Bartleby the

Scrivener
Study Guide by Course Hero

Bartleby, the Scrivener is told primarily in past tense.

What's Inside
ABOUT THE TITLE
Bartleby, the Scrivener refers to the title character, a scrivener
j Book Basics ................................................................................................. 1 or clerk who copies legal documents by hand at a Wall Street
law firm. The subtitle, A Story of Wall-Street, references the
d In Context ..................................................................................................... 1 literal and figurative walls that surround him.

a Author Biography ..................................................................................... 3

h Characters .................................................................................................. 3
d In Context
k Plot Summary ............................................................................................. 6

c Plot Analysis ............................................................................................... 8

Worker Struggles
g Quotes ......................................................................................................... 14
The narrator of Bartleby, the Scrivener is looking back on the
l Symbols ...................................................................................................... 15
time Bartleby came to work for him. He refers to "the late John
m Themes ....................................................................................................... 16 Jacob Astor," the immensely wealthy man who owned a great
deal of New York City real estate during that time. Astor died in
e Suggested Reading ............................................................................... 17 1848, so the setting for the story is sometime in the 1840s prior
to that date. The decade was a time of great unrest among
workers around the world, as the Industrial Revolution brought
about drastic changes in working conditions. German
j Book Basics philosophers Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels published The
Communist Manifesto in 1848, which called on workers to
AUTHOR revolt. In the United States, factory worker revolts protested
Herman Melville against the long hours they worked for low pay. Strikes also
occurred by workers in bookbinding, upholstering, shoemaking,
YEAR PUBLISHED and tailoring shops.
1853
Voiceless and powerless white-collar workers like the ones
GENRE depicted in Bartleby, the Scrivener did not stage organized
Fiction rebellions. They could, however, make personal revolts like the
one made by Bartleby.
PERSPECTIVE AND NARRATOR
Bartleby, the Scrivener is narrated by the title character's
employer, whose first-person point of view allows the reader to
appreciate the lawyer's perspective of his listless employee.

TENSE
Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide In Context 2

city. He also was the wealthiest man in the country and was
Social Unrest characterized by his ambition and love of money. Astor, a
German immigrant by way of London, got his start in the fur
Herman Melville was familiar with the social unrest of the day, business. Later he bought vast holdings of New York City real
and Bartleby mentions the narrator's fears of a mob. A mob estate, which led to his great fortune. When the War of 1812
action with which Herman Melville was very familiar was the ended, Astor and some of his associates rescued the federal
Astor Place Riot of May 1849. In the riot, which occurred in government from bankruptcy. While many respected him for
New York City, more than 20 people died and more than 100 his business acumen, many thought of Astor as ruthless and
were injured. It was set off when a famous British actor, William selfish.
Charles Macready, appeared at an upscale opera house.
Macready and Edwin Forrest, an American actor, were rivals.
The actors symbolized different sides of the class divisions in
New York. When Macready, who was favored by the upper
Literary and Historical Allusions
class, took the stage, the audience threw everything at
The story includes a number of literary and historical
him—from rotten eggs to vegetables.
references:

Herman Melville was one of the signers of an open letter to

Bust of Cicero: Statue of the head and shoulders of the
Macready, published in the New York Herald Tribune, urging
Roman philosopher, lawyer, and orator Cicero (born in 106
him to continue his performances despite the unrest. But when
BCE), who was murdered for his political activities at the
Macready did return to the stage, a crowd attempted to charge
age of 63 in 43 BCE.
the opera house, and police attacked them. Ultimately, the
Colt and Adams: An 1841 Broadway murder in which a man
militia came. When the crowd was on the verge of overrunning
named John Colt murdered the owner of a print shop,
the militia, they were fired upon. The next day was tense as
Samuel Adams, with a hatchet.
crowds gathered again. Police stopped the would-be rioters,
Edwards on the Will and Priestly on Necessity: Respective
and calm was eventually restored.
works by theologians about free will versus predestination.

Herman Melville did not explain why he signed the letter to The Freedom of the Will by Jonathan Edwards was written

Macready. The English professor and critic Barbara Foley has in 1754, and Joseph Priestley's The Doctrine of Philosophical

speculated that Bartleby was his apology for doing so. "Melville Necessity Illustrated was published in 1777. (Note the

knows his narrator so well," Foley says, "because he carries contemporary spelling of Priestley's name.)

aspects of the lawyer within himself." Job: In the Hebrew Bible's Book of Job, the figure Job is a
righteous man who is tested by God. He suffers terribly and
loses everything, including his family, health, and wealth.

American Romanticism Ultimately, Job comes to regret ever being born, although
he never curses God. Job's words quoted by the narrator in
Bartleby, the Scrivener—"with kings and counselors"—are
Herman Melville was part of the American Romantic
part of his lament that if he had died at birth, he would at
movement. These writers, who also included Walt Whitman and
least be resting peacefully, as even the most powerful men
Herman Melville's friends Ralph Waldo Emerson, Nathaniel
do.
Hawthorne, and Henry David Thoreau, took as their ideals a
Master in Chancery: The Courts of Chancery (also called
celebration of the individual, a strong connection with nature,
Courts of Equity) had been abolished by the time Bartleby
and the power of imagination and intuition.
was written. They heard legal cases that could not be
settled through common law, including cases dealing with
transfers of property and foreclosures. The Master in
John Jacob Astor Chancery was an officer of the court in various ways.
Scriveners: Scriveners made their living by writing or
The narrator of Bartleby, the Scrivener notes that John Jacob
copying legal documents.
Astor had been one of his clients. When Astor died in New
Sons of Adam: In the Hebrew Bible, Adam's first two
York City in 1848, some say he was the most hated man in the

