"'I would prefer not to,' How Bartleby can Help Us Make Sense of the Age of Artificial Intelligence"

Dr. James Elwood, Adjunct Professor of Philosophy at Henry Clay University

Abstract:


In this paper, I shall discuss how Herman Melville’s short story Bartleby, the Scrivener can inform us on the use of passive resistance and subversion in the debate surrounding artificial intelligence and its place in academia. While opinions on A.I. differ wildly, there is no doubt that its effects will radically alter the way scholarship in philosophy and the arts is conducted. Those of us still on the fence about A.I. feel that its use must not be allowed to overtly pervade the work of human endeavors. Thus, I propose that we approach A.I. usage with Bartleby’s adage: “I would prefer not to.” In the story, this simple phrase had the power to fell a hardened bureaucrat and completely strip him of his working environment. If we use phrase as our moto when interacting with artificial intelligence, we can distance ourselves from backsliding into luddite rhetoric.