Examples Of Passiveness Of Bartleby

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Passive resistance is a powerful and effective way of dealing with control because, without any direct action, the opposition cannot find a ground to fight against, for there is no real direct threat. The passive resistance is incomprehensible, so in trying to understand the resistance as an attempt to solve or crush it, the opposition becomes even more disorientated and is left in a state of confusion, with no clear idea on what action to take next. Also, in attacking a passive resistance, the opposition ‘looks bad’, or seems less justified with the actions taken against said passive resistance. The unbreakable front also produces the responses in the opposition needed to keep the passive resistance strong and continuous, and even establishes …show more content…

Furthermore, the lawyer is fearful of damaging his image towards others. If he were to lash out against Bartleby, he would seem unjustified, inappropriate, and rude. Walter E. Anderson further goes into this idea that images do affect the lawyer’s outcome, stating “One might expect outrage, but the lawyer is only “nettled,” apologizing that even this reaction “was rather weak in me I confess” (p. 36). He is being mildly ironic, of course, but he also knows he is not “a villain” and would not be denounced for one” (Anderson, 391). As stated, one would expect anger and frustration from the lawyer, coupled with yelling and arguing towards Bartleby, but instead the lawyer holds his wrath for he knows he is not “a villain” (Anderson, 391), and therefore will not be depicted or thought of as one. The only way to formulate any conclusion or understanding of Bartleby is to guess or assume his identity, and recalling to an earlier quote by Nudelman, “staging multiple readings of “Bartleby” might seem ill advised” (Nudelman,

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