ENG250Y1 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: Herman Melville, Antihero, Bourgeoisie
Document Summary
Melville, bartleby, the scrivener : previous american culture was much more oriented towards working and the ideal of busyness, eg. Benjamin franklin was considered to be a busybody : the culture privileges and celebrates work and acquisition, yet walt whitman loafs and. He is much more laid back in contrast to franklin: bartleby does the same and presents us with a multitude of themes centered around it. What happens when the majority of society says no or i prefer not to or even mind your own business to many important issues: answer: it can and will be bewildering, yet it can"t be enforced. (eg. In bartleby"s case, to do what the lawyer wants him to do, but he still doesn"t). In a democratic society, we must honour the individual"s capacity to make their own decisions. Moby dick written by melville reflected on the younger generations ambitions in the. 1880s: all of melville"s writings, in some sense, are about writing itself.
