The novella is a small, eerie classic - and resonates even more strongly in contemporary times, in a world that more readily breeds (and, likely, also crushes) Bartlebys.Įxpertly written, it's a worthwhile if disturbing text. The narrator's sympathy, curiosity, and incredible frustration are very nicely captured, as is the figure of Bartleby.
It's ultimately not a situation that can be tolerated, and Bartleby's decline and fall comes fast and hard. The narrator tries to be understanding, but Bartleby doesn't want to be understood: he prefers nothing, beyond being left to his own devices. He settles in and then does as he pleases - not actively disturbing anyone, but the most passive irritant one can imagine.īartleby, the Scrivener is tragic-comic, and Bartleby an individual who stands essentially totally apart from society. His stock phrase soon becomes: "I would prefer not to."Īs it turns out, he would prefer not to do most things he's asked, whether reveal any of his history, run an errand, do a specific task, or finally even quit his employment. I can see that figure now - pallidly neat, pitiably respectable, incurably forlorn !Īn industrious worker at first, Bartleby proves soon enough to be a less than ideal employee. The story is written retrospectively, and that colours the narrator's description of their first encounter: Thrust into this environment, Bartleby, however, remains largely a cipher. The narrative begins with a description of the offices before Bartleby's arrival, and the other employees - nicknamed, with personal quirks - are part of what has become at least a loose family of sorts, even if it does not extend beyond the workplace. It is an account of a person of almost no account:īartleby was one of those beings of whom nothing is ascertainable, except from the original sources, and, in his case, those are very small.īartleby is an employee his background, history, personal circumstances are not of particular interest to his employer - but even he surely expected to come to know more of Bartleby eventually.
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Bartleby, the Scrivener - Herman Melville
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