Herman Melville’s short story “Bartleby, the Scrivener” was published anonymously in 1853 to little recognition. Today it is considered a masterpiece. Some critics view “Bartleby” as a precursor to absurdist literature like Franz Kafka’s “The Metamorphosis,” highlighting the incredibly modern nature of this mid-19th-century short story. Others read “Bartleby” as commentary on poverty and the harsh nature of menial work on Wall Street, or as an allegory for Melville’s own frustrations with writing. This guide uses the free 2004 Project Gutenberg eBook version of “Bartleby, the Scrivener.”

“Bartleby” is narrated in the first person by an unnamed senior lawyer on Wall Street in New York City. The lawyer employs four people: Nippers, Turkey, Ginger Nut, and Bartleby. Nippers, Turkey, and Bartleby are scriveners, people who copy documents by hand, often for legal proceedings. Ginger Nut is an errand boy who spends most of his time fetching apples and ginger nut cakes for the scriveners. Of the four named characters, only Bartleby is called by his actual name; the other three have nicknames.

The narrator hires Bartleby because a recent increase in the lawyer’s importance means he needs additional help. His fellow scriveners are eccentric. Where Nippers is irritable in the morning, Turkey struggles with his work in the afternoon, meaning a scrivener is always performing subpar work in the office. Because of Bartleby’s promising nature, the narrator places him in his personal office, giving Bartleby privacy behind a folding screen.

Bartleby is an excellent worker at first, producing more copies, or “folios,” than the other scriveners. He works through all parts of the day, even writing by candlelight at night. Soon into Bartleby’s employment, however, the narrator asks him to help verify a copy of a document. To this, Bartleby replies he would “prefer” not to and continues working behind his screen. The greatly confused lawyer hands the work to Nippers instead of forcing Bartleby to complete it.

Bartleby becomes a permanent fixture in the office, like a piece of furniture, and offers the lawyer reassurance with his quiet presence. Sometime later, Bartleby says that he would prefer not to verify his copies with the others in the office. The lawyer finds himself fascinated with Bartleby’s unshakeable calm and quiet refusals. The narrator notices Bartleby never leaves the office and only eats ginger nut cakes, a cheap snack food. These observations earn Bartleby the pity of the narrator, who decides to continue to employ Bartleby, as the narrator reasons other employers would treat Bartleby poorly. The narrator begins to view himself as generous and charitable toward Bartleby.

Tension escalates when Turkey threatens to assault Bartleby for refusing to do anything but copy documents. Turkey moves to make good on his threats, and the narrator must restrain him. Bartleby “prefers not to” accept a request to visit the post office to defuse the tension and continues copying as Nippers and Turkey verify his work.

Days pass following the conflict between Turkey and Bartleby, and the elderly lawyer begins to see Bartleby as his star employee. One Sunday morning, the narrator decides to visit his office before church services. To his surprise, Bartleby answers the door half undressed and tells the lawyer that he cannot come into his own offices at the moment, as Bartleby is busy. The lawyer is stupefied and wonders what Bartleby is doing. He trusts Bartleby and so does not suspect him of ill intent, but he cannot fathom why the scrivener is locked in the offices on a Sunday.

Later that day, the lawyer returns and finds Bartleby gone. He sees evidence that Bartleby has been living there: a hidden blanket, shoe polish hidden in a grate, a wash basin with a ragged towel, and more. He feels pity for Bartleby’s homelessness. Looking through Bartleby’s desk, the lawyer finds a hidden handkerchief containing all of Bartleby’s savings. The lawyer contemplates Bartleby’s lack of leisure activities, noting that if Bartleby is not writing, he is staring out his window at the nearby brick wall. The lawyer is suddenly repulsed by Bartleby, convinced that he cannot aid what the lawyer deems a malady in Bartleby’s soul. He plans to fire Bartleby the next day.

The next day, the lawyer asks Bartleby to tell him where he was born or anything else about himself Bartleby might share. Bartleby prefers to tell his employer nothing and gives no reason for his objection. The lawyer wishes to fire Bartleby at this point, but guilt and “superstition” convince him to keep Bartleby. Despite the lawyer’s pleas, Bartleby prefers to continue to “not be reasonable” and not do any work but that which he is paid for: copying documents. Nippers overhears this conversation and grows angry with Bartleby, as it is morning and Nippers is in a bad mood. The lawyer notices that all in the office have adopted Bartleby’s habit of using the word “prefer.” He notices it in himself and worries about what changes in his personality it might bring, suspecting something supernatural about Bartleby.

