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Christen Hurley

Professor Stone

ENG 325

05 April 2021

American Identity

During the 1820-1860 time period, authors and characters alike struggled

searching for their own individual “American” identity. More times than not, their journey

was further complicated due to other factors such as finding their voice, issues of

gender, race, class, and religion. American Literature explored various texts with this

overarching theme, two of which being Walden by Henry David Thoreau and Bartleby,

the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-street by Herman Melville. The characters within these

two works support the concept that finding one’s own American identity can prove

difficult, even more so when these characters also go through various other personal

conflicts while on their journeys. Various critics have explored this topic through both

works, and have various perspectives on the matter. Though critics may have different

ideas on what this looks like, it is clear that these two texts demonstrate the journey and

struggle of finding one’s own American identity.

The characters in both Walden and Bartleby, the Scrivener: A Story of Wall-

street struggle finding their own American identity. In Bartleby, the Scrivener, one of the

characters working at the office struggles with the freedom of choice. It can be

continually seen that he refuses to do the work assigned to him, and on your journey of

finding your American identity, this is a problem. One critic, Walton R. Patrick states,
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“Melville presented a character consistently engaged in ‘preferring not’ to alter the

pattern of his behavior, yet one whose freedom to do as he pleases is obviously quite

limited and who suffers from his futile attempt to act in accordance with his preferences”

(Patrick, 40). Though there could have been many reasons for Bartleby to act this way,

it can be determined that, perhaps, the “American dream” had stressed him out beyond

repair and his react to all of it was to simply not do any work. One thing is for certain,

Bartleby was enacting his right to free-will, even if it did not follow modern American

rules for economics. Since he was stating that he would “prefer not to” when asked to

get a work load done, he was exploring his freedom of choice, even though it is not

really applied in the work place, as the reader can see this through the progression of

the text. Patrick states,

Other interpreters have implied that Bartleby had free will by explaining his

strange behavior as a heroic assertion of independence and individuality over

‘normally accepted conventions,’ as the protest of a ‘naysayer in a yea-saying

culture’ or as the posture of a man who has decided to ‘withhold his consent’ to

‘live a pointless existence in a meaningless universe (Patrick, 42).

This interpretation still inherently shows the struggle of a man trying to find his identity

when he is struggling to see the point to anything, which may be one of man’s greatest

struggles aside from trying to find their own identity in a country as demanding as

America. Bartleby’s search for identity may have looked different compared to others

search, but due to his way of going about it, it can be seen how preference does not

work in the American economy in the long run. Within the text of Walden, the character
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finds a way around preference “not working” in society by living within nature, secluded

from society.

It can also be seen in Walden that the main character is trying to maintain his

own personal American identity. Through much different circumstances that Bartleby in

Bartleby the Scrivener, it is extremely apparent that both characters are on the search

for how to identify themselves. Walden had found his individuality more through nature

and being independent, perhaps, if Bartleby had been in similar surroundings, rather in

one of the most stressful places in America, Wallstreet, they would have had similar

outcomes. Walden finds his individuality and peace through nature, he finds that one

should connect to nature. Dean and Scharnhorst state, “Having imbibed the idea that

the daily life of his neighbors, with its cares, its trials, and its conformity to fashion and

custom was little better than a penance, he made himself a home in that secluded spot”

(Dean & Scharnhorst, 301). Walden did not want to live a life of conformity based upon

the ideal that he would be conforming to his neighbors. He was more interested in a

more secluded life style that would bring him his own individuality, and being in the

middle of the woods seemed to be the best way to achieve this goal. The critics state,

“His object of going there, in his own words, ‘not to live cheaply nor dearly; but to

transact some private business with the fewest obstacles; to be at once Pilot,

captain, and owner; to be hindered from accomplishing which for want of a little

energy and business talent, appeared not so sad as foolish,” (Dean &

Scharnhorst, 303).

It is obvious that he was not doing this to save some money, but so that he could live

his most efficient life. He did not want to be trapped in the society that pressures people
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to think inside of the box, rather than be an individual, rather than to be creative.

Walden did not want any part of the conformity that society had regulated. Through this

struggle of seclusion and change of pace, he was able to find his individuality through

nature and lack of conformity. Though this work can be compare to Bartleby, the

Scrivener: A story of Wall-street, the two authors of these works had different beliefs

and perspectives.

When taking a look at the authors behind Walden and Bartleby the Scrivener: A Story of

Wall-street, it can be noticed that they are following two different ideals. Henry David Thoreau

was a Transcendentalist, this entails that divinity pervades all nature and humanity. On the

other hand, Herman Melville was Anti-Transcendentalist, he did not believe that their beliefs

would sustain them. Their writing reflects their difference in perspective.

“In Walden’s opening chapter, ‘Economy,’ Thoreau considers the trade-offs we make in

life, and he asks, as Plato did in The Republic, what are life’s real necessities. Like the

Roman philosophers Marcus Porcius Cato and Marcus Varro he seeks a ‘life of simplicity,

independence, magnanimity, and trust’ (W, 15). Considering his contemporaries, he

finds that ‘the mass of men lead lives of quiet desperation’ (W, 8)” (Goodman).

This critic further dives into Transcendentalist ideas through Walden. The ideals portrayed

make the difference between the two texts apparent. In Walden, Walden takes control of his

life and moves away from society in order to live a live of non-conformity. On the other hand, in

Bartleby, The Scrivener, Bartleby stays within society, but refuses to do the work society wants

him to do. It should be noted, however, that Bartleby does end up dying. It seems as though

both authors agree that societies conformity does no go for the people within it, but they have
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different ways of explaining that message and beliefs on how to conquer these problems. This

has a lot to do with their beliefs, perspectives, and stances on particular issues.

Authors and character each had their own struggles during the 1820-1860 time period

while trying to find their “American” identity. Many outside factors contributed to excess

stress, including: race, gender, wealth, etc. Walden by Henry David Thoreau and Bartleby, The

Scrivener: A Story of Wall-street both demonstrate what it is like to be in search of your

American identity, and how society can hold back individualism and creativity. The two works

are clearly different in many ways, but the messages are fairly similar; conforming to society is

not going to make an individual happy, and it is not going to allow the individual to become

their true selves. This can be seen through Walden living in seclusion and Bartleby going against

societies norms by not doing his work, and merely saying that he would “prefer not to”. Both

texts make it very apparent that the stress society puts on conforming individuals, the less

happy people in society will be. Though Thoreau was a Transcendentalist and Melville was an

Anti-Transcendentalist, their ideas work well together, and in some areas are very similar. The

critics notice these issues being covered within the works as well. From 1820-1860, the search

for one’s American identity was strained by the conformity of society as well as many internal

struggles. Some authors and characters found what they were looking for in their search, and

others did not.

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Works Cited

Dean, Bradley P., and Gary Scharnhorst. “The Contemporary Reception of ‘Walden.’” Studies in

the American Renaissance, 1990, pp. 293–328. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/30227595.

Accessed 06 Apr. 2021.

Goodman, Russell, "Transcendentalism", The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Winter 2019

Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.),

https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/win2019/entries/transcendentalism. Accessed 07

April 2021.

Patrick, Walton R. “Melville's ‘Bartleby’ and the Doctrine of Necessity.” American Literature,

vol. 41, no. 1, 1969, pp. 39–54. JSTOR, www.jstor.org/stable/2924345. Accessed 06 Apr.

2021.