"Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-Street" by Herman Melville, shares the strange account of a legal copyist who uses a peculiar way of resisting work: by passively saying, "I would prefer not to." Narrated by a lawyer, the story follows the lawyer's perplexing relationship with Bartleby, a new employee who begins as a great worker but soon refuses to do anything at all. Facing Bartleby's increasing refusal, the lawyer deals with feelings of annoyance, sympathy, and wonder. Bartleby's strange behavior highlights his deep separation from the rest of the world. The story ends sadly with Bartleby's death in prison, hinting at deeper questions about what it means to be human, the meaning of life, and the effects of society ignoring those in need. Through the interactions between the lawyer and Bartleby, Melville creates a sad commentary on modern life and the struggles of people within a heartless world.
Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-Street
By Herman Melville
In the heart of Wall Street, a lawyer's world turns upside down when a new employee's simple phrase, "I would prefer not to," becomes an act of profound rebellion.
Summary
About the AuthorHerman Melville was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works are Moby-Dick (1851); Typee (1846), a romanticized account of his experiences in Polynesia; and Billy Budd, Sailor, a posthumously published novella. At the time of his death Melville was not well known to the public, but 1919, the centennial of his birth, was the starting point of a Melville revival. Moby-Dick eventually would be considered one of the great American novels.
Herman Melville was an American novelist, short story writer, and poet of the American Renaissance period. Among his best-known works are Moby-Dick (1851); Typee (1846), a romanticized account of his experiences in Polynesia; and Billy Budd, Sailor, a posthumously published novella. At the time of his death Melville was not well known to the public, but 1919, the centennial of his birth, was the starting point of a Melville revival. Moby-Dick eventually would be considered one of the great American novels.
More Like This
Explore books similar to the one you're viewing
The Crime of Henry Vane: A Study with a Moral
By Frederic Jesup Stimson
The Experiences of a Barrister, and Confessions of an Attorney
By Samuel Warren
The Price
By Francis Lynde
Passages from a Relinquished Work (From "Mosses from an Old Manse")
By Nathaniel Hawthorne
Pearl-Fishing; Choice Stories from Dickens' Household Words; Second Series
By Charles Dickens
New Grub Street
By George Gissing
More by This Author
Discover other books written by the same author
Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-Street
By Herman Melville
Israel Potter: His Fifty Years of Exile
By Herman Melville
Moby Dick; Or, The Whale
By Herman Melville
Index of the Project Gutenberg Works of Herman Melville
By Herman Melville
White Jacket; Or, The World on a Man-of-War
By Herman Melville
Typee
By Herman Melville
Related by Category
Discover books in the same genre or category
Clarissa Harlowe; or the history of a young lady — Volume 3
By Samuel Richardson
Thomas Reid
By Alexander Campbell Fraser
The Bible, King James version, Book 24: Jeremiah
By Anonymous
Diary Written in the Provincial Lunatic Asylum
By Mary Huestis Pengilly
The Basis of Morality
By Arthur Schopenhauer
Critical Miscellanies, (Vol. 3 of 3), Essay 2: The Death of Mr Mill; Essay 3: Mr Mill's Autobiography
By John Morley