A classic...
" Nothing so aggravates an earnest person as a passive resistance. If the individual so resisted be of a not inhumane temper, and the resisting one perfectly harmless in his passivity; then, in the better moods of the former, he will endeavor charitably to construe to his imagination what proves impossible to be solved by his judgment. Even so, for the most part, I regarded Bartleby and his ways.

Poor fellow! thought I, he means no mischief; it is plain he intends no insolence; his aspect sufficiently evinces that his eccentricities are involuntary. He is useful to me. I can get along with him. If I turn him away, the chances are he will fall in with some less indulgent employer, and then he will be rudely treated, and perhaps driven forth miserably to starve. Yes. Here I can cheaply purchase a delicious self-approval. To befriend Bartleby; to humor him in his strange wilfulness, will cost me little or nothing, while I lay up in my soul what will eventually prove a sweet morsel for my conscience.

But this mood was not invariable with me. The passiveness of Bartleby sometimes irritated me. I felt strangely goaded on to encounter him in new opposition, to elicit some angry spark from him answerable to my own. But indeed I might as well have essayed to strike fire with my knuckles against a bit of Windsor soap. But one afternoon the evil impulse in me mastered me, and the following little scene ensued:

“Bartleby,” said I, “when those papers are all copied, I will compare them with you.”

“I would prefer not to.”"
(scentless_apprentice takes two bottles into the shower!, Thu 24 Jan 2008, 21:22, 2 replies)

er
what?
(baz, Fri 25 Jan 2008, 6:35, closed)

I see what you did there
It's from "Bartleby the Scrivener", a short story by Herman Melville.

Side note: I started typing the title into the googlebox in firefox, and the list of suggestions was:

bartleby the scrivener summary
bartleby the scrivener notes
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bartleby the scrivener study guide...

For fuck's sake, write your own damn essays, kids!
(MrCanoehead Marzipaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaan!, Sun 27 Jan 2008, 10:27, closed)