Bartleby The Scrivener

“Bartleby makes the lawyer question his own life, and eel very troubled, even ashamed, about it. Solitary young men, aloof and fastidious, are too much trouble “because of the extravagant demand they make in human nature.” (McCall, p. 7) (Emerson, p.

The narrator of the story becomes shocked when he discovers that Bartleby, who only feeds on ginger nuts, has never left the office. This is actually the first time that the narrator experiences the spiritual power that Bartleby possesses. The narrator is so much business oriented that he only looks at the world in terms of profits. However, when he encounters this aspect of the spirit of Bartleby, his attitude towards life changes. He begins appreciating the fact that Bartleby deserves better treatment, not in the capitalist way. The narrator even sees what is a right, just as an asset, but this perception is later changed by Bartleby’s spirit: “What earthly right have you to stay here? Do you pay any rent? Do you pay my taxes? Or is this property yours?” (Melville, 41).

By the end of the story, the constant refusals wear everyone down and he is left alone. When new people move into the building, Bartleby still refuses to move from his office, leading to his arrest. Locked away in prison, Bartleby still refuses to eat, saying that “I prefer not to dine today”. This is significant because it shows that he still uses polite wording even though he has given up living. He courteously refuses to eat and chooses to live for as long as he prefers to live and curls up against one of the prison walls. This refusal, even in the face of death, shows an almost courageous side of Bartleby. He knows that he will most likely die, but he still musters up the courage to continue his fight. Due to his refusal of food, he will be buried without sustenance for the afterlife, a final nod to his status as a man without power, appetite, or

The secondary title for the novel, A Story of Wall-Street, sets the stage for what has become another moral dilemma of man — the importance of commerce placed over the importance of life. Melville plays with the role of commerce continuously throughout this work, which takes place inside of a Lawyer's office on Wall Street. The Lawyer states, very simply, that he is "a man who, from his youth upwards, has been filled with a profound conviction that the easiest way of life is the best," revealing that at the very core of his being is an ideal that anything strenuous he may come across in his path should be quickly avoided, as to not cause any disturbance in his daily routine (Melville 1). This accurately sums up the general mindset of those on Wall Street at the time, and perhaps America as a whole -- that anything out of the ordinary was considered a nuisance to those focused entirely on the generation of wealth. The Lawyer recognizes this, and even considers himself a part of this crowd. However, he has taken the time to write this account of Bartleby, the Scrivener that arrives one day to fill a position in the office. While Bartleby may represent this "nuisance" exactly, the Lawyer finds himself drawn towards the mysterious quality he brings, unaware whether he will be beneficial to the firm or

In the narrator’s office, Bartleby is faced with being holed up by his employer. The narrator tells us “I resolved to assign Bartleby a corner by the folding-doors, but on my side of them… I placed his desk close up to a small side window in that part of the room, a window which originally had afforded a lateral view of certain grimy backyards and bricks, but which owing to subsequent erections, commanded no present view at all, though it gave some light… Still to further satisfactory arrangement, I procured a high green folding screen, which might entirely isolate Bartleby from my sight…” (Melville, 301). He has essentially cut Bartleby off from any forms of communication by this set-up, alienating him from the other workers in the office and the narrator as well. We see Bartleby deteriorate through his time in the office, starting off as a hard worker, to denying to do certain parts of his job, and finally, to completely cutting himself off and not doing any work, much to the chagrin of the narrator and the others. The work itself could also be compared to that of what he did in the Dead Letter Office, copying dead letters day in and day out for the law. There is no real destination for what he does, the works he copies will end up gathering

Herman Melville’s short story “Bartleby, the Scrivener” reveals different themes such as isolation and human morality test. In the story, the narrator runs a law firm and has a new Scrivener [Bartleby] who the narrator describes as“ the strangest I ever saw or heard of” (661). For the first few days, Bartleby is seen to be working fine, however, one day Bartleby just responds with “I would prefer not to” when anyone assigns a task to Bartleby (674). The real problems start to arise when Bartleby sleeps and eats at the office while denying to work or leave. The narrator illustrates the two main themes of human morals and isolation throughout the story with the use of biblical references to Bartleby as a leper and shows symbolism of the

