Bartleby the Scrivener
Written by Herman Melville
Narrated by Eric Meyers and Ghizela Rowe
4/5
()
About this audiobook
At the age of 7 Melville contracted scarlet fever which permanently diminished his eyesight. Add this to a contemporary description of being "very backwards in speech and somewhat slow in comprehension" and his opportunities for success seemed limited.
His father died when he was 12 leaving the family in very straitened times. 2 years later Melville took a job in a bank and followed up with a failed stint as a surveyor. He went to sea and travelled across to Liverpool and then to the Pacific on adventures which included a mutiny, being jailed and falling in love with a South Pacific beauty. He was also a figure of opposition to the coercion of native Hawaiians to the Christian religion. These experiences helped provide the novels ‘Typee’, ‘Omoo’, and ‘White-Jacket’.
By 1851 his ambitious masterpiece, ‘Moby Dick’, was ready to be published. It never sold out its initial print run of 3,000 and Melville’s earnings on his masterpiece was a mere $556.37.
In succeeding years his reputation waned, life was increasingly difficult. His family was growing and a stable income was essential. Melville took the advice of friends to try public lecturing, as others had, to increase his revenues. He embarked on three successful lecture tours, speaking on Roman statuary and sightseeing in Rome.
In 1876 he was at last able to publish privately his 16,000 line epic poem ‘Clarel’. It was to no avail. The book had an initial printing of 350 copies, but sales failed miserably.
It was only in late 1885 that Melville was at last able to retire after his wife inherited several legacies, enough to provide them with a reasonable income.
Herman Melville, novelist, poet, short story writer and essayist, died at his home on 28th September 1891 from cardiovascular disease.
Perhaps his best known short story is ‘Bartleby, the Scrivener’ an enduring story of a Wall Street lawyer and his very particular assistant.
Herman Melville
Herman Melville (1819-1891) was an American novelist, short story writer, essayist, and poet who received wide acclaim for his earliest novels, such as Typee and Redburn, but fell into relative obscurity by the end of his life. Today, Melville is hailed as one of the definitive masters of world literature for novels including Moby Dick and Billy Budd, as well as for enduringly popular short stories such as Bartleby, the Scrivener and The Bell-Tower.
More audiobooks from Herman Melville
Moby Dick Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Moby-Dick Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsB. J. Harrison Reads Moby Dick Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Moby Dick, or the Whale Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Bartleby the Scrivener and other stories Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Benito Cereno (Unabridged) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Confidence-Man: His Masquerade (Unabridged) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Related to Bartleby the Scrivener
Related audiobooks
Rappaccini's Daughter Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Piazza Tales (Unabridged) Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsHunger Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Bartleby the Scrivener and other stories Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Sun Also Rises Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsForeword: A Selection from the John Updike Audio Collection Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsErewhon Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5De Profundis Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Tales Of Unrest Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Metamorphosis Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Horse Dealer's Daughter Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Moby Dick or The Whale (Unabridged) Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Madame Bovary Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Heart of Darkness Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMoney Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Rocking-Horse Winner Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Lost Phoebe Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Trial Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Hunger Artist Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Manhattan Transfer Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Nervous Breakdown Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5This Side of Paradise Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJ.D. Salinger: The Escape Artist Rating: 3 out of 5 stars3/5The Weird Circle: The Last Days of a Condemned Man Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsCrime and Punishment Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
General Fiction For You
Good Omens: A Full Cast Production Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5All the Light We Cannot See: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Idea of You Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Court of Mist and Fury Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Court of Thorns and Roses Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5And Then There Were None Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5American Gods: The Tenth Anniversary Edition Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Norse Mythology Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Fight Club Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5It Ends with Us Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Finn Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Court of Wings and Ruin Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/511/22/63: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Man Called Ove: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5American Gods [TV Tie-In]: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Cloud Cuckoo Land: A Novel Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Anansi Boys Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Alchemist Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Ocean at the End of the Lane: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Dead Zone Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Doctor Sleep: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5A Darker Shade of Magic Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Neon Gods Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Return of the King Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Keeper of Lost Things: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Outsider: A Novel Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Two Towers Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Beartown Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Unhoneymooners Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Bartleby the Scrivener
2 ratings1 review
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Excellent narration! I listened while reading along and sometimes not, yet the narration paired with both perfectly!