Bartleby: "I Prefer Not To,"
"I prefer not to," also tells the reader about Bartleby isolating himself.
The phrase shows his lack of involvement, another form of isolation. The
narrator tells the reader exactly what he did to Bartleby, very vividly, as
shown below. In the novella, the author tells the reader, down to the
smallest detail, what he did to Bartleby to isolate him from the world. He
tells us in this passage, "I placed his desk close up to a small side
window in that part of the room, a window which originally had afforded a
lateral view of certain grimy backyards, and bricks, but which, owning to
insubsequent erections, commanded at present, no view at all, though it
gave some light. Within three feet of ...
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isolation. The irony lies in the fact that the
narrator, while trying to isolate Bartleby, becomes affected by it, so much
so that he appears almost human. Instead of dismissing him on the spot for
refusing to copy, proofread or leave the premises, he tries to find other
employment for him, and even considers inviting him to live in his
residence as his guest. The narrator develops before our eyes into a caring
person, very different from the cold, unsympathetic person at the beginning
of the story. "To befriend Bartleby, to humor him in his strange
willfulness, will cost me little or nothing, while I lay up in my soul what
will eventually prove a sweet morsel for my conscience." The narrator would
normally befriend Bartleby or any other "sucker," but Bartleby has given
him a conscience. The narrator has realized that a common blemish in a
person does not determine the person. In the beginning of the novella, the
narrator only cared about his work, but now he realizes that people ...
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Bartleby: "I Prefer Not To,". (2006, January 5). Retrieved April 28, 2024, from http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Bartleby-I-Prefer-Not-To/39120
"Bartleby: "I Prefer Not To,"." Essayworld.com. Essayworld.com, 5 Jan. 2006. Web. 28 Apr. 2024. <http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Bartleby-I-Prefer-Not-To/39120>
"Bartleby: "I Prefer Not To,"." Essayworld.com. January 5, 2006. Accessed April 28, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Bartleby-I-Prefer-Not-To/39120.
"Bartleby: "I Prefer Not To,"." Essayworld.com. January 5, 2006. Accessed April 28, 2024. http://www.essayworld.com/essays/Bartleby-I-Prefer-Not-To/39120.
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