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Author Biography 3

children are his sons Cain, a farmer, and Abel, a shepherd. Melville's second novel, Omoo: A Narrative of Adventures in the
When both give offerings to God, God favors Abel's offering, South Seas, was published in 1847 as a sequel to the 1846
causing Cain to be jealous. He kills his brother, becoming novel Typee and was well received. His third novel, Mardi, and a
the first murderer. Voyage Thither, took a much more philosophical turn than his
The Tombs: This is the nickname for a lower Manhattan jail previous work. Published in 1849, it was widely rejected by
built in 1838. Its official name was the New York Halls of critics. Subsequently, Melville returned to the seafaring tales
Justice and House of Detention. that had won some critical acclaim.
Wall Street: Located in the southern tip of Manhattan, Wall
Street is a street in New York City's financial district and the In 1851 he published his sixth novel and signature classic

center of American finance. The New York Stock Exchange, Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, but it was a critical and commercial

the world's largest market for buying and selling stocks failure. He turned instead to publishing serializations and short

(shares representing ownership of a company), has been fiction in Harper's and Putnam's monthly magazines, and it was

located there since its founding. The institution took the during this period in 1853 that he published "Bartleby, the

name New York Stock & Exchange Board in 1817. Scrivener: A Story of Wall-Street" in two installments in
Putnam's. The story of an alienated office worker who refuses
to work might have represented Melville's difficulty in

a Author Biography
maintaining success as a writer. The story was later collected
in The Piazza Tales (1856). He published his last novel, The
Confidence-Man: His Masquerade, in 1857.
Herman Melville, the third of eight children, was born in New
York City on August 1, 1819. His father, Allan Melvill, operated a In 1866, unable to support his family by writing, Melville took a
business in European finery, but it fared very poorly. In 1830, position as an inspector with the U.S. Customs Service,
Allan fled New York City with his family to Albany, deeply in working on the docks in New York City, a position he would
debt and seeking loans and aid from Melville's grandfather. hold for nearly 20 years. During this time he focused on writing
Allan Melvill died two years later in 1832, which also meant the poetry, though at the time of his death on September 28, 1891,
end of Herman Melville's formal education, as his mother could he left behind the short novel Billy Budd, Sailor, still in
not afford to keep him in school. Upon his father's death, his manuscript form. His writing had fallen largely into obscurity,
mother altered the spelling of the family's last name. but later reprints of his works brought much acclaim and
secured his reputation as one of the greatest American
At age 13 Melville went to work as an errand boy at an Albany novelists.
bank, and then for his older brother's cap and fur business, but
this business failed as well. He also worked briefly as a teacher
and studied to become a surveyor for the Erie Canal, which
was then being constructed. In the late 1830s, he began writing
h Characters
and submitting letters and short fiction to local newspapers.

In 1839, with his prospects in Albany dim, Melville found a job

as a cabin boy on a merchant ship traveling from New York
The narrator
City to Liverpool (this experience would later form the basis for
The narrator is a proud man close to age 60 who values work
his novel Redburn). Afterward, he returned to a teaching
and the connections he has been able to make. His small staff
position near Albany, but by 1841 he had signed onto service
functions well together despite their quirks. He makes no
aboard a whaling ship, not returning to America until 1844. His
mention of family or friends and seems content to make a
adventures, which included jumping ship and being captured by
prospering business the focus of his life.
cannibals, were the basis of a number of his works, including
his first novel, published in 1846, Typee: A Peep at Polynesian
Life. This first novel would be Melville's greatest financial
success. In 1847, Melville married the New York native
Elizabeth Shaw, and the couple eventually had four children.

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Characters 4

Bartleby
Bartleby joins the staff of the narrator as a scrivener. After a
couple of days on the job, he begins to refuse certain tasks his
boss asks of him. Eventually, he does nothing but reside in the
narrator's office. He is calm and silent, as well as noncompliant.

Turkey
Turkey is around the same age as his boss, the narrator, and
considers himself to be the right-hand man. He works
effectively and efficiently in the mornings. However, he comes
back drunk from his long lunches. In the afternoons his work is
poor, and he is harsh. The narrator offers him the option to
work only in the mornings, but he declines and insists he is
needed and capable.

Nippers
Nippers is an ambitious young man who suffers from
indigestion, which makes him irritable in the mornings. It
typically dissipates by the afternoon when he becomes more
effective and pleasant. He has clients of his own and is active
politically.

Ginger Nut
Ginger Nut is 12 years old. His father, who got him the job, has
big dreams and hopes his son will learn about the law and one
day become a judge. Ginger Nut is compliant and runs errands
for the others in the office.

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Characters 5

Character Map

Errand boy

Bartleby
Employee, squatter

Employer

Nippers Employer Employer Ginger Nut

Narrator All-around office worker;
Younger, ambitious
Lawyer; business owner carman's son
employee

Employer
Colleagues Errand boy

Turkey
Older, drunken employee

Main Character

Other Major Character

Minor Character

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Plot Summary 6

gentleman whose job is to copy and proofread legal

Full Character List documents, there is one whom he wants to focus on—Bartleby,
"the strangest I ever saw or heard of." The narrator has scant
Character Description knowledge of Bartleby's life.

