"Bartleby Scrivener" Questions for Analysis.

Characters Protagonist / Antagonist? The protagonist of the story is the Boss and the antagonist in the story is Bartleby. *What is the Boss up against in the person of Bartleby? The boss is up against a strong willed man who doesn't see the reason to conform into regular job policies. *Does Bartleby represent a force beyond himself as an individual?I think Bartleby does represents a force beyond himself because he doesn't conform to society and shows to be his own person (individuality). -Major / Minor: *Who are the major players in the story?The major players in the story are the boss (which is a lawyer), Bartleby, the other co-workers, Nipper, Turkey and Gingernut. *What do we know about them? We know that Turkey and Nipper are both ill-tempered but take turns being ill-tempered. Also, the Bartleby doesn't contribute a lot of effort in pleasing his boss at all and finally that the Boss hires people who will give in a lot of devotion in their jobs. *Are they likable? These people are not likable to me because they show weird characteristic and aren't your everyday people that I am use to. Sympathetic?Realistic? The character that is sympathetic is the Boss at the end of the story because he finally understand Bartleby. The character that is realistic is Bartleby because *What's the function of the story's minor characters? *Dynamic / Static-Who changes? Who stays the same? The Boss is the dynamic character because he is greatly affected by Bartleby. The character who was static is Bartleby because he never changes attitude towards something nor someone. *Is the story about growth or change? I think the story is about change because of the way Bartleby is portrayed and the way the Boss feels about him, also Bartleby changes. Round / Flat-Who is the round character? Who are the flat characters? The flat characters are the others clrgymen, the co-workers that aren't affected by Bartleby and the character that is round is the Boss. Point of view : Who tells the story? - the first person narrator, who is flawed but human…He's reliable, we trust him. His actions definitely support what he tells us about himself; especially the part about being a man who likes to take the "easy" way. * *What else is gained by telling this story from the Boss's perspective? What is gained from the boss's perspective is the way he is affected by Bartleby's attitude. *Why not Bartleby's perspective? If it were in Bartleby's the story's mood would be very gloomy and depressive. *Why not one of the other clerks? The other clerks perspective wouldn't suffice because Bartleby didn't affect them much, to the other clerks he was just a former co-worker. Plot Exposition: * What background information does the narrator relate that gives us a greater understanding of the events unfolding? The background information given is Bartleby's previous job, he was the one who received all the dead mail, the mail that never got to the person intended. *Why does the information about Bartleby's previous employment come at the end of the story rather than at the beginning? The information on Bartleby's previous job is given to us because it gives the story a mysterious outlook on it and it lets us the reader try to make assumptions on Bartleby. *Complication-how does the Boss react when Bartleby repeatedly refuses to perform his duties? How does his reaction intensify? *What is the Boss's dilemma? The Boss becomes furious with Bartleby's response to the task that has been repeatedly asked to be done. The Boss's dilemma is finding a way to get rid of a "worker" who does not meet his demands. *Climax-Where do you feel the events reach their pinnacle? Where is the conflict most intense, the clash most "explosive"? I feel the conflict is most intense is when Bartleby continues to not do any work for the Boss and the Boss tells him that he is going to move out. *Resolution-What's the outcome of the explosion? The outcome of this explosion is that they move out the office and that Bartleby stayed there making the Boss the only own in charge of Bartleby. * Epiphany-who has gained insight in this story, Bartleby or the Boss, or anybody? The Boss had gained insight in this story because of his relation with Bartleby. Meaning (Theme) : Passive aggressive people are difficult to accommodate, difficult to ignore. Passive resistance is a radical form of rebellion. Offices, where Americans spend the greater part of their lives, are not democracies. Have a life outside work! Don't expect your occupation to bear the burden of your existence. *Does the story leave you thinking anything? Feeling anything? What do you make out of it all? This story makes me think about my mother in her job, she is always complaining about wanting something a certain way and she slowly has noticed that what is said by her boss is the law in that office. And it also makes me that if there are people who actually try to get their own way and how far they get in there industry? * What other ideas does the story suggest to you? Some ideas that the story suggest to me are if every rule should be followed strictly or if you stand up for something many good things come out of it and it makes me think about all the rebels that have existed in the past and how much courage they had. Irony : The Boss doesn't recognize that his own passiveness is as persistent and frustrating as Bartleby's. Or that his genteel, self-interested interest in Bartleby is leading to no good. *Can you think of other ironies? Another irony is the way Turkey and Gingernut was portrayed in the book, their name fit their body structure. Also, at the end of the story, the boss say "Ah humane, ah Bartleby", this was ironic because Bartleby was a emotionless person and humane means to have feelings, and the boss still compares both of these. Paradox : Bartleby is stubborn, self-absorbed, rebellious, and insubordinate, yet many readers, and even the narrator, the Boss himself, have a deep sympathy for him. *Why? Others? These characters have sympathy towards him because of the way life, his environment mad Bartleby that way and it wasn't a voluntary thing. Ambiguity: *Exactly why does Bartleby always "prefer not to"? Bartleby prefers not to conform to the rules of having a job. *Why can't he make friends, or communicate? He can not make friends or communication because like the mail that never got to the other person he thinks that if he tries to get a something to them, they will never get it, even if he is trying to get a point across. *What's at the heart of his rebellion? Bartleby does not want to conform to what society thinks is acceptable. *Why doesn't he quit and get a different job? He doesn't quit because he feels that that is the place he doesn't want to leave. * Why does the Boss have sympathy for Bartleby? The Boss has sympathy for Bartleby because he notices Bartleby's economic instability, how Bartleby has to sleep in his own office and the way he barely eats anything. * What else in the story seems open to individual readers' interpretation? Symbol : *What do the "dead walls" and Bartleby's "dead wall reveries" represent? The "dead walls" represent the emptiness in Bartleby's soul. *What's the significance of the setting? Why is it a story "Wall Street"? The significance of the setting is the fact that it is in Wall Street and that everyone in Wall Street work their butts off but Bartleby prefers not to work. *Why do Turkey and Nipper have nicknames, but the Boss is never named, and we never learn Bartleby's first name? These names are given to us to identity each character but the Boss's neame isn't given because that's his nickname like Turkey and Gingernut is a nickname. * What's in a name? A name is something you are given when you are born. It represents you because it is something that is part of you. Your Questions, My Questions…. 1.Why don't we know anything about Bartleby other than what we see of him in the story? Is that a weakness of the story? We know nothing of Bartleby because the author wanted us to see how some people decide not to conform with the rules on our everyday live.This becomes a weakness to the story because because we the reader don't know threasons why Bartleby acts the way he does. 2. Why doesn't the Boss just fire Bartleby? The boss doesn't fire Bartleby because even though he doesn't share and explain what he does , Bartleby still does his job and keeps the Boss satisfied. 3. What does the Boss do for a living? What kind of company is he running? The boss is a lawyer and he has his own office in office a place where he can hire people and have his own little business. 4. What does the Boss do for a living? What kind of company is he running? More questions to follow!