :WRITE-STRING-INTO-FILE)))) (eval-when (:compile-toplevel :load-toplevel :execute) (defun make-gensym-list (length &optional (x "G")) "Returns a list of `length` gensyms, each generated as if with a call to `make-gensym`, @@ -251,8 +253,36 @@ unique symbol the named variable will be bound to." `(with-gensyms ,names ,@forms)) + + (defmacro with-output-to-file ((stream-name file-name &rest args + &key (direction nil direction-p) + &allow-other-keys) + &body body) + "Evaluate `body` with `stream-name` to an output stream on the file +`file-name`. `args` is sent as is to the call to `open` except `external-format`, +which is only sent to `with-open-file` when it's not `nil`." + (declare (ignore direction)) + (when direction-p + (error "Can't specifiy :DIRECTION for WITH-OUTPUT-TO-FILE.")) + `(with-open-file* (,stream-name ,file-name :direction :output ,@args) + ,@body)) + + + (defun write-string-into-file (string pathname &key (if-exists :error) + if-does-not-exist + external-format) + "Write `string` to `pathname`. + +The `external-format` parameter will be passed directly to `with-open-file` +unless it's `nil`, which means the system default." + (with-output-to-file (file-stream pathname :if-exists if-exists + :if-does-not-exist if-does-not-exist + :external-format external-format) + (write-sequence string file-stream))) + (eval-when (:compile-toplevel :load-toplevel :execute) (export '(curry ensure-boolean ensure-gethash ensure-list n-grams once-only - rcurry read-file-into-string with-gensyms with-unique-names))) + rcurry read-file-into-string with-gensyms with-unique-names + write-string-into-file))) ;;;; END OF quickutils.lisp ;;;;