I Would Prefer Not To: Reflecting Upon Bartleby the Scrivener

I know it's been a long time since I wrote my last blog. There's something about a three day weekend that wipes my memory of awareness when it comes to assignments. Regardless, I am back, reflecting upon Herman Melville's short story about the greed and desire for self-righteousness among the working class. While at first glance Bartleby may appear as a lazy, unappreciative worker, further examining the story reveals that Melville uses him as a device to convey the lack of personal motivation throughout the American labor market. For the nameless lawyer, employing Bartleby is an act of charity, since he argues that offering him the job gives him the chance to reach a level of comfortability and security that he was previously unable to attain. While this may seem noble, his actual motive was to attain some personal satisfaction through helping out another person. While other people may overlook the motive and just accept the action, I feel that people should have good intentions behind all of their actions, even when they are performing an honorable deed.