Bartleby the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street

by Herman Melville

Overview

Herman Melville was an 18th century American novelist, poet, essayist and short story writer. He is best known for his works Moby Dick and Typee. During his lifetime he was considered a failure, but after his death his worth as a writer was recognized. Bartleby is a novella, which first appeared in Putnam's Magazine. The narrator is an elderly lawyer who helps his clients with mortgages, titles and bonds. The lawyer's office has two employees Nippers and Turkey. Turkey is a drunk and Nippers has indigestion. The office is able to function because Nippers indigestion is at a time when Turkey is sober and Turkey is hung over when Nippers is feeling better. Bartleby is hired in the hopes that his temperament will calm down the office. As the story progresses Melville brings a sense of the human condition as seen through the eyes of a lowly employee.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780061920967
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	04/28/2009
Sold by:	HARPERCOLLINS
Format:	eBook
Pages:	100
File size:	139 KB

About the Author

Herman Melville (1819-1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet who received wide acclaim for his earliest novels, such as Typee and Redburn, but fell into relative obscurity by the end of his life. Today, Melville is hailed as one of the definitive masters of world literature for novels including Moby Dick and Billy Budd, as well as for enduringly popular short stories such as Bartleby, the Scrivener and The Bell-Tower.

Date of Birth:

August 1, 1819

Date of Death:

September 28, 1891

Place of Birth:

New York, New York

Place of Death:

New York, New York

Education:

Attended the Albany Academy in Albany, New York, until age 15

Editorial Reviews

A series of classic short stories from around the world, inexpensive and beautifully produced.

From the Publisher

As Melville’s second-best-known story, “Bartleby, the Scrivener” is familiar to almost anyone who has taken American Lit. What is little recognized, however, is its subtitle: “A Story of Wall Street.” This subtitle, accompanied by Bartleby’s passive resistance in “occupying” (though the story does not actually use this word) the lawyer’s office, makes this tale strangely relevant to contemporary listeners. Stefan Rudnicki’s stately baritone embodies the story’s narrator, the stuffed-shirt Wall Street lawyer whose perplexed reaction to Bartleby is the substance of the story. The diction of the nineteenth-century lawyer is a little terse and archaic, but Rudnicki’s performance gives it fresh character. And it’s a treat to hear him adroitly deliver Bartleby’s meek, yet steadfast, iconic phrase: “I prefer not to.” F.T. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine

MARCH 2012 - AudioFile