Bartleby, the Scrivener by Herman Melville

In a quiet New York law office, a new copyist named Bartleby begins to withdraw from work and life, repeating only the phrase, “I would prefer not to.” As his employer tries to understand him, Bartleby’s quiet resistance turns into a haunting mystery. The plot is minimal yet deeply psychological. A profound and unsettling story about isolation, routine, and passive defiance. A classic tale of quiet rebellion against an indifferent world.