Inwards as the way out? Sources of suffering and the protagonists’ coping strategies in Bartleby, the Scrivener by Herman Melville, My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Mosfegh and The New Me by Halle Butler

Abstract

The article aims to show analogies between three literary works: Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall Street by Herman Melville, My Year of Rest and Relaxation by Ottessa Mosfegh and The New Me by Halle Butler. I will focus on the following points of convergence in these texts: surveillance, the nature of work and the effectiveness of the protagonists’ coping strategies. I will draw on some of the existing literature on Bartleby, the works of Francesco Berardi and David Graeber on work, Barbara L. Fredrikson and Tomi-Ann Roberts’ paper on the objectification of female body as well as Michel Foucault’s study of surveillance and Jonathan Crary’s book on sleep.