Resistance as Fidelity in Melville’s Bartleby, the Scrivner

This paper seeks to answer the question of how Herman Melville’s character Bartleby, in his short story, Bartleby the Scrivner, is a figure of resistance, as well as how that resistance affects our understanding of the story. By applying several theoretical models to Bartleby, we can better understand his action as well as his non-action. This paper will argue that Bartleby’s non-action becomes an action of resistance, and that his resistance leads to his eventual end.