Herman Melville's Bartleby The Scrivener

The short story ended with the narrator discovering that Bartleby worked at a Dead Letter Office, which provides information about Bartleby that can further explain his behaviors. However, in the film during the narrator’s first encounter with Bartleby he read his résumé, which stated that he was employed at a Dead Letter Office. In their last encounter the narrator discovered the letter of recommendation that he gave Bartleby and referred to it as a dead letter. In the story Bartleby died, in the story in jail, but in the film it occurred under the freeway making the adaptation not so faithful. The director also included numerous sexual-based conversations and scenes that were not in the story, and he excluded the Biblical references that were made in the

In both stories, after the characters are introduced, one begins to see situational changes within the characters. Bartleby, who once was a skillful, efficient worker and a valuable asset to the lawyer, has now ceased working and his superficial façade is none changing. He presents his employer with a constant and passive answer of “I would prefer not to” to all request and inquiries presented by the lawyer. He unwilling leaves the premises of his job and the lawyer try to put up with him but he finds his annoyance of Bartleby’s actions unbearable. Such as when he found that Bartleby was staying the office after all others had gone home and refusal to do any work and take any money from the lawyer and leave. Even the lawyer seems to be walled in by Bartleby and Bartleby’s

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).

The reader can begin to see Bartleby`s soul dying when he begins to “prefer not to “ do anything (Melville 11). When the narrator asked Bartleby “where [he was] born” Bartleby replied that “[he[ would prefer not to” so it show us that Bartleby is a very private person (11). Bartleby is someone who “nothing of this sort (a biography) can be done” because he never opened up to anyone (1). The narrator begins to think that if it was anyone would have said that he would have “ flown outright into a dreadful passion”, but he realizes “something about Bartleby [disarmed him]” but also “ in a wonderful manner touched and disconcerted [him]”, which shows he thought a lot about Bartleby. The narrator describes Bartleby as a “subordinate clerk when he worked at “the Dead Letter Office” so we know that Bartleby is a kind respectable person. When the narrator goes to look for Bartleby someone describes him as “the silent man” due to his passive resistance to do anything people want him to do (21). The narrator soon begins to see Bartleby as a spirit whom has overall laid melancholy over the area after a while so he decides to leave Bartleby which is when he losses his last little bit of faith in humanity (Friedman 54). The narrator tells us that Bartleby had been removed from the “Dead Letter Office because of a “change in administration”

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

The lawyer is not able to focus on anything because Bartleby will not move from the office or do any work. The lawyer then decides to pay Bartleby a “twenty-dollar bill over and above whatever [is in Bartleby’s account] and tell him his services” are not necessary (674).The lawyer throws money at Bartleby instead of handing it to him in his hands. The lawyer is trying to get rid of Bartleby to let the law firm make money. Melville portrays a constant war of conscience in the lawyer's mind regarding Bartleby's actions and the lawyer's reactions. The lawyer goes to church regularly yet does not show the Christian beliefs and ethics.

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

The style of this story was not the greatest in the beginning, but got better the further into the story I got. As a reader, I found it very hard to concentrate on the first few pages because it had a very slow start to it. Once Bartleby was introduced, however, it was much easier to concentrate. The author created a great sense of mystery around Bartleby, and that is what pulled me into the story. I wanted to figure out who Bartleby was, where he came from, and why he behaved the

In Herman Melville's short story, Bartleby, the Scrivener, the narrator's attitude towards Bartleby is constantly changing, the narrator's attitude is conveyed through the author's use of literary elements such as; diction-descriptive and comical, point of view-first person, and tone-confusion and sadness.

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

Looking at the very first time Bartleby refuses to examine the copies, the reader might think that the narrator is going to dislike him very much, but this is not true at all. When the narrator first hears the refusal, he comes to anger very quickly. He is baffled at Bartleby’s response and proceeds to ask his other employees what their opinions might be. However, the passive nature of Bartleby turns the narrator’s anger into an appreciation for the character. The narrator even tells the reader that Bartleby “means no mischief; it is plain he intends no insolence…. he is useful to me” (Melville 152). This attitude holds strong until Bartleby refuses to do any work at all. The narrator’s thoughts turn into anger again, and he tells Bartleby that “the time has come, you must quit this place” (Melville 159). Nonetheless, after Bartleby also refuses this command, the narrator takes on the responsibility of caring for the poor man. This type of change reflects all of the characters’ changing views of Bartleby throughout the whole story.

The walls of Bartleby conflict with the lawyer's walls, but both are designed to keep both the lawyer and Bartleby safe from the outside world. The lawyer's safe haven is where his office is: Wall Street. On Wall Street, the lawyer knows exactly what society expects of him. He is content with himself and his sense of conventionality and considers himself a representative human being. The lawyer considers Bartleby to be representative of humanity. The lawyer states, "For both I and Bartleby were sons of Adam" (Melville 143). The lawyer originally places himself and Bartleby in the same context of society. However, the lawyer seems to recognize, at the conclusion of the story, the universality of Bartleby's plight. Leon F. Seltzer indicates, "Not simply Bartleby but everybody is essentially isolated in the prison of self and can break out of it only through illusions, whose fragility constantly subjects them to destruction" (119).

In Bartleby, The Scrivener, Bartleby serves as the main character with his distinct nature that everyone is trying to decipher. Despite the attention around Bartleby, much of the story also revolves around the narrator, the lawyer, who tells the story through his perspective; this implies that the lawyer’s ideology and perception of societal norms shape the interactions between the lawyer and Bartleby but also how the story is told. Take for example, if the lawyer disregards Bartleby and fires him on the spot, this story would have ended rather quickly and been much different than it actually is. With this said, the lawyer’s peculiar attraction to Bartleby’s strange behavior can be explained by the lawyer’s innate ideas of social norms and instruction that stems from the behavior of the other scriveners and his own experiences.

Employers should be encouraging their strengths, and working to strengthen their weak points, to make their employees the best that they can be. Rather than just putting all of their employees into the same group, where none of their strengths are shown, and their identity is stripped of them. Other than knowing a little about the lawyers employees they aren’t seen as any more than his scriveners and office boy. Then the reader is introduced to Bartleby, he is