Kafka's Metamorphosis and Mishima's Disgraced Mariner from the Sea use introspection to communicate and develop their protagonists. However, where Mishima's Ryuji shows negative growth, Kafka's Gregor shows positive growth. As "The Metamorphosis" progresses, Gregor is elevated to higher levels of heroism, as opposed to "Sailor", where Ryuji is reduced to lesser forms of heroism. Introspection is the interaction of one's thoughts, one might say it is a basis of human nature. This is because a characteristic of human beings is having feelings and thoughts hidden within themselves. Introspection reveals what someone is really thinking. Mishima establishes Ryuji's desire for glory through introspection. This allows Ryuji to state that the married officers are "throwing away an opportunity, implying that this opportunity is glory, which he describes as "a turgid cloud... laced with light." Introspection shows how Ryuji believes himself to be destined for glory. In Ryuji's dialogue he rarely expresses his true feelings. Therefore, when asked why he is not married, he replies: “It is not easy to find a woman willing to become a sailor's wife.” of Ryuji are different from his words. Without introspection Ryuji's character would be superficial and would not express that he is waiting for "the touching voice of glory". juxtaposed with superficial responses that do not portray his true feelings. Instead, Kafka uses introspection to portray Gregor's guilt. This is ironic because he wasn't chosen, Gregor felt guilty because his father was in debt, so he took his fa...... middle of paper. .....n. This is because introspection creates sympathy and understanding which gives deaths their symbolism. Mishima and Kafka show the progression and development of their protagonists through introspection. Kafka shows Gregor as truly altruistic and inhuman; true hero However, Mishima shows that Ryuji is a traitor destined for glory but who betrayed his cause in the end his only redemption for this betrayal was death, this is because his glory of the sea and his death were intertwined and they were both “crying his name”. In comparison, Kafka may have shown how Gregor met a similar fate to his, showing how people who are unfairly punished are naturally inclined to thrive off the suffering of others.