In Bartleby the Scrivener, Wall Street lawyer in need of copyists hires the quiet, reserved, and mysterious Bartleby. After a few days of doing great work, Bartleby is asked to do a task, to which he replies, “I would prefer not to.” The narrator puzzled but strangely fascinated by Bartleby’s odd behavior tries his best to understand and accommodate to Bartleby. Underneath the comic actions of Bartleby, one can say he is shedding light to the limitations of our lives and the futility of our being. A key component of a traditional hero is or any hero is the realization of something that is eluding others- as Bartleby did. “Ah, Bartleby! Ah, humanity!” said by the lawyer after receiving a letter for Bartleby after his death, is there to only highlight that Bartleby’s actions at last made sense to him; there is futility in our existence. Bartleby’s hero’s journey was complete, as according to Campbells’ diagram the return of the hero with knowledge that influence other is the last stage of a journey.
Bartleby (Jorge,Jamie,Maneeb)
March 9, 2017 Written by j.guzman3 | 3 Comments
Categories: Uncategorized
3 responses so far ↓
m.khan10 // Mar 9th 2017 at 11:52 pm
I agree with some of the points my partner Jorge made about Bartleby being a hero. However, I believe that the narrator can also be classified as a traditional hero. It would have been easy for him to fire or kick out Bartleby after he didn’t follow his orders but instead he tried to see things from Bartleby’s perspective. He was genuinely curious about Bartleby’s situation. He even grew to pity him saying, that he “intends no mischief” and his “eccentricities are involuntary.” The narrator definitely showed qualities of a traditional hero.
-Muneeb Khan
p.cheung // Mar 10th 2017 at 2:45 am
Jorge made a great point about how Bartleby was a hero and how his journey was finally completed with his death. That is an interesting way of looking at it because most people talked about all the things he did when he was alive and working. I also agree Bartleby is a hero but what kind of hero he is, can be different to everybody depending on their point of view.
j.yatcha // Mar 10th 2017 at 12:13 pm
It is unclear to me me how anyone can begin to argue that Bartleby the Scrivener is a hero. Bartleby seems to fall into some sort of deep depression. Bartleby looses interest and motivation in all sorts of actions and activities. When asked to do a task by his employer, the lawyer, he simply replies “I prefer not to.” These four words imply a connotation of complete and utter indifference to the world around him. When Bartleby is threatened to be sent to jail if he doesn’t leave the Lawyers office he shows no sense of urgency to leave, he simply replies “I prefer not to.” Bartleby is a weak person who did not have the strength of mind to lift himself out of his depressing thoughts.
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