Ambiguity:
Exactly why does Bartleby always "prefer not to"? Why can't he make friends, or communicate? What's at the heart of his rebellion? Why doesn't he quit and get a different job?
Why does the Boss have sympathy for Bartleby?
What else in the story seems open to individual readers' interpretation?
Bartleby prefers not to because it doesn’t want to get fired so he says prefer not to in which in his preference, he doesn’t want to do it. He can’t make friends because he "prefers not to" make friends. Hes so closed off and keep to himself so he doesn’t let anyone talk to him. Therefore, he isolates himself from others that he can’t make friends. At the heart of his rebellion there is the boss and his feelings. He feels angry that he never gets an answer from Bartleby other than "I prefer not to". He is trying to show that he will not do it, but that he just simply prefers not to. He doesn’t want to feel what his last job probably made him feels. He doesn’t quit because he feels dead. His soul is basically dead so he just lingers around the job. The boss has sympathy for him because he probably saw some of himself in Bartleby. He was the cause of him changing in the first place. Bartlebys character and his rebellion are open to readers interpretation. Very little is known about his past in the first place. Also what is he really rebelling against? Stereotypes of 9-5 jobs? Working? Most of the story is open to reader’s interpretations. Also ,the other helpers around the lawyer’s office is open for interpretation. For example, what does Turkey, Nippers, and Gingernut have to do with the story? Things like that leave us with more questions than answers.
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