Bartleby the Scrivener

“I would prefer not to.”Today, Moby-Dick is regarded as one of the greatest novels in American history and a towering achievement for its author, Herman Melville. Not so when it was first published: Sales were poor, and those who read it mostly had no idea what to do with it. His subsequent novel, Pierre, fared no better.“Bartleby the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-Street” was an attempt to turn the tide on a disappointing run. Seeking commercial justification for his writing and needing to claw himself out of debt to his publishers, Melville geared the tale for magazine publication in two parts. Perhaps contrary to purpose, Melville’s perspective on Wall Street was hardly full of the type of speculative intrigue that might entice the attention—and dollars—of fly-by-night audiences. Only much later did the work emerge as a masterpiece, appreciated for its allegorical subtlety, its engaging absurdity, and that oh-so-confounding five-word phrase that one never forgets.[Insert Not to be Reproduced | René Magritte, 1937]Amid the hustle and bustle of Wall Street, the titular character stands out for his apparent apathy—he is the antithesis of ambition and industry, “one of those beings of whom nothing is ascertainable.” The attention he draws to himself is far from positive, and the reactions of those who have to deal with his infuriating indifference are both comic and painful. What is one to do?In the end, “Bartleby the Scrivener” was unable to deliver Melville from hardship or contemporary irrelevancy. How could it? After all, the story reflects Melville’s pointed rejection of lowering himself to the sensationalism he believed necessary for commercial acclaim. He would, it seems, have preferred not to.Please enjoy…Subscribe to Classics Read Aloud to receive future readings, including commentary and interesting “et cetera” tangent links, right to your inbox: https://classicsreadaloud.substack.com/subscribe This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit classicsreadaloud.substack.com