We all have internal worlds, which are more or less adjusted to the outside world. But what happens when internal passions begin to take over, squeezing out our normal reality? Herman Melville's dark and riveting story tells the tale of Bartleby, and his descent down the rungs of the ladder of sanity into darkness. It was written during one of the lowest points of Melville's life, and reflects his own depression over his apparently failed career. The story is narrated by a successful Wall Street lawyer, who hires Bartleby to transcribe legal documents. Although Bartleby begins as a dedicated employee, he one day responds "I would prefer not to" when asked to do a proofreading job. From there he slips steadily, "preferring not to" do more and more things that are asked of him. He gradually withdraws from the living, to a world unfathomable by others. He loses his job, refuses help from those around him, and eventually dies destitute in prison, unable or unwilling to help himself in any way.
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"America's greatest short story."
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Bartleby the Existentialist,
By dimack (Vacaville,California) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Bartleby the Scrivener (Audio Cassette)
Talk about existentialism! Is there an earlier character who was placed on this earth with no rules by which to live? He is the 1850 Mersault, who, instead of killing an Arab on a Moroccan beach, kills himself because of his lack of a place in the universe. He is like the stray cat who adopts a person for no obvious reason. Bartleby doesn't connnect on a personal level, but bonds on the level of need, comfort and habit. I find Bartleby a most compelling character, and the narrator a true enigma. I have studied this story for years, focusing mostly on Bartleby, and I have been meaning to turn my attention to the narrator, but I just haven't gotten there yet. Maybe I never will.
4.0 out of 5 stars
cherish the little resister in yourself,
By
This review is from: Bartleby the Scrivener (Unbound)
Bartleby's is a negation of the whole of modern, civilized life and the strains and expectations it places on working people. Bartleby, for reasons many of us can share, refuses the whole set-up of his social existence, without though marking a new path or any positive vision of how he and we might live together. Consequently, he ends up destitute and lonely, but true to his stubborn resistance. I think of him often when I see hard-headed five-year olds and how right they so often are in their druthers.
2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
How Barteby's blight affected me,
By "thedrew@2access.net" (Bellefontaine, Ohio United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Bartleby the Scrivener (Unbound)
The title character's desent into depression made visual with the words:"I prefer not to,"echoed in my soul during a period of depression in my own life.I could not believe that a fictional person's words could affect me so,but they did.I soon,also, preferred not to.It was as if the words reflected how I felt perfectly.Heavy stuff for sure.Only through the grace of God did I pull through.This is a very powerful story.
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