This article analyses the specifics of the MAN-OBJECT metaphor in “Ταξιδεύοντας. Ρουσία» written by the 20th-century Greek writer and journalist Nikos Kazantzakis. The analysis is based on cognitive metaphor theory, with a focus on the semantics of the source domain lexeme used in the metaphor. The MAN-OBJECT metaphorical shifts reveal the categories: 1) ‘mortal’ metaphors used for a negative characterization of the man describing him as an object: 2) container metaphors which are used to characterize the man for the fullness of his inner world; 3) metaphors used for a positive characterization of the man though the object meaning he possesses.