1. As a lawyer, the narrator might be expected to use logic to rid himself of Bartleby. Does he? How successful is his attempt? What other kinds of appeals does he use, and how successful are they? 2. What kind of boss do you consider the narrator to be? Does your opinion of him change as the story progresses? 3. At one point, when the narrator asks Bartleby why he will not write, Bartleby responds, "Do you not see the reason for yourself." What is it that the narrator is supposed to see, and what does he fail to see? Why is Bartleby said to be the one with weak eyesight? In what ways do the ideas of seeing, vision, and understanding work in this story? 4. As the story progresses, the narrator's views about Bartleby undergo several transformations, and Bartleby begins to have a kind of power over him. How does Bartleby's influence over the office manifest itself? Discuss why and how this occurs. 5. Do you sympathize more with Bartleby or the narrator? Explain why.