Herman Melville's "Bartleby the Scrivener" Essay

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' The narrator clearly believes in this system, which is why he is so determined, until the bitter end, to force Bartleby to work, rather than firing him immediately. The narrator describes himself as an "eminently safe man." because he supports the system of Wall Street without question.

If Bartleby were alive today, he would likely be one of those individuals in a corporate office who refuses to do 'busy work' when there was really no productive work to do, and frustrates his supervisors who demand that lower-level employees keep up the appearance of productivity at all times. However, although Bartleby clearly seems dissatisfied with his current way of life, he inexplicably refuses to try to change his existence. Even when the narrator, lists a series of possible options for work, Bartleby refuses all of them. Bartleby refuses to move, to take meals, and eventually is confined to 'the Tombs' as a vagrant.

One possible interpretation is that Bartleby's mind has become so warped by his work as a scrivener that, even though he knows how pointless and dull his work might be, he is unable to conceive of a new way of life. He has become physically and emotionally frozen.

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Another interpretation is that Bartleby rejects the capitalist ideal of 'work' being the purpose of human life. Bartleby refuses to be defined by his occupation, and instead insists on being defined by his "humanity," even though he is not sure what his 'humanity' is, anymore, after working so hard for so long. This makes the ending of the story ironic, because the narrator is unable to appreciate Bartleby's humanity, only Bartleby's capacity to do work. The narrator steadfastly resists learning anything from Bartleby's example, and is only determined to 'teach' Bartleby the right way to live, which means to resume Bartleby's formerly industrious habits. Even the title of the story suggests that to the bitter end, Bartleby is always a scrivener, forever tied to his occupational….....

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"Herman Melville's Bartleby The Scrivener " (2009, December 16) Retrieved May 20, 2025, from
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