The narrator reveals more about himself, his employees, and

The narrator is a well-​to-​do lawyer
The narrator his business. He lives his life based on his theory that "the
who works on Wall Street.
easiest way of life is the best." The narrator adds he is a
lawyer, not especially ambitious, who is considered safe, and
Bartleby is employed as a scrivener
Bartleby rarely loses his temper. He is a lawyer "who never addresses a
for the narrator.
jury, or in any way draws down public applause." Instead he
Turkey is employed as a scrivener for works at making copies of legal documents, describing his
Turkey
the narrator. work "in the cool tranquility of a snug retreat" among "rich
men's bonds and mortgages and title-deeds." He prides himself
Nippers is employed as a scrivener for for having worked for the extremely rich John Jacob Astor.
Nippers
the narrator. Business has been good recently.

Ginger Nut is employed as an office He has a second-floor office on Wall Street. One view is of a
Ginger Nut
boy for the narrator. blackened brick wall, while the other is of a "white wall of the
interior of a spacious sky-light shaft," though it does not
The grub-​man is the cook at the provide any sign of "what landscape painters call 'life.'" The
The grub-​man
prison where Bartleby is taken.
narrator employs three people—two copyists and an errand
boy. They all have nicknames "deemed expressive of their
The landlord owns the building where respective persons or characters."
the narrator has an office. He tries to
The landlord get the lawyer to take responsibility
for Bartleby, and eventually has The most senior employee, Turkey, is around the same age as
Bartleby arrested. the narrator, near 60, and has worked with him for many years.
The narrator is happy with Turkey's work in the morning.
Mr. B. moves into the office that the However, after he takes his lunch break, he returns to the
Mr. B.
narrator has vacated. office with a red face due to consuming alcohol. While he
remains energetic, Turkey is less productive, makes mistakes,
Nippers's clients are seedy-​looking and is easily provoked to anger. The narrator suggests he work
Nippers's
men who show up at the narrator's a half day, but Turkey insists on working a full day. "I consider
clients
office to see him.
myself your right-hand man," he says.

The tenants share the office building Nippers is around 25, and the narrator says, "I always deemed
The tenants the narrator was in before he left for a
new building. him the victim of two evil powers—ambition and indigestion."
He can be testy and irritable when suffering from indigestion,
which typically occurs in the morning. This is the time of day
when Nippers makes mistakes and constantly rearranges his
k Plot Summary work space, trying to get it to his liking. He also receives
visitors at the office whom he calls his clients. Ultimately, the

Bartleby, the Scrivener begins with the title character's boss narrator says Nippers is useful and dressed nicely, which

introducing himself. The narrator is an older gentleman and a "reflected credit upon my chambers." Nippers's relative calm

successful Wall Street lawyer. He notes that over the course of and industriousness in the afternoons balances out Turkey's

his career, he has worked "with what would seem an relative usefulness in the mornings, so the narrator is content

interesting and somewhat singular set of men ... law-copyists to employ them both.

or scriveners." While the narrator compliments these

Ginger Nut is 12 years old, and his father, who is a car man,

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Plot Summary 7

wants his son to be a student of the law. The narrator notes decides to try to befriend Bartleby, but he gets frustrated and
Ginger Nut acts as a cleaner, sweeper, and errand boy who is angry with the lack of response.
paid $1 a week. One of his main tasks is to go out and buy food
(often ginger nut cakes) and drink for Turkey and Nippers. When Bartleby again refuses to do some work, the narrator
questions his employees as to their opinion. The narrator then
The narrator returns to the story of Bartleby, whom he hires asks for Bartleby to run an errand and receives the same reply.
because of an increase in business: he has recently been given A little later another request is made of Bartleby, and he says
the office of Master in Chancery. Bartleby appears at his the same phrase yet again. The narrator decides to "walk
office, described as a "motionless young man" who is "pallidly home for the day, suffering much from perplexity and distress
neat, pitiably respectable, [and] incurably forlorn!" He is hired of mind." Time passes and Bartleby does the copying but
after a brief interview and given a work space on the narrator's nothing else.
side of the office, next to a window that faces a brick wall that
provides "no view at all." The narrator thinks Bartleby will fit in Arriving too early for church one Sunday morning, the narrator

well because he is "so singularly sedate," which might offset decides to visit his office. As he tries to enter, he "found it

the "the flighty temper of Turkey, and the fiery one of Nippers." resisted by something inserted from the inside." Bartleby is

Bartleby is thus isolated but within earshot of the narrator. there, having locked the door from the inside. He says that he
is not ready to have someone enter and tells the narrator to
At first Bartleby does an excellent job, though his silence come back later. The narrator is astonished, but he leaves and
concerns the narrator. On the third day of his employment, says, "It was his wonderful mildness chiefly, which not only
Bartleby is called into the narrator's office to proofread his disarmed me, but unmanned me, as it were." When he soon
coworker's copy. Upon being called a second time, Bartleby returns to the office, he confirms that Bartleby has been living
replies "in a singularly mild, firm voice, 'I would prefer not to.'" there for some time. He feels pity for Bartleby and sadness
The response stuns the narrator. After gathering himself, the about his situation: "The bond of a common humanity now
request is made again, and Bartleby replies with the same drew me irresistibly to gloom."
words. The narrator is unsure what to do next. As he is in a
rush, he leaves the situation and gets another employee to The narrator recognizes that Bartleby never speaks unless

