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"Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street"
by Glen Draeger

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Hello Scriveners,

Your edition (and mine) of "Bartleby" leaves out a very, very important part of the story: the subtitle. I don't know why they did this and why many editions of this story do so because it is an immensely important indication of what this story is really about, not to mention, though I will anyway, that Melville wrote it that way and probably would not appreciate his title being changed! Many editors also take out, as they did in our edition, what comes before the subtitle. The title as Melville wrote it (and as I've indicated above) is:

Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street

Chew on that for a few days. Melville is telling us something about the story, about Bartleby and about the narrator whose name we never know.

Also, remember as you are reading that this is a first person account. That is, the lawyer who knew Bartleby is the one telling the story. We see everything through his eyes. What are his motives in writing this? Can we trust all that he says about himself and Bartleby? First person narration offers another set of interpretive problems because we see characters from only one perspective, whereas in third person narration we see all the characters from the view of an omniscient and, it is assumed, truthful narrator. We know thoughts, motives and things a first person narrator could never know. With this narrator, however, we only get his view of the world.

While you are reading this story pay close attention to the following words: wall, prefer, hermitage, reveries, scriveners, particular and avocations. I've marked these words with asterisks on your vocabulary list. Good writers use particular words for a reason. They're trying to convey something important about a character or the plot or an idea. Look for them when you read.

It's also important to know something about the men Melville mentions. Some are famous and some are not. Remember, good writers don't just throw famous names into their stories because they're having trouble coming up with their own. We may not know the exact reason, but if it is someone famous one has to assume the writer is assuming the reader will have some knowledge of the person that may be helpful in understanding what the story is about. Consider these men:

John Jacob Astor (1763-1848), a German immigrant, became quite wealthy because of his shrewd dealings with Canadian Indians, trading whiskey and rifles to establish a very properous fur trade. He also stripped all the sandalwood from the Hawaiian Islands and smuggled opium in China. He invested that money in New York, buying foreclosed mortgages during the Panic of 1837 and building tenements, becoming the wealthiest person in the U.S. at the time of his death."---from the web page: http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/eng216/bartleby/bart1def.htm

Lord Byron; George Gordon Byron(1788-1824). Byron was an English Romantic poet and satirist. He was a man who lived contrary to many of the accepted ideas of society. His first collection of poems was entitled: Hours of Idleness. The poem that established his reputation was Don Juan. In it he criticized may aspects of the society in which he lived. He comments on money, power, fame, writers and England. Why would Melville mention him?

Cicero was a Roman scholar, statesman, lawyer, writer and orator. He was an involved man: a man of business and a politician well-known in his day. In his speaking he was known for saying what he thought, even if it might endanger his life. Twice he refused an offer by Caesar that he join him in a political alliance. Once in a meeting with him he boldly stated views contrary to Caesar. Keep in mind that during this time period Caesar was a dictator and could have easily had Cicero killed. When Octavian took over after Caesar's murder Cicero said of him, "the young man should be given praise, distinctions---and then disposed of." Octavian learned of these remarks and had Cicero killed. Again, why would Melville mention him?

Colt and Adams on Page 25. Dr. J Pierce writes about this pair:   "Samuel Adams and John C. Colt were the figures in an infamous 1841 New York murder case. When Adams sought to collect a debt from Colt, Colt killed him with a hatchet and placed the body in a crate to be shipped to New Orleans. When the body was found, Colt was arrested. He pled not guilty on the grounds that he was acting in self-defense but was convicted and sentenced to death by hanging. Just before the sentence was to be carried out, Colt stabbed hmself[sic] to death. 'Bartleby' takes place in a part of Manhattan not far from the murder scene."

Edwards and Priestley(page 26): Dr. Pierce writes: "Jonathan Edwards' Freedom of the Will (1754) and Joseph Priestly's[sic] Doctrine of Philosophical Necessity Illustrated (1777), two texts that support the doctrine of predestination." These were two great religious leaders that the narrator uses to support his position that everything that is happening with Bartleby was intended to happen.

Monroe Edwards(page 32) Again, Dr. Pierce writes: "In June 1842, Col. Edwards, was convicted of embezzling two Wall Street firms of $25,000 each. The case was sensational and caused significant nervousness in American financial circles."

Please consider what significance these words and these men might have in "Bartleby"--even if you'd prefer not to.

This is an interesting story and has become in the last few years one of my favorites. I hope you enjoy it.

Regards,

Mr. Draeger

Sources:

The Avenel Companion to English and American Literature, Edited by David Daiches, Malcolm Bradbury and Eric Mottram, Avenel Books, New York, 1981.

Benet's Reader's Encyclopedia: Third Edition, original editor, William Rose Benet, Editorial Director, Carol Cohen, Harper and Row, Publishers, New York, 1987

The New Encyclopaedia Britannica, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc., Chicago, Ill., 1988, 15th edition, Vol. 2, pp. 696-67 & Vol. 3, pp. 313-15.

Pierce, Dr. J., his web page at: http://users.mhc.edu/facultystaff/jpierce/spring00/eng205/bartleby.html This page contains the entire text of the story with notes.

Web page: http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/eng216/bartleby/bart1def.htm (this page is no longer available)

©2005-2010 Glen Draeger (all rights reserved)
Millstone Education: World Literature / http://www.millstoneeducation.com/worldLit