Bartleby has been set off to be seen as a very strange and different individual. Being different can always be a great thing, but Bartleby seems to be a different kind of different. As he is introduced in the story he become very well known for always repeating “I prefer not to”. As seen on page 302 this was the first time he has said it when he was asked to examine a paper. The narrator shared how shocked he was with this response and is quite puzzled as to why he prefers not to. Towards the end of the story I really did not view Bartleby as a hero but once I began to connect humanity with him it showed a Satanic heroism. Bartleby is not very clear when it comes to explaining his feelings throughout the story and I believe he does this is because he wants everyone to see it on their own. To start off, I believe what makes him a hero is that he obviously sees something that everyone doesn’t within humanity. I believe he is way more honest and when he uses the phrase “I prefer not to” he isn’t exactly saying “no” but just expresses his feelings towards what he is being told to do. Also, towards the end of the story the narrator says “The report was this: that Bartleby had been a subordinate clerk in the Dead Letter Office at Washington, from which he had been suddenly removed by a change in administration” (Melville, 321). I have come to the conclusion that I believe Bartleby see’s life in a nihilism way and sees that we are here for no reason. This way of thinking might have been triggered with all of the dead man letters. Which causes him to sometimes just do nothing in the office and act in a inappropriate way. He may believe that anything that needs to be done will be for no reason, so why waste your time doing it.
Francesca Furca Bartleby as a Satanic Hero
March 7, 2017 Written by f.furca | 6 Comments
Categories: Uncategorized
6 responses so far ↓
n.mazza1 // Mar 8th 2017 at 6:08 pm
Nicole :
Francesca, I loved your view on Bartleby. Some might see him as a burden but instead you see him as a hero. You have a good way of combining Bartley’s life to humanity itself. Referring back to when you said “Bartleby is not very clear when it comes to explaining his feelings throughout the story and I believe he does this is because he wants everyone to see it on their own”, this was also an interesting point. As humans, we turn our backs when things are too much for us to handle and have nothing to do with us. As our first instinct we don’t recognize that others also need our help. I feel that the author wanted the readers to relate to having to deal with our own Bartley’s in our personal lives, we all go through it, “AH HUMANITY!”
j.devine // Mar 9th 2017 at 9:42 am
Bartleby, the quiet protestor in Melville’s Bartleby, The Scrivener, can be seen in many different perspectives. Although he presents the characteristics of all three hero types, as Francesca showed in her analysis, I recognize Bartleby as a Traditional Hero. More specifically, I see Bartleby being the most similar to Aristotle’s Tragic Hero. One of the main characteristics to a Tragic Hero is nobility or virtue. This is exemplified in the ways Bartleby takes action. Instead of resorting to violence, like many protestors do, Bartleby takes the high road in remaining peaceful through a type of civil disobedience. We see this when Melville describes the narrator’s reaction to Bartleby’s protest as he states, “Imagine my surprise, nay, my consternation, when without moving from his privacy, Bartleby in a singularly mild, firm voice, replied, ‘I would prefer not to’” (Melville 302). When people disagree with a situation, they usually become angry, but Bartleby remains calm and steadfast in his fight to live the life he desires. Unfortunately, as Aristotle’s Tragic Hero outline describes, the hero is great, but he is not perfect. Bartleby falls to his own demise as he decides to end his life by refraining from eating. It can be seen that Bartleby stands to his ground so strongly, that he makes the ultimate sacrifice: his life. Melville ends the story with Bartleby’s tragic, yet meaningful downfall: “’Eh! – He’s asleep, aint he?’ ‘With kings and counsellors,’ murmured I” (Melville 321). It is in this quote that we see the narrator finally understanding the greatness in Bartleby’s quest to live how he prefers.
ml155866 // Mar 9th 2017 at 11:34 am
Francesca, I completely agree with you that Bartleby is a Satanic Hero and that by instead of simply saying “No” to tasks, he used “I prefer not to” as a rebellious response. I believe Melville wanted the audience to decide for themselves what they thought of Bartleby. Some may see him as a nihilistic person and some may see him as a true hero standing up for what he believes in. The fact that no one really helped Bartleby even though they clearly saw him struggling, shows the true environment of Wall Street; in the end, humanity has failed Bartleby.
t.lewkowicz // Mar 9th 2017 at 8:06 pm
Francesca I also analyzed Bartleby as a hero, but now that I read your response I can see why you saw him as a Satanic Hero. I saw Bartleby as a hero because his silence and rebellion was him standing up for himself. Although Bartleby could have actually voiced how he felt rather than act inappropriately, he probably would have been fired if he had done so. Bartleby’s way of proving his point caused the narrator to constantly wonder what was going on in Bartleby’s head. In the end the lawyer never was able to discover what made Bartleby act this way, which is why I think he chose to let himself starve to death.
j.guzman3 // Mar 9th 2017 at 8:41 pm
“Bartleby is not very clear when it comes to explaining his feelings throughout the story and I believe he does this is because he wants everyone to see it on their own.” Satanic heroes are hero that do not take the right approach or a very dire approach. You make a good point when you say “I have come to the conclusion that I believe Bartleby see’s life in a nihilism way and sees that we are here for no reason.” And so his choosing of not doing anything, in addition to go, going as far as to starving himself makes him the epitome of a satanic hero.
k.parkinson1 // Mar 9th 2017 at 10:01 pm
I agree that Bartleby is a Byronic hero. I find interesting when you say that Bartleby is a different kind of different. In which he definitely is, we are able to see a different way of how someone responds to the stress of life. Such as losing a job, it seems that Bartleby got so consumed by his job that after he got fired he did not know what to do with himself. So, as you pointed out, he lives his life as a nihilism. Also at the end when the narrator says “Ah Bartleby Ah humanity”, I believe he is comparing Bartleby to how we are as a whole. It is human nature to have so much emotions that some may become numb towards them and act out in such ways as Bartleby. Thus in some way he is a hero, a satanic one.
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