Blog 1 Opt.2

Bartleby, The Scrivener,written by Herman Melville (1853), starts off with the narrator descriptively introducing the colleagues that work in his office which are Turkey, Nipper, and Ginger Nut to his audience. We see Bartleby as the new office employee who dedicates himself profoundly in doing what he is told (copying legal documents). It is this formal behavior that Bartleby portrays himself by in which brings the conclusion of his behavior being an unreasonable response to his circumstances.
The narrator summarizes his work performance as working “As if long famishing for something to copy, he seemed to gorge himself on [the narrator’s] documents” (6). The fact that Bartleby built this type of repute for himself makes the narrator and the audience assume that his description represents his persona. The environment in which he establishes himself in is sanctioned with an orderly routine from every individual, which might have been one of the reasons why he chooses to respond to his boss’s order with “I prefer not to”. Bartleby’s passive behavior is a reasonable response given his circumstances due to the disenfranchised infrastructure he becomes part of.
    Although the narrator provides a great amount of compliance with Bartleby’s responses, it can be identified as mere consideration for all of the work that he provided for him in the beginning which presumably helped keep his scrivening business in tact. At first Bartleby’s response was peculiar but only because it did not meet the measurable expectations that he presented himself with in the beginning. In comparison to the other employees, Bartleby stands as the best one due to his obedience and dedication. Turkey and Nippers are the only other two employees in which the narrator finds himself working around with due to their deep flaws that impact the status of his business, such as insobriety and inappropriate aggressive behavior. The narrator’s attempt to deal with Bartleby’s episode by “ [not turning] him away, [given] the chances [that] he will fall with some less indulgent employer, and then will be rudely treated, and perhaps driven forth miserably to starve”(9). The narrator only states this after giving the fact that Bartleby in fact is considered “useful” to him regardless.
    The narrator’s character stands as the monitor for individuals entrapped in the endless worker’s routine within the economic world. Although he tolerates, not once was Bartleby offered anything in order to aid him in his mental state. The narrator continues to abide by the social expectations from daily workers and even raises his voice at him. Throughout this Bartleby still remains within the respectable lines that divides the two characters in the social hierarchy within the office.
    The relation from Bartleby’s machine-like behavior to defiance only represents the likely outcomes of what the the office like environment causes. His only flaw was stating that he preferred not to do something he was asked for and in return he suffered a tragic end leading to death while the other deeply flawed office workers continued to do minimal work and were still seen ideal staff members.