Examining the Character of the Lawyer in Bartleby the Scrivener

The film Bartleby represents the themes and characters of the story in numerous ways. Two major themes of the story include choices and morality. In regard to making choices, Bartleby continuously stated the phrase “I would prefer not to”, which shows that he took advantage of his right to make decisions even if they did not please everyone else. This theme was translated in the film because this is a phrase that Bartleby also stated countless times. The theme of mortality was displayed in the short story when the narrator had a difficult time deciding how long he should help Bartleby. Also, he wanted to decide if it would be right of him to give up on their work relationship. However, he did act immorally by firing Bartleby and moving offices

The narrator’s sense of compassion is first revealed with frustration towards Bartleby, it is Bartleby oppression towards the narrator, which creates multiple theories of exploiting capitalist through his civil disobedience in producing work. The narrator is able to support ‘sentimental reasonableness’ and is constant throughout his story of Bartleby.

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 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 Melville’s “Bartleby the Scrivener”, the narrator is on the hunt for a new copyist in his office. From what we can tell of our narrator, he is an unambitious, vanilla fellow but still has an air of condescension about him. He always thinks that he knows what is best for his employees, although in actuality, he knows very little. Enter Bartleby: the “incurably forlorn” and “sedate” answer to his prayers (330). Bartleby is a quiet man who gains employment at the law office of our narrator. Overall, he seemed to be a good worker who had a few kinks the narrator thought that he could iron out, but to no avail. At the end of his account, the narrator says “Ah Bartleby, Ah humanity” which suggests that he sees Bartleby as a representation of all people. This is because the narrator thinks of Bartleby and all other people as lesser than him and in need of his help.

Herman Melville's tale "Bartleby, The Scrivener" intentionally reinforces the idea of capitalism. Melville exposes this aspect in his work by the behavior that is conducted by the lawyer towards his employees and at the end by the death of Bartleby. Working in a capitalist society, the employees end up becoming dehumanized by the upper class. The upper class looks at them as tools or aide devices. The employees are available to help aide in the boss’s success.

Another section where McCall’s argument could be made stronger if he added how it relates more to Bartleby is when he writes, “The Lawyer ‘is constantly trying to use Bartleby’s plight to touch off his own emotions’” (270). If McCall elaborated on how the lawyer is trying to use Bartleby’s troubles to touch off his own emotions he might have made a more logical argument. Adding more detail to this statement would give the readers more information or insight into the relationship of the narrator and

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.

Bartleby is a very ignorant man who commonly refuses to do the simplest tasks. He would often be asked by his boss to copy down a legal document and he would just refuse. He resembles the human pattern of an American archetype that was unwilling to accept change. Bartleby displays his unwillingness to change when he is given the choice to either move out of his office or go to jail and says "at present I would prefer not to make any change at all." (Melville 26) He believes that his life was perfect the way it was. This was commonly seen in America during the time period when you had a battle between the younger generation with new ideals and the older generation refusing change. Bartleby is acting like the older generation by ignoring the need to move on and willingness to open up to new ideals. It is even seen in today’s culture often seen with gay rights and the fight between Democrats and Republicans on rights for

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).

First, the caring personality of the lawyer is portrayed when Bartleby did not accept the help that he was offered by the lawyer . Bartleby when he tried to make Bartleby open up and tell him his problems. In the phrase “Ah Bartleby! Ah Humanity!” the narrator uses Bartleby to present humanity. The phrase is a soliloquy from the narrator enquiring why Bartleby refused help. Bartleby is described as a hard working individual but refuses to smile at work or communicte with people at work (5). No-one knew why Bartleby did not smile or communicate with any of his co-workers, and that behavior continues throughout the story. His reponses to the questions that he was asked was, “I would prefer not to,” (14) was distubing to his boss. The reader sees the

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.

Bartleby works incredibly hard at his job, but due to his low social status he dies because he doesn't have the social status required to reach success and the comforts of living where he pleases—his low social status negates his hard work. "Bartleby did an extraordinary quantity of writing." As though he had been waiting to copy his entire life "he seemed to gorge himself on my documents."(Bartleby, The Scrivener, Herman Melville, pg.6). The amount of work Bartleby completed in the

Attaining an honest and genuine level of self-awareness and knowledge in any walk of life is not a feat easily achieved. In Kate Grenville’s novel The Secret River we see William Thornhill endeavouring to come to grips with his environment and social standing. Subsequently in F Scott Fitzgerald’s The Great Gatsby, Fitzgerald’s titular hero’s internal struggle with persona and ambition; prevent him from realizing such a victory. William Thornhill’s world begins in a Dickensian London, and is then transported to the foreign lands of Australia. While Jay Gatsby’s world revolves around how he is perceived; how he perceives himself and the differences there in. Through opposing external and internal struggles our protagonist’s degree of self-knowledge diverge down very different paths.

To force himself to live by the standards of normalcy set forth by society would be to kill the man who lived within. Bartleby did choose physical death over conformity at the end of the story. Melville chose a different path than Bartleby, not a physical death, but a death all the same.