The final line in Herman Melville's Bartleby, the narrator shows the reader his lack of understanding humanity. The narrator shows an attitude that he thinks he knows everything, which society also has adopted this mentality. The narrator lives a very isolated life where he tries to over analyze observations, in which he always concludes the obvious. He applies this same approach towards comprehending Bartleby's life, this transpires onto his definition of humanity. The final statement, "Ah Bartleby! Ah humanity!" can be seen as Melville's final irony towards ignorance of today's society.

The narrator's world is a distorted image of the actual world outside of Wall Street. His interaction with the outside world is seemingly none. His office is an ill-lit room consisting of no windows to the outside world. He has no real joy in life; however, he focuses on in his employees' lives. He begins to focus...