Bartleby the Scrivener
A story of Wall Street
By: Sadie, Korlu, Ryan, Chantalle, Greg
Summary
• “Bartleby, the Scrivener” is a story about an
odd scrivener, who prefers not to do anything.
We as readers never learn very much about
him, except for his eccentricities that the
narrator witnesses. He begins as a very good
scrivener, who completes his tasks very
quickly. However, as time goes on he begins to
do less and less work until he stops
completely. All he eats are ginger cakes and he
resides in the office.
Narration
• The narration type is first person. The narrator is the
employer of Bartleby. The narrator reveals more about
himself than he does Bartleby. He does not know much
about Bartleby, so he is not a very trustworthy narrator
since he is not very knowledgeable. If the story was
told from another perspective it would be very
different. What we learn most are characteristics about
the narrator; therefore, if it was told by a different
person, we would not know the same things. The
narrator is not unconventional in his way of telling the
story besides the fact that he tells us more about his
own characteristics than he does Bartleby, the person
who the story is supposed to be about.
Characters
• In Melville’s “Bartleby, the Scrivener: A story of Wall Street,” the main
character is a scrivener named Bartleby. The main conflict that Bartleby
faces is his own existence. A good mannered, quiet, hard-working copyist
is placed in a dull, secluded work environment where he quickly becomes
at ends with the purpose of his employment. Surrounded by eccentric coworkers whom have deficiencies of their own, Bartleby is initially the spark
the narrator is looking for in his office. While his lack of personality and
character is originally a positive quality of Bartleby; his lack of social
integration quickly overshadows his passive qualities as he “prefers” to do
less and less tasks. Turkey and Nippers are the two other scriveners.
Turkey is a great employee In the morning but due to his drinking he is not
very effective in the afternoon and left to do the less important tasks.
Nippers has fiery personality and indigestion in the morning but makes up
for it with his afternoon productivity. Turkey and Nippers are never
working well at the same time. Bartleby’s passiveness is initially seen as
the perfect solution to moderate the other two scriveners. The conflict
being that Bartleby’s passiveness was not a personality trait but a lack
societal integration.
Setting
• Melville first published "Bartleby the Scrivener" in New York in
1853. The story takes place in a law office populated by a set of odd
men, whose relationships with each other seem to be purely
professional in nature. This impersonality of the characters is hugely
significant – the business-based world in which they operate has no
room for personal interaction, and, as a result, neither does
Melville's story. It's notable that we don't learn anything about any
of the characters beyond what they're like in the office, not even
our narrator.
• We have to wonder if a story like this, in which human beings are
profoundly alienated from each other, even though they interact all
day, every day, would be possible in an alternate setting. setting –
by using the city, and in particular, the office, Melville shows us just
how alone we can be, even when we're surrounded by other
people.
Topic/Theme
• Topic: Bartleby, the original existentialist; the
narrator and his journey in trying to
understand Bartleby and his ways
• Themes: capitalism, materialism in American
culture; work, importance of doing something,
office politics; human condition, rethink
things; passive resistance; life and death
Symbols
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Wall Street: at that time is becoming the financial centre it is today, importance of
geography. The wall contains both wall street and the physical, social and
psychological walls in the story; Bartleby’s condition is a psychological barrier
between him and that social world. The walls erect additional social barriers for
him, doesn’t interact with anyone
Physical walls in the building and outside, they are inescapable; confine social
mobility and interaction; create barriers between people; the larger the
population, the more walls you have.
The screen that separates Bartleby from co-workers; suggests more hiding than
segregation, maybe the barrier between him and everyone else isn’t so thick.
Prison walls in the end, which are more confining than the office building; but
working in an office is also like a prison, working away mindlessly, slaves to
capitalism, materialism; walls are more confining than the screen. Condition in the
office vs. condition in the prison, makes it more evident how confined he is.
Dead Letters: reflects the Wall Street movements of personal protest and “occupy
Wall Street”. The dead letters became Bartleby’s inspiration sculpting him into a
skilled protester “I prefer not to”.
School/Tradition
• Modernist: A British and North American (Canada included) artistic
movement of the early twentieth century that sought to breakaway and
distinguish itself from earlier and more traditional modes of artistic
expression. Modernist writers made use of a variety of literary
approaches, including stream of consciousness, fragmentation, and
ambiguity. Further, modernists experimented with form, and began to pay
closer attention to the writing process itself. Modernist
themes/questions/concerns include: existentialism, despair, the role of
the individual in (or vs.) society, and the existence of God.
• This work fits into the school of modernism because it focuses on the
despair of Bartleby as an individual. His lack of social integration his
alienation from himself continually push him away from being a
productive member of the office and into an internal conflict.
Style/Tone
• Slow paced; but funny, and can deal with serious
themes (death, individuality) in a funny way
• Simple plot, but complex story; the meaning
takes focus to find, it is not clear by just reading
the story, there must be analysis as well.
• Takes a humorous approach to serious topics,
without making light of the situation.
• Passive aggressive