Metamorphosis and Physical Disfigurement

When reading Metamorphosis, I could not help but think about a more realistic version of a physical change that could alter the world's perception of any individual. I considered burn victims or other accident survivors that suffer a rapid change in physical appearance. We live in a country today that places tremendous value on outer beauty. There are entire magazines and websites dedicated to celebrating the lifestyles of people who are considered beautiful by traditional standards. When Gregor hid himself from his sister, to pardon her of the burden of having to look at his insect body, I thought of people with physical disfigurements who may wear glasses and scarves, even if is uncomfortable for them, as to relieve others of having to see their wounds, which to onlookers might be considered disgusting. Going from one day being satisfied with the person in the mirror, spending hours on hair or makeup, to never wanting to look in a mirror or even see a reflection of oneself in a window would be a challenging adjustment. This is only made worse when going out in public means constant stares from onlookers, trying to figure out "what happened" or "whats wrong." Even I think about myself and the amount of time I spend looking at myself, whether it be in the mirror in the or on my phone screen, and how traumatic it would be to be revolted by my own face. For accident survivors, I can only imagine that looking at their disfigurement also serves as a constant reminder of a horrible day where they most likely lost more than vanity.