The next day, Bartleby does not do his job but instead stares out his window. When the lawyer asks why, he learns that Bartleby’s eyes have been damaged by constantly working in poor light. Bartleby declares that he will never copy documents again. He is done with the scrivener’s job yet remains in the office. From the lawyer’s perspective, Bartleby becomes even more like furniture. The lawyer contemplates what to do. He wants to remove Bartleby from the office yet also sees him as entirely harmless behind his screen. The lawyer tells Bartleby he must leave within six days.

At the end of the six days, Bartleby remains in the office. The lawyer attempts to bribe Bartleby with money to no avail. Leaving Bartleby in the office on the assumption that he will leave with the money, the lawyer congratulates himself on masterfully handling the situation with Bartleby and considers himself gracious in his dealings with the homeless scrivener.

The next day, the lawyer finds Bartleby still in the office with the money untouched on the scrivener’s desk. The lawyer exits his office and wanders the streets, contemplating what to do. The idea of forcing Bartleby to leave is unacceptable. He resolves to confront Bartleby and discuss the matter. As the lawyer grows heated with Bartleby, who prefers not to leave or resume the work of a scrivener, the lawyer drops the argument as he feels it leading toward him murdering Bartleby. The lawyer defuses his feelings by calling to mind the biblical commandment to love one another.

Days pass and the lawyer begins to view Bartleby as a divine agent sent to test him. Religious writings such as The Freedom of the Will by Jonathan Edwards and The Doctrine of Philosophical Necessity by Joseph Priestley convince the lawyer that his calling in life is to furnish Bartleby with this office space. The lawyer considers this reasoning wise and blames other people for confusing him, as business guests always remark on Bartleby’s strange presence.

Unable to bring himself to evict Bartleby from his office, the lawyer resolves to move his office elsewhere and, should Bartleby appear on his new premises, the lawyer can without guilty conscience deem Bartleby a trespasser and call the police. Shortly after the lawyer moves without Bartleby, the new tenant of the lawyer’s former office contacts him regarding Bartleby, who still haunts the premises. The lawyer denies all acquaintance with Bartleby. A week and a day later, the lawyer is confronted by the landlord of his old office building and several tenants, all of whom recognize him as Bartleby’s former employer. The new tenant of the lawyer’s former office has forcibly turned Bartleby out and the ex-scrivener now lives in the stairwell of the office. The tenants and landlord are distraught and repulsed by Bartleby and demand the lawyer do something. The lawyer plans a private conversation with Bartleby.

The lawyer offers other jobs to Bartleby, who says he would not like any of them, although is not picky. The frustrated lawyer asks Bartleby if he would like to come to live in the lawyer’s home. Bartleby prefers not to make changes to his residence. The lawyer leaves the scene in frustration without fulfilling his promise to the landlord and tenants, and he spends several days traveling to forget Bartleby.

Upon returning to his new office, the lawyer learns Bartleby has been imprisoned for vagrancy. The lawyer is upset but ultimately convinced it was the only way to deal with Bartleby. That same day, the lawyer visits the prison to see him. The lawyer learns Bartleby is permitted to freely wander the prison, where he finds a high wall in a courtyard to stare at, much like the brick wall outside his window. Bartleby refuses to speak to the lawyer, who has a guilty conscience and wishes to convince Bartleby that he is not responsible for Bartleby’s imprisonment. The lawyer pays the prison “grub-man” to ensure Bartleby receives better food than others. Introducing Bartleby to the grub-man, Mr. Cutlets, the lawyer learns that Bartleby refuses to eat complete meals as he is unaccustomed to them.

A few days later, the lawyer visits Bartleby again. He finds Bartleby in the same courtyard next to the same wall, apparently sleeping. Bartleby is dead, probably starved to death. The lawyer then recounts the one fact he learned about Bartleby’s life, which he promised to tell at the beginning of the narrative. Before working for the lawyer, Bartleby likely worked in a dead letter office, where mail meant for invalid destinations (such as deceased recipients) is incinerated, with any valuables removed. After relaying this promised information, the lawyer ends the story with the famous line, “Ah Bartleby! Ah humanity!” (35).