Resources for Discussing Herman Melville's Tale, "Bartleby, the Scrivener"

On February 27, 1982, the Wisconsin Humanities Committee presented an all-day seminar on Herman Melville's short story, "Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-Street," for approximately one hundred lawyers from south-central Wisconsin. The materials published here were developed for that seminar by Professor Merton M. Sealts, Jr., of the University of Wisconsin-Madison English Department. "Herman Melville's 'Bartleby"' and the study questions were sent to each registrant a month before the seminar with a copy of the text of the story (in Great Short Works of Herman Melville--Harper & Row, 1970) . "The Place of 'Bartleby' in Melville's Career" is an essay version of Professor Sealts' presentation at the seminar. "Further Reading about Herman Melville's 'Bartleby"' was distributed the day of the seminar. Participants also viewed a dramatization of "Bartleby," produced in 1979 by the Maryland Center for Public Broadcasting, and spent several hours pondering and discussing the story.