help him. spoken to, never reads, and stares out "upon the dead brick
wall." He comes to believe "the scrivener was the victim of
A few days later the entire staff is gathered to do the same innate and incurable disorder." His soul is suffering, and the
task. When Bartleby is asked to join he again replies, "I would narrator cannot reach Bartleby's soul. The narrator resolves to
prefer not to." Again the narrator is shocked. He asks for an learn Bartleby's history. If he will not answer, the narrator
explanation, but Bartleby simply repeats himself. The narrator decides he will tell him his services are no longer needed, in
tries to explain the necessity of doing one's work, but to no addition to offering to help in whatever way is needed.
avail. He asks the others what they think, and they are all
irritated and support the narrator. Nothing happens, and When Bartleby does not engage in the conversation, the

eventually they continue on with the work without Bartleby narrator becomes annoyed again. However, he does not want

because of the fast-paced demands of their office work. to act out. He asks Bartleby to agree to do the work he has
refused and to be more agreeable. Bartleby does not comply.
The narrator notices Bartleby does not leave the office and The narrator realizes while talking to Nippers that he has been
seems to exist on the ginger nut cakes that Ginger Nut buys using the word prefer as well. Turkey has also been using the
for him. The narrator begins to feel pity for Bartleby. While he word. The next day Bartleby decides he will no longer write.
thinks, "Nothing so aggravates an earnest person as a passive When asked why, he says, "Do you not see the reason for
resistance," he reasons that if he fires him, Bartleby will end up yourself." The narrator concludes it's because of his eyesight.
with a "less indulgent employer" and suffer because of it. He A few days later Bartleby says he has given up copying
decides that "to humor him ... will cost me nothing, while I lay up forever.
in my soul what will eventually prove a sweet morsel for my
conscience." In short, Bartleby is useful in providing the The narrator comes to see Bartleby as a weight, a "millstone"

narrator with an inexpensive balm for his conscience. He upon him. "Yet I was sorry for him," he says. Bartleby "seemed
alone, absolutely alone in the universe." Nevertheless, the

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Plot Analysis 8

narrator says that "necessities connected with my business particular. First, the narrator gets angry and then offers
tyrannized over all other considerations," and he demands that Bartleby a chance to live in his home until they can find a better
Bartleby leave within the next six days. solution. Bartleby refuses. The narrator leaves quickly. He
takes a vacation for a few days to get away from the guilt and
Six days later, Bartleby has not left the premises. The narrator stress as well as the concern that he will be hunted down by
is at a loss about what to do. He decides to pay Bartleby his the landlord and tenants.
wages, plus $20 extra, leaves the money on a table, and
demands that Bartleby leave his key and be gone by morning. Upon returning to the office, the narrator learns Bartleby has
He imagines that by "assuming" Bartleby will be gone in the been taken to the Tombs, a prison, for vagrancy. The narrator
morning that Bartleby actually will have in reality left, but this is visits Bartleby. After being greeted by the narrator, Bartleby
not the case. The narrator is astonished. He refuses to responds, "I know you, and I want nothing to say to you."
physically remove Bartleby or to make a scene, but he
demands, "What earthly right have you to stay here? Do you The grub-man, or prison cook, approaches the narrator looking

pay any rent? ... Or is this property yours?" Bartleby continues for a bribe. If he wants his friend to eat well, the narrator will

to refuse to work or leave. need to pay him off. The narrator does so, telling the grub-man
to give Bartleby the best food and to be polite with him. When
The narrator is at first in "such a state of nervous resentment" the grub-man approaches Bartleby, he replies, "I prefer not to
that he recollects a case in which a man named Colt, being dine to-day."
"dreadfully incensed" by his victim, a man named Adams,
committed murder. Then, however, the narrator remembers the After a few days the narrator comes back to the Tombs. He is

words of Jesus in the New Testament: "A new commandment told Bartleby, or the silent man, is "sleeping in the yard there.

give I unto you, that ye love one another." Christian kindness, 'Tis not twenty minutes since I saw him lie down." The narrator

he reasons, demands that he continue to tolerate Bartleby. goes to Bartleby and sees he has died. To the grub-man's
inquiry if Bartleby is asleep, the narrator replies, "With kings
Several days pass, and to shore up his decision to leave and counselors," quoting the biblical Book of Job.
Bartleby alone the narrator looks into texts about free will. He
wonders if his situation has not "been all predestinated from Sometime later, the narrator learns a piece of information

eternity" and beyond "a mere mortal like me to fathom." But about Bartleby. He "had been a subordinate clerk in the Dead

after his professional friends start making comments about Letter Office at Washington," a job he lost because of a

Bartleby, the narrator asks himself, "What does conscience say "change in the administration." Bartleby had opened letters

I should do with this man, or rather ghost. Rid myself of him, I that were deemed undeliverable by the postal service,

must." He decides that his only choice is to move his offices. removed any valuable contents, and then had the letters

He informs Bartleby and also notes he will no longer need his burned. The narrator concludes the story, "Ah Bartleby! Ah

services. Bartleby is silent. Upon leaving the narrator says humanity!"

good-bye and "God some way bless you" to Bartleby. Again he

tries to give Bartleby money, but Bartleby does not take it. He
leaves with mixed emotions. c Plot Analysis
Once situated in the new offices, the narrator is told by the
Bartleby, the Scrivener can be read and interpreted in many
new tenant of his old office that he is responsible for Bartleby.
different ways, an impact that the author surely intended by
He refuses to be held accountable for removing Bartleby and
taking as characters an ambiguous "[being] of whom nothing is
says, "I know nothing about him." When tenants from the old
ascertainable" and a narrator who tries but fails to understand
building come to the narrator and tell him about the issues
his subject. Below are insights on four of the major areas of
caused by Bartleby's presence, he agrees to try to speak with
discussion about the short story.
him.

