Which line shows the literary technique of in media res?

One morning, as Gregor Samsa was waking up from anxious dreams, he discovered that in bed he had been changed into a monstrous verminous bug.

The dreary weather (the rain drops were falling audibly down on the  metal window ledge) made him quite melancholy.

The small limbs had firm floor under them; they obeyed perfectly, noticed to his joy, and strove to carry him forward in the direction he wanted.

The father groped his way tottering to his chair and let himself fall in it.

1 Answer
Feb 19, 2018

This line shows in media res

"One morning, as Gregor Samsa was waking up from anxious dreams, he discovered that in bed he had been changed into a monstrous verminous bug."

Explanation:

As described in this web site,
"the expression In medias res is Latin for "into the middle of things."

"It usually describes a narrative that begins, not at the beginning of a story, but somewhere in the middle — usually at some crucial point in the action.

"The term comes from the ancient Roman poet Horace, who advised the aspiring epic poet to go straight to the heart of the story instead of beginning at the beginning." https://andromeda.rutgers.edu/~jlynch/Terms/inmediasres.html

In this case, the story opens at exactly the moment the action begins. It just plops the reader directly into the action.

Kafka could have written, "Gregor Samsa was born in Prague in the winter of 1902. He attended the local schools and on graduation, he secured a good position in a commercial firm."

This is "starting at the beginning," but this story starts in the middle of things.

#color(white)(mmmmmm)#――――――――――

Many types of art or entertainment begin in media res, including video games, movies, and legends and myths.

The adventures of many mythic heroes begin as their "Hero's Journey" begins, sometimes with a brief recounting of the miraculous events surrounding the hero's birth.

As in the Gospel stories, there is also sometimes a short tale of precocious ability -- Jesus as a boy teaching the rabbis, or Hercules strangling the snakes in his cradle.

Here's a web site that lists a few examples of stories that begin in media res
http://mentalfloss.com/article/20618/5-great-examples-medias-res