We all are trying to present ourselves in the best light possible. The lawyer in Bartleby, The Scrivener seems to do this. As the narrator of the story, the lawyer is in the position to have the readers of the story see him as a good person. In Bartleby, The Scrivener, Melville is asking his audience to look at people in a different way. We see the story through the lawyer’s eyes and we are able to identify all of the feelings that he is feeling. Throughout this story, compassion is displayed many times by the lawyer, even though many people would have a hard time showing compassion when they find themselves in the circumstances the lawyer is in. In the very beginning of the story, the lawyer tells the audience a little about himself. He describes himself as an older man who, “from his youth upwards, has been filled with a profound conviction that the easiest way of life is …show more content…
The reader is never told the lawyers name. Perhaps Melville wanted his readers to insert themselves into the position of the lawyer in order to view compassion a little differently. The lawyer then hires a man named Bartleby because his business has increased. Bartleby seemed to bring a refreshing calmness to the office. Bartleby was a hard worker for the lawyer. The lawyer says Bartleby, “ran a day and night line, copying by sunlight and by candle light”, which made him a hardworking, industrious employee. However, Bartleby’s response to the