When the narrator returns to his old offices to see Bartleby, he

suggests a few different jobs that he might apply for, but
Bartleby rejects each one. Each time, he insists he is not

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Plot Analysis 9

lessen the guilt he feels over his former employee's death.

Bartleby's Stance
From the story's title, Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-
Street, readers might assume that Bartleby is the protagonist
The Narrator
of the story. His refusal to work can be seen as a heroic form
The narrator's life revolves around work. Though he describes
of rebellion against the impersonal capitalism of Wall Street
himself as unambitious, he is proud of his work and that his
and the deadening work of copying—a passive or nonviolent
clients "consider [him] an eminently safe man." His business
expression of resistance like those later made famous by
flourishes as he does "a snug business among rich men's
Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr. Evoking the theme of
bonds and mortgages and title-deeds." These rich men include
religion, he can also be seen as a Christ-like figure, sacrificed
John Jacob Astor, the most well-off man in the United States.
for his refusal to do meaningless work—although this view of
When referring to his association with Astor, the narrator is
the character has limitations because he does no good aside
positively giddy. He even enjoys saying Astor's name, although
from disturbing the status quo. From the perspective of
he doesn't name himself. His only identity comes from his
Romanticism, he exerts individual power through his refusals,
profession.
like a hero, and seems to follow intuitions about the hopeless
nature of his work that he gained during his tenure in the Dead At the same time, the narrator wants to make his life as easy
Letter Office. and comfortable as possible; his motto is "the easiest way of
life is the best." He is blind to the fact that, in refusing to take
Yet in his extreme passivity and isolation, Bartleby is ultimately
certain actions, he is very similar to Bartleby. He is, therefore,
an antihero and serves as a foil to, or double of, the narrator.
both prone to tolerate Bartleby's eccentricities longer than
The only qualities Bartleby displays are a lack of interest in
most employers would do and supremely vexed by his
work and a capacity for keeping still. He barely talks other than
behavior.
his often-repeated phrase, "I prefer not to." The reader learns
nothing about his history before the last paragraph, where it is Bartleby's noncompliance, and his refusal to provide a reason
revealed that he had a job as a clerk in the Dead Letter not to comply, is a daunting puzzle for the narrator. However,
Office—one that the narrator surmises may well have rendered his concern with propriety causes him to make excuses for
him so depressed at human existence and suffering that he Bartleby and to pardon his behavior for most of the story. He
eventually gives up on life. Yet the narrator never considers the has made excuses for his employees before; both Turkey and
possibility that the nature of work in his own office could be Nippers have their quirks, yet he sees them as useful. One of
contributing to his employee's despair. Bartleby has no the reasons the narrator hires Bartleby is because he believes
meaningful human relationships. It's almost as if he does not the new hire "might operate beneficially upon the flighty
exist at all, a concept emphasized by the narrator's description temper of Turkey, and the fiery one of Nippers." So when
of him as pale and ghostlike. At one point, the narrator pictures Bartleby begins refusing to do work, the narrator assumes he
him in a "winding sheet" used to wrap dead bodies. has simply hired another quirky employee. Taking action that
might be awkward and uncomfortable does not seem
Bartleby's only interactions are with the narrator, and they
necessary based on the narrator's past experience as an
nearly drive the narrator mad. This is no wonder, as Bartleby's
employer.
responses are often absurd. For example, when the narrator
tries to help Bartleby find a more suitable job, he declines each By the time the narrator comes to realize that Bartleby's issues
time. He uses the same words, "I am not particular." Yet he is are serious and not mere quirks, he does not know how to deal
extremely particular to the point where the narrator is unable with the situation. He simply makes excuses and carries on as
to ever get him to agree to anything. Bartleby seems unwilling if everything is normal. It is only when his business is
to make a decision or take action and simply repeats the same threatened that the narrator finally takes action and moves to
actions—or inaction—throughout the story. another office.

It is the narrator's response to Bartleby that shapes the plot. It is the threat to his business that causes the greatest
Bartleby's presence causes the narrator to rethink his priorities disturbance to the narrator. When the narrator's professional
and assumptions. His telling of Bartleby's story is an attempt to friends start questioning Bartleby's purpose, he takes his most

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Plot Analysis 10

dramatic action of switching offices. Even then, the narrator Turkey is a man of near 60 who gets drunk every afternoon.
says, "I tore myself from him whom I had so longed to be rid He does not dress well, which the narrator says is because he
of." On multiple occasions the narrator notes how he pities cannot afford "such a lustrous face and a lustrous coat at one
Bartleby. He offers his home to Bartleby so they can come up and the same time." Turkey's life has been spent at a job where
with "some convenient arrangement for [him]." Other times he he cannot get ahead. He drinks seemingly as a form of escape
loses patience or rushes away. He has no clue how to deal with from his tedious position.
Bartleby's disturbance of the workplace that also functions as
the narrator's surrogate home. Nippers is not content with his situation. The narrator says he
has two clear qualities: ambition and indigestion. The two may
The narrator makes numerous references to charity as he be related. He is hungry to rise up and make something better
attempts to help Bartleby, but he admits that his efforts are of himself. He dresses smoothly, has his own personal clients,
meant to help him think better of himself—to "cheaply and is a ward-politician.
purchase a delicious self-approval." It is self-interest, he says,
that should "prompt all beings to charity." This interpretation, Ginger Nut is only 12 years old. His father, a laborer, has gotten

however, is in direct conflict with the Christian gospel he him the job with the hopes his son will learn the law and have a

quotes: "A new commandment give I unto you, that ye love one better job than himself. Instead of being an apprentice and

another." The narrator does not love Bartleby, and as critic learning about being a lawyer, Ginger Nut is an errand boy.

