One of the themes expressed in Herman Melville’s “Bartleby, the Schrivner” is morality. Melville challenges the reader to think about the “right conduct” when it comes dealing with other human beings. Throughout the story, we see many instances in which the morals of the narrator, the Lawyer, have been tested.

The first instance was when the Lawyer discovered Bartleby in his chambers under dressed (307). After returning to his chambers, The Lawyer was astounded to find that Bartleby has eaten, dressed, and slept in his office without a plate, mirror or bed (307). It was at that point, that he realized that Bartleby was homeless and took great pity on him. The Lawyer was faced with the decision to either let Bartleby stay in his office, or get rid of him. He ultimately lets him stay.

The second instance occured when Bartleby was unable to do anymore writing because of his impaired vision (311). At first the Lawyer felt bad for Bartleby, but that turned into anger when Bartleby wouldn’t do anymore writing if his vision improved. As a result, the Laywer asked Bartleby to leaved and gave him the last of his pay (312). Surprisingly, the Laywer came back the next day that Bartleby was still in his office. He was placed with the decision of whether or not to get Bartleby thrown out of his law firm, but instead, chose to just move his law firm to another place since Bartleby was scaring the clients with his presence (315-316).

The last instance was when the Lawyer offered Bartleby a place to stay at his own home after he finds out that the new lawyer occupying his old space was going to “get rid of Bartleby” (317-318). After Bartleby refuses his offer, the Lawyer just leaves Bartleby to be removed from the space by the police.

Throughout all these instances, we see the Lawyer trying to do the right thing by giving Bartleby a place to stay rather than kicking him out on the streets. As we can see, it becomes harder and harder for the Lawyer as the situation becomes more difficult. Although there wasn’t much that the Lawyer could do, he still demonstrated a great care and concern for Bartleby.