I just re-familiarized myself with Kafka's Metamorphosis and was surprised at how relevant it is to the job, financial, and healthcare situation in America today.
In the book, Gregor Samsa hates his job and hates his boss. He doesn't feel fulfilled by it. The only reason why he hasn't quit is because he needs it to support his family. However, his choice in the matter is removed when he wakes up as a giant bug. His boss even comes to check on him when he is unsatisfied with the fact that Gregor has missed work.
Now that Gregor no longer has a job and cannot work (cuz he is a bug), the rest of his family now has to get jobs. This means that they aren't able to take care of him in the same ways they were before. They aren't around and can't always get him the food he needs. Throughout the story, Gregor also gets injured a number of times making it harder for him to do anything and putting him in pain.
Eventually his family rents out a room in their home for extra income. The renters find Gregor and refuse to pay the rent they owe and threaten legal action, which will only hurt his family more. Realizing that he is a burden to his family – due to his inability to work and provide, his injuries, and his presence now that he is a bug – he chooses to die.
His death allows the family to move into a smaller and cheaper home. It means they no longer have to take care of Gregor. They can even rent out a room if they so choose. They prosper, or, at least there is the insinuation that they can prosper now.
It just rings so true to people today who want to quit their terrible jobs but can't because they can't support their families. Or people who have disabilities or a family member with a disability and how there is little support either financially or in the home. How sad is it that we still live in a society that would rather have people die than help provide for them and their families.