The Piazza Tales
About this book
This collection of short stories is the only such book published in Melville's lifetime. "Bartley the Scrivener," the collection's most famous story, concerns a clerk who works as a copyist for a well-to-do Manhattan lawyer. Bartleby steadfastly refuses to perform any of the tasks required by his job and his reply, "I would prefer not to," comes to haunt his employer. Today "Bartleby" is considered one of the most significant American short stories and a precursor to the absurdist fiction of Franz Kafka. Also notable is the novella "Benito Cereno." The story concerns a slave rebellion on board a Spanish slave-trading ship in 1799 and is noted for its foreboding atmosphere and dark, complex plot. Another novella in the collection, "The Encantadas," offers a philosophical look at the Galápagos Islands.
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