Melville’s Bartleby: The Great-Great-Grandfather of the Quiet Quitters of Today’s Gen Z: Herman Melville’s “Bartleby the Scrivener” had It right: Why forcing workers back to the office misses the point. (Stephan Richter, 8/02/25, The Globalist)
Corporations across the globe are currently doubling down on “return to office” mandates. They are keen on summoning their employees back into their cubicles and open-plan watercooler chatter.And yet, one wonders: What exactly are they being called back to? The promise of collaboration? The lure of higher productivity? Or is it something more profane — a claim of presence meant to boost executives and assure them that corporate control has not slipped?