Thomas Dilworth has pointed out, his story can be read as a Unlike the others, the reasoning behind his nickname is clear:

response to the guilt he feels over this failure. Bartleby's he fetches ginger nuts for his colleagues.

behavior does indeed "unman" the narrator, as it brings out his

Finally there is Bartleby, the one character who has a name. It
lack of humanity.
is not clearly a first or last name and offers no hints about his

The narrator has another reason to feel guilty; his position as nationality or background. While some information is shared

Master in Chancery requires him to handle paperwork for about the other characters, nothing is revealed about Bartleby

foreclosed properties, including those acquired by John Jacob until the last paragraph of the story. There the reader learns

Astor. Dilworth further suggests that the narrator's guilt over about his work at the Dead Letter Office. Despite this tidbit

forcing people from their homes might have motivated him to and his name, Bartleby (like the others) is faceless. He

allow Bartleby to stay on at the office. He tries to make up to distinguishes himself from the other workers only by taking a

one man for the harm he has done to many others. stand against the dullness of their routine.

At the end of the story, the narrator is able to recognize his

subject's humanity and the way in which the tragedy of Wall Street and Capitalism
Bartleby's existence underscores the absurdity of human life.
This realization marks the narrator as the only character who The story's full title is Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-

has changed and grown over the course of the story. Street, and Wall Street looms large on the story.

As the center of American finance, Wall Street represents

capitalism in the story. Many Americans have made their
Office Workers
fortunes by trading in Wall Street's stock exchanges. The

The fact that the other office workers don't have names is interactions between the wealthy narrator and his meagerly

noticeable in Bartleby, the Scrivener. All three—Turkey, paid office workers suggest the way in which the investment

Nippers, and Ginger Nut—have nicknames based on a single industry benefits only those who can afford to invest.

dimension of their characters. The narrator goes unnamed.

The issues that plague capitalism are played out every day in
The only primary character with a name is Bartleby.
the narrator's office. The scriveners represent the lower-class

The office workers are portrayed as second-class citizens. workers. While two of the employees (Nippers and Ginger Nut)

Their status does not entitle them to be named. Instead they dream of prosperity, they are trapped doing mind-numbing

are flat characters, dehumanized by their tedious, repetitious, labor. They simply copy what their superiors have already

and low-level work as scriveners. done.

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Plot Analysis 11

The company's profits are in the hands of the narrator, a

manager. He is the driving force in the office, and everything
that happens—with the single exception of Bartleby's passive
resistance—revolves around his business and its needs. The
narrator's employees are viewed and measured by their
usefulness as labor.

Bartleby confuses everything. He is a member of the working

class but refuses to use his own manual labor to enrich his
employer. His refusal to work can be viewed as a protest
against a system that does not fairly reward his labor. It can
also be viewed as detrimental behavior caused by an
overwhelming and isolating existence. All of this occurs on Wall
Street, the home of capitalism, where Bartleby's refusal to
work is particularly disquieting to the narrator, who is
comfortable and content with the system as it is.

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Plot Analysis 12

Plot Diagram

Climax

7
10 Falling Action
Rising Action
6
11
5

4 12

3 Resolution

2
1

Introduction

Introduction Climax

1. The narrator introduces himself and his employees. 9. Bartleby refuses the narrator's help. He goes to jail.

Rising Action Falling Action

2. Bartleby is hired by the narrator. 10. The narrator visits an angry Bartleby in jail.

3. Bartleby declines to do work. 11. The narrator discovers Bartleby's dead body.

4. The narrator discovers Bartleby is living in the office.

5. Bartleby refuses to do any work at all.

Resolution
6. The narrator gives Bartleby an ultimatum.
12. The narrator notes Bartleby's previous job.
7. The narrator's associates wonder about Bartleby.

8. The narrator moves office to get away from Bartleby.

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Plot Analysis 13

Timeline of Events

Pre-Bartleby era

The narrator introduces himself and each of his

employees.

Beginning of Bartleby era

The narrator hires Bartleby.

Three days later

Bartleby begins rejecting work assigned by the narrator.

Some time later

The narrator discovers Bartleby is living at the narrator's

office.

Two days later

Bartleby stops working altogether.

Some time later

After Bartleby refuses to leave the office, the narrator

moves out of it.

A few days later

Tenants from the old office building ask the narrator to

intervene with Bartleby.

A few days later

Bartleby is imprisoned in the Tombs for vagrancy; the

narrator visits him.

A few days later

The narrator discovers that Bartleby has died, seemingly

from starvation.

A few months later

The narrator learns that Bartleby once worked in the

Dead Letter Office.

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Quotes 14

The contrasting language of this quote highlights the

g Quotes complexity of Bartleby's character. Though the adverbs
suggest his pitiful, ghostlike manner, the adjectives describe a
decent person.
"Bartleby was one of those beings
of whom nothing is ascertainable."
"I would prefer not to."
— Narrator
— Bartleby

Before getting to the heart of the story, the narrator briefly

introduces the title character. Even with the passage of time Bartleby uses this phrase throughout the story. While he
the narrator is still puzzled by the behavior of his former declines politely, ultimately he only does what he chooses to
employee. do.

