Defiant Denier: Bartleby, the Pinnacle of Unyielding Refusal
Rewritten Article:
The Enigmatic Anti-Hero: Bartleby, a Timeless Masterpiece
By Thomas Schmoll
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The captivating and enigmatic creation of Herman Melville, "Bartleby, the Scrivener," is a literary gem that transcends time. Its themes reverberate in today's world and will likely continue to resonate in the future. This short story is a mere handful of pages, yet it encapsulates the individual's struggle within society and the choice of inner emigration against societal expectations.
Melville gifted us with two extraordinary works that contrast starkly, yet share a profound commonality. One, "Moby Dick," is a sprawling epic brimming with human struggles against the uncontrollable and the unconquerable, delving into the futile pursuit of mastery that ultimately leads to self-destruction.
However, "Bartleby, the Scrivener" stands in stark contrast. It's a brief story about a man who chooses to ignore and reject everything around him, leading a life shrouded in mystery. Both works illuminate the absurdities and complexities of human life, presenting thought-provoking questions without offering definitive answers. They mirror life itself in their inscrutability.
Bartleby: The Tranquil Rebel
Bartleby, labeled as the original anti-hero, is an unforgettable figure in world literature whose motives remain unclear—or perhaps intentionally so. Bartleby's most famous utterance, "I'd rather not," encapsulates his life's brevity. He never expresses his desires, his experiences, or his problems. Bartleby's life is a puzzle—one to which we may never find the solution.
A Fresh Translation: A More Approachable Story
First, let's discuss why we're talking about a book first published in 1853 as "Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street." Kampa Verlag has recently published a fresh translation by Karl-Heinz Ott. This version is more in tune with modern language than previous ones, such as where the C.H. Beck edition translates Melville's "his clothes often bore grease spots and the smell of eateries" as "his clothes often looked greasy and smelled of taverns." It's essential to note that "eating-houses" was the term for precursors to today's restaurants in the US at the time.
Accessible Storytelling: For All Reading Levels
Literary scholars may prefer older translations for their adherence to mid-19th-century language. However, younger readers will appreciate Ott's version for its accessibility—making the text even more readable than it already is. Compared to the dense "Moby Dick," it's a breath of fresh air.
A Study in Ambivalence
The story unfolds mostly within the office of a notary on New York's Wall Street, where he serves as the narrator. He recalls his initial three employees affectionately, albeit with humor. One example is the description of the twelve-year-old messenger boy, whose father wanted him to work as a coachman before he passed away. Then the notary hires Bartleby, who disrupts the office's routine with his passivity and refusals. The narrator oscillates between pity, understanding, and offers of help, frustration, dislike, and anger at Bartleby's unusual behavior.
The Total No: A Simplistic Yet Powerful Approach
Bartleby's only response to every instruction is "I would prefer not to." Only once does he share thoughts about his inner world when offered a job in a notions shop: "I would feel imprisoned." Bartleby's persistent refusal to cooperate forces the notary to acknowledge his inability to dismiss Bartleby, who eventually sleeps in the office. The notary witnesses Bartleby's gradual effect on his own identity: "It was above all this strange gentleness that I could neither resist nor overcome, but which I felt was sapping my very manhood."
Bartleby: The Puzzling Outsider
A Challenger of Norms
Melville's work invites readers to question Bartleby's nature. Is he a traitor or victim of society? A creator or destroyer? An existentialist pioneer? An early representative of individualism, healthy or selfish? A protestor against capitalism? A victim of modernity? Or perhaps Melville himself, processing his own struggles as a writer and criticizing the literary establishment?
Reconsidering Our Relationships
Ultimately, Melville invites readers to examine our own ambivalence towards those who behave unconventionally and confuse or even repel us because they challenge societal norms. Perhaps Bartleby is a figment of the notary's imagination—a symbol of his desire to escape his mundane existence.
Solidarity and Understanding
Despite his frustrations, the notary ultimately empathizes with Bartleby and acknowledges that his problems lie in invisible wounds, an incurable suffering invisible to the outside world. Melville challenges readers to confront and embrace humanity and solidarity.
Conclusion: Rediscovering Humanity
"Ah, Bartleby! Ah, humanity!" the story concludes, with a resignation that could also be an appeal for us all to strive for understanding and empathy. Bartleby remains an eternal mystery, reminding us that sometimes it's the enigmatic souls who challenge us the most—and teach us the most about ourselves.
The Commission has not yet adopted a decision on whether to include 'Bartleby, the Scrivener' as a required reading in schools for entertainment purposes. The intriguing character of Bartleby, with his enigmatic motives, can be found among the bookshelves of those seeking thought-provoking stories.
