The Pressure Of Conformity In Bartleby And Office Space

It's in everyone's best interest to positively change the world, be it may be by saving lives in the surgery room, or protecting the nation. When an individual dislikes the work that he is doing, much like the protagonist of “Office Space” Peter Gibbons, he slowly begins to resent society. The thoughts of being lied to by society plants seed in both Peter Gibbons and Bartleby's minds as they are slowly crushed by the conformity that is encouraged in the workforce. In addition, in Office Space, Peter Gibbons was isolated in a cubicle, squared off from the rest of the world as he read and changed code. He received no benefits from doing so other than keeping his job and did the bare minimum because he did not care for the work. Like Peter Gibbons, many employees feel as though they have no voice, or that when they express themselves they will be overlooked. This is where the problem lies, due to these feelings many people lose their will much like the character Bartleby in “Bartleby the Scrivener” or rebel against the authoritative figures like Peter Gibbons does later on in the movie. When both characters were faced with the possibility of losing their livelihood Peter Gibbons choose to undermine the system and schemed a way to exact retribution after a time of simply not caring about the future; whereas Bartleby lost himself altogether.
Bartleby’s character is set in the 1850’s when men saw their jobs as a status of their manhood , community, and their lives as well as their marriage prospects. Whereas Peter Gibbons