"A profound conviction that the "Meanwhile Bartleby sat in his

easiest way of life is the best." hermitage, oblivious to every thing
but his own peculiar business
— Narrator
there."
The narrator does not believe in conflict and is ready to take
— Narrator
the easy way out. His actions show he strives to maintain the
status quo of the capitalist system of Wall Street. It is this
belief system that Bartleby challenges. Bartleby is indifferent to those around him, and his bizarre
behavior emphasizes his isolation. His actions serve his
intended purpose of shutting himself off from the world around

"All who know me, consider me an him. The narrator's words also show his inability to truly try to
understand his employee.
eminently safe man."

— Narrator "Nothing so aggravates an earnest

person as a passive resistance."
This attribute has served the narrator well in terms of his
business practice. However, he is not adept at managing his
— Narrator
employees. He accepts their eccentricities because he judges
their impact on his business to be minimal.
Bartleby's form of resistance confuses and frustrates the
narrator because he cannot understand why his employee will

"I can see that figure now—pallidly not respond to what he views as charitable actions on his
behalf.
neat, pitiably respectable,
incurably forlorn!"
"It was his wonderful mildness
— Narrator

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Symbols 15

chiefly, which not only disarmed "With kings and counselors."

me, but unmanned me, as it were."
— Narrator

— Narrator
Upon discovering Bartleby's dead body, the narrator quotes
from the Book of Job to the grub-man, as if comparing
The narrator is unsure of how to deal with Bartleby. While he
Bartleby to the Bible's most famous sufferer.
does get frustrated and even angry with Bartleby, the narrator
continues to try to help him. He's more accustomed to working
with more assertive types, and Bartleby's meekness serves as
a threat to the narrator's more masculine and direct way of
"Ah Bartleby! Ah humanity!"
handling situations.
— Narrator

"It was his soul that suffered, and In the last lines of the story, the narrator reflects on the
absurdity of Bartleby's life and of human existence.
his soul I could not reach."

— Narrator

l Symbols
The narrator feels pity for Bartleby and would like to help him.
Despite his attempts at kindness and decency, the narrator is
unable to reach Bartleby's soul, which is gripped by
helplessness.
Walls

"The next day ... Bartleby did The walls represent isolation and separation. Bartleby's office
is carved out of the office of his boss, the narrator. The office
nothing but stand at his window in is separated like this so the narrator could "avail [himself] of his
services on such trivial occasions." Bartleby's only purpose is
his dead-wall revery."
to serve his boss and be at his beck and call. The separation is
clear: Bartleby is to work until called upon by the narrator. At
— Narrator such time when called upon, Bartleby is to come out from
behind the wall and answer to the narrator.
The narrator sees that Bartleby stares out the window at
Bartleby's office has one window that looks out upon a brick
nothing. This highlights Bartleby's isolation and ill health.
wall "black by age and everlasting shade." The narrator notes
Bartleby would spend long periods of time staring out at the
"dead brick wall." What Bartleby is looking at or for is not clear.
"I am not particular." He is, however, isolating himself from others with only the dead
brick wall to occupy his thoughts. His deterioration in behavior
— Bartleby and health could stem from a rejection of the soul-destroying
capitalist system represented by Wall Street.

The narrator is making a last-ditch effort to find a job or

Other windows in the office look out at walls or have no view.
situation that will work for Bartleby. He rejects a number of
Thus, there are walls within the office and without, including
options, which shows he is indeed very particular.
the street that gives the story's setting and subtitle its name.

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Themes 16

The job of scrivener follows Bartleby's work in the Dead Letter

Death Office. According to the narrator, the letters contain love,
pathos, and real human language. Bartleby's job is to destroy
these letters, which means that it was his job to destroy
Bartleby's employment in the Dead Letter Office is the only language—"communication" itself. Thus, his job of destroying
personal detail revealed about him. The letters represent a the letters is a likely contributor to his disinclination to speak or
wide spectrum of unrealized potential—both good and bad. to continue to do his copying work.
The hopelessness of sorting cartloads of undeliverable letters
in order to send them off to be burnt is overwhelming, as is the
knowledge that the missed letters must have caused
enormous suffering. Bartleby leaves this experience (only after Passivity
being let go) with a sense of hopelessness, and goes on to a
new position where he is again dealing with "dead" documents:
copies. When Bartleby stops working and becomes a squatter, the
narrator is unsure of how to handle the unwanted guest. His
Bartleby and death seem to go together. He is described as if
emotions include pity, rage, sympathy, concern, and anger.
he were dead many times in the story: like a ghost, pale,
Whatever his emotions, the narrator never takes concrete
cadaverous, motionless. On multiple occasions the narrator
action. At one point the narrator tells Bartleby he has six days
notes Bartleby would stare off in "dead wall revery." The
to move out. When Bartleby does not comply, the narrator
narrator himself speculates it is Bartleby's job of sorting letters
does nothing. The only way he rids himself of Bartleby is when
that were sent to people who are dead that overwhelmed him.
he, as the renter of the office space, moves away. For a person
He says, "Dead letters! does it not sound like dead men?" The
who has lived with "a profound conviction that the easiest way
letters take their toll on Bartleby's soul. It is only a matter of
of life is the best," taking concrete action proves challenging.
time until he dies a literal death as well.
Bartleby's defining characteristic is passivity. Bartleby is never
active. He stops working, does not leave the office (until
forced), and refuses to "quit" the narrator. Even Bartleby's
m Themes death—starvation—comes because of inaction. Bartleby's
"passive resistance" against the meaninglessness of his work
and life is the basis of the story. The tactics of nonviolent

Language resistance had been used for political means in America since
the boycotts of the Colonial era and would be used by later
world leaders such as Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr.