Herman Melville is an acclaimed author of the American Renaissance period and his most commendable works include “Bartleby, the Scrivener”. The story of “Bartleby” is not only a revelation of the business world of the mid-19th century but at the same time, it is also the manifestation of the emerging capitalistic lifestyle of perhaps New York’s most prominent street, Wall Street. Bartleby is a rather peculiar yet captivating figure. Bartleby’s life and death contribute to a sort of enigma for the reader and his employer. “Bartleby, the Scrivener” is a story that criticizes the monotonous day-to-day cycle that the modern working man is forcibly put in by society. With that being said, the death of Bartleby not only serves as a reflection

Bartleby, the Scrivener, is a story written by Herman Mellvile. It is about a successful lawyer who hires a homeless, depressed man named Bartleby to transcribe documents for him. The narrator of this story is the lawyer. Throughout the story, Bartleby declines at his job, saying he would “prefer not” to perform his duties. Eventually, the lawyer learns about Bartleby’s homelessness by discovering he has been living in the office. After a while, the lawyer feels it would be best for the business to just move to a different office, so he does. To his surprise, Bartleby follows him there. Bartleby ends up getting arrested and eventually dies while in prison. This story has great meaning to it. The main character displays a great character of

At first, the story ''Bartleby, the Scrivener'' by Herman Melville was unusual for me. Moreover, I thought that at the conclusion, we would know the Bartleby's secret. Why he is the ''riddle'', what he is hiding and what caused him so different from any other people from Wall Street.

Paragraph 95 proceeds with the Lawyer contemplating on what to do with Bartleby. Here, readers gain insight on the Lawyer’s perspective concerning morality and moral responsibility. The Lawyer feels a sense of helplessness and is convinced that he can no longer be accountable for Bartleby. He realizes that he “could not reach” (137) Bartleby’s soul and Clark explains that he is unable to make that connection because “like the money in his

The character of Bartleby in Herman Melville’s novella “Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-Street” is a person who refuses to become an object in capitalistic society. Initially, he is the perfect example of the objectification and mechanization of humans in the workplace. In essence, Bartleby is a machine that continually produces. Ultimately, he begins to resist the mind numbing repetition of his tasks and the mechanization of his life. The other main character, the narrator, is a facilitator of the capitalistic machine. He dehumanizes his employees by ensuring that their free will is denied in the workplace using objectifying nicknames, providing a workplace devoid of human touch and connection,; and perpetuating mechanized, repetitive work. Melville’s “Bartleby, the Scrivener” shows the dehumanizing effects of working in a capitalistic environment and ultimately suggests that one must conform to a standard way of life or will cease to exist.

Herman Melville’s, “Bartleby, the Scrivener,” tells the tale of Bartleby, the new scrivener at a lawyer’s office on Wall-Street. In an office of industrious, distressed workers who endlessly perform mundane tasks due to the orders of the lawyer, Bartleby forms a mystifying exception. Bartleby baffles his boss and colleagues by responding to requests with his famous line, “I would prefer not to.” His response demonstrates an unwillingness to work and a willingness to do what he truly desires, which is extremely unusual to both his colleagues and their society and creates a massive social divide between them. Due to the abandonment of those around him resulting from their growing frustration with his inactivity, Bartleby ultimately faces a swift

“Since he will not quit me, I must quit him. Ah Bartleby, Ah Humanity.” (Melville 131) This is the key to Bartleby, for it indicates that he stands as a symbol for humanity. This in turn functions as a commentary on society and the working world, for Bartleby is a seemingly homeless, mentally scrivener who gives up on the prospect of living life, finally withdrawing himself from society. However, by doing so Bartleby is attempting to exercise his freewill, for he would “prefer not to” work. His relationship to the narrator (the Lawyer) and the normal progression of life. However, this

“Bartleby, the Scrivener” is a remarkable short story written by author Herman Melville. The narrator of the story is a lawyer who owns his own law practice located on Wall Street and has various scriveners who work for him. The first scrivener he describes is named Turkey. He is an excellent worker in the morning, but as the day goes on his work begins to become messy and sloppy. He also has an ill temper in the afternoon. The lawyer tries to have Turkey work only in the morning, but of course Turkey argues with him so the lawyer just decides to give him less import work in the afternoon.

Bartleby tells his own boss and owner of the law office to leave his own property while he remains inside. This event solidifies the fact that the boss has no backbone for himself or the company. The boss cannot stand up for himself and tells Bartleby to leave, but rather takes the command of one of his incompetent workers. Bartleby at this point has gained complete control over his own boss.