Throughout the novel Bartleby, the Scrivener by Herman Melville and the speech House Divided by Abraham Lincoln, the main character or concept reflects an American archetype. Bartleby and Abraham Lincoln both see an issue in the society in which they live in and decide to use their intuition. Even though throughout this time period the economy is booming, jobs are being created, the industrial revolution is beginning to take place, and child labor is becoming an issue, Bartleby and Abraham Lincoln have deeper meanings beyond what the words reflect in the story to make America great again.
Melville showcases throughout the short story, Bartleby, the Scrivener, that there is a reason that instilled Bartleby to speak nonsense. The reason why Bartleby thinks this way could been created or formed in the past by society. “The conclusion of this whole business was that it soon became a fixed fact of my chambers, that a young pale scrivener, by the name of Bartleby had a desk there that he copied for me at the usual rate of 4 cents a folio (100 words); but he was permanently exempt from examining the work done by him.” Bartleby starts out as a fantastic worker but starts to struggle while using his intuition. His intuition dictates the reason why Bartleby continues to make the decision to make himself happy. When Bartleby speaks the words “I would prefer not,” I at first becomes furious at his decision but soon after realizes that he is displaying a normal American archetype. I realizes that you have to look at why certain people act and think the way they do. In life, all of us start out small not knowing right from wrong, but our upbringing can impact the way that we think and show our feelings and emotions. The word prefer, in Bartleby’s life, means that his intuition or gut feeling has taken over his mind and he is trying to make a difference in the world by saying these words. Bartleby is sacrifices his life and dies in prison to make the “I” wake up and realize that he made the wrong decision. By saying “Ah Bartleby! Ah humanity!” I feels as though he failed himself, humanity, and Bartleby. I sees himself in Bartleby and feels like the reason he died was because he was sacrificing himself to accomplish justice. Melville is highlighting throughout this short story how America will die if we do not make change.
All people throughout their life learn from imitation. The patterns that people display throughout their life could have been based on their upbringing and environment in which they were raised. People will use their senses to dictate their action. For example, in the speech House Divided spoken by Abraham Lincoln, he explains that he will not stop fighting until he receives what he believes is right. When Lincoln says “A house divided against itself cannot stand.”, he believes that a decision is needed to be made immediately in order to make the country strong and great again. He believes, just like an americas archetype, the country needs to be unified or there will be no America. Next he says, “I believe this government cannot endure, half slave and half free. I do not expect the union to be dissolved—I do not expect the house to fall— but I do expect it will cease to be divided. It will be become all one thing or the other.” This quote conveys why Abraham Lincoln believes why America stands the way it does today. The main purpose of America was to create a country that gave the right to display your freedom of speech. Since there are so many opinions on so many different issues, people need to come together to vote on an issue to create a since of unity within America. Even the bible says, “A house divided against himself cannot stand, and every kingdom that is divided will be brought to destruction.” This is the reason why Abraham Lincoln is using the words “House Divided” in his speech. His intuition is speaking to him that if no change is created and the country continues to be divided, than the kingdom of America will fall just like many others throughout history.
Some people might say that Bartleby and Lincoln are not American archetypes and that their actions that they display throughout their life do not reflect normal human patterns. Since people need to hear Bartleby and Lincoln speak about their past experiences and why they believe in the concept of fighting for what is right, both of them represent what America’s purpose was founded to be. America was not mean’t to put restrictions on your feelings, thoughts, and intuition but instead will encourage people throughout to state their opinion and follow their intuition. The concept of following your intuition is represented through many American figures including Donald Trump. Trump felt an urge inside of him to make America great again and followed his intuition to do so. He was not being president for the wealth or the fame because he already attained both of those objectives. Lincoln and Bartleby are displaying that they both want to speak what they feel is the correct concept to follow. Following their intuition expresses that they are a great example of displaying a true American archetype.Some people say that Trump is being the president of the United States not to express his opinion but to gain power and popularity. Lincoln, Trump, and Bartleby are not gaining popularity by making the sacrifices in order to achieve what they believe in, but instead becoming hated by many people. By taking risks and following their intuition there will be hate, death, and destruction.
Since Bartleby and Lincoln are displaying a deeper meaning in their words, their actions will speak the louder and will dictate how much they are willing to sacrifice in order to accomplish what they believe is right. “Prefer not”, “A house divided against itself cannot stand”, and “Making America Great Again” are two perfect examples of how they wish to express their intuition. After Lincoln and Bartleby spoke, change began to happen soon after, which dictated that they represented a true American Archetype.