The main character, Gregor, a traveling salesman for a company, wakes up to find that he has transformed into a large beetle. Even in that situation, he worries about the business trip that morning. As Gregor is his family's sole breadwinner, he always wakes up early to start his day. But that day, his family starts to notice that something was wrong because he wasn’t leaving of his room. His office manager of the company, who finds out of his unexcused absence, comes to his house and makes a fuss outside of the Gregor room to come out quickly. Gregor struggles to open the door and comes out, but everyone was utterly horrified to see him being transformed into an insect. The manager runs away in a panic, and Gregor’s father threatens him with a newspaper and sends him into the room and slams the door behind him. Gregor understands the situation, but since he can't even communicate a single word to deal this trouble, he decides to stay quiet hiding as much as he can for the sake of his family. As time passes, Gregor gradually gets used to his life as a bug. Then one day, an irreversible incident happens...