Bartleby limits his language in the story. He hardly says

anything other than his often-repeated phrase, "I would prefer
not to." The phrase can be read in multiple ways. It's a positive Responsibility
declaration as opposed to "No," which can be seen as too
assertive. The gentleness of the phrase solicits the narrator's
pity and causes him to be more obliging toward Bartleby. At
To whom or what is a person responsible? The narrator
the same time, the phrase asserts Bartleby's own will over that
debates this question throughout the story. The narrator notes
of the person requesting something of him. From the
Turkey and Nippers have certain "eccentricities" that limit their
perspective of Romanticism, this is an expression of his
productivity. Despite this, the narrator retains their services as
individuality.
they are useful to him and his business. The narrator takes
responsibility for Ginger Nut (from the boy's father). He is
A scrivener's job is to be a human copy machine. Therefore,
supposed to be teaching Ginger Nut the law trade, yet he has
scriveners duplicate language rather than create it. In the story
become an errand boy and is not learning. Ultimately, the
they are copying dry and impersonal legal documents.

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Suggested Reading 17

narrator cares about his business. The one obligation he takes created by God in the Bible's Book of Genesis. The reference
most responsibility for is the satisfaction of his clients. implies that the two are brothers. When Bartleby first refuses
to obey the narrator, the latter says he was "turned into a pillar
Therefore, Bartleby's refusal to do work is a great challenge to of salt" for a few moments, like Lot's wife, who meets her fate
the narrator. Work needs to get done for the business, and after ignoring the warning of angels not to look back at the evil
Bartleby become[s] "a millstone to [the narrator]." In fact city she is fleeing. As the narrator is tempted by the "old Adam
Bartleby accepts no responsibility for fulfilling the duties of his of resentment," he sheds the emotion by recalling Jesus's
job. The narrator's natural instinct is to get rid of Bartleby once words, "A new commandment give I unto you, that ye love one
he is no longer productive. Throughout the story the narrator another." And when the narrator is asked near the end of the
wrestles with this instinct and strives to determine what level story if Bartleby is asleep, he replies, "With kings and
of responsibility he has for Bartleby. The story can be read as counselors," a phrase from the Book of Job. The biblical
an expression of the guilt he feels at his failure to save character Job, like Bartleby, suffers from great torment before
Bartleby from suicide by starvation. he is relieved of his suffering.

Is Bartleby a Christ-like figure, sacrificed to the cold Wall

Street mentality? This is one reading of the story. The narrator
Isolation at first tries to extend Christian charity toward his wayward
employee, then rejects him and ultimately denies his
responsibility toward him several times (as Peter denies Christ
Bartleby completely isolates himself from the world. He three times in the Gospels). Bartleby at the story's end is dead
engages in no meaningful conversation throughout the story but described as "profoundly sleeping," as if awaiting
and does not speak unless addressed first. The only person to resurrection. Another possible reading of the Christian imagery
whom Bartleby responds is the narrator. His usual phrase—"I is that the narrator, for all his attempts to help Bartleby, simply
would prefer not to" (occasionally he drops the word would)—is failed to love him as a Christian should do.
repeated over 20 times in the story. Bartleby's lack of interest
in communicating isolates him from the world at large.

Social classes are also isolated in the story. The narrator is a e Suggested Reading
business owner and in the middle or upper-middle class. His
employees are in the working class. While they come together Anderson, Walter. "Form and Meaning in 'Bartleby, the
at the workplace, they remain separated. This is emphasized Scrivener.'" Studies in Short Fiction 18 (Fall 1981): 383–93.
by the physical partitions in the office. There is a wall Print.
separating the scriveners and the narrator, there is a wall
separating Bartleby from everyone else, and, of course, they Barnett, Louise K. "Bartleby as Alienated Worker." Studies in
work on Wall Street. The narrator's knowledge about his Short Fiction 11 (Fall 1974): 379–95. Print.
employees only comes from their work performance. He does
Delbanco, Andrew. Melville: His World and Work. New York:
not even use their real names. There is a distinct lack of
Vintage, 2005. Print.
cordiality between the narrator and the employees (as well as
among themselves).
Dilworth, Thomas. "Narrator of 'Bartleby': The Christian-
Humanist Acquaintance of John Jacob Astor." Papers on
Language and Literature: A Journal for Scholars and Critics of

Christianity Language and Literature 38.1 (Winter 2002): 49–75. Detroit:

Gale, 2008. Raleigh Charter High School. Web. 06 July 2016.

Giles, Todd. "Melville's 'Bartleby the Scrivener.'" Explicator 65.2

There are many biblical allusions in the story. The narrator (2007): 88–91. Humanities International Complete. Web. 12
refers to himself and Bartleby as "sons of Adam," the first man June 2016.

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Bartleby the Scrivener Study Guide Suggested Reading 18

Kahn, Andrew and Herman Melville. "Finally! The Interactive,

Annotated Edition of 'Bartleby, the Scrivener' You Always
Wanted." Slate Magazine. 2015. Web. 06 May 2016.

Kuebrich, David. "Melville's Doctrine of Assumptions: The

Hidden Ideology of Capitalist Production in 'Bartleby.'" New
England Quarterly 69 (1996): 381–405. Print.

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