- description
- # Narrator's initial resistance to Mr. Scribe and family's immediate pressure
## Overview
This segment is an excerpt from the short story "[I and My Chimney](arke:01KG8AJ72QDX8N8STJ3550X2NW)" by Herman Melville. It is a section of the story where the narrator initially resists the idea of removing his chimney, while his wife and daughters immediately begin pressuring him to proceed with the removal. The segment spans lines 668-682 of the source file, "[i_and_my_chimney.txt](arke:01KG89J1H4TA19251AXAPE3ZWC)".
## Context
This short story is part of the larger "[Melville Complete Works](arke:01KG89HMDZKNY753EZE1CJ8HZW)" collection. The segment is preceded by [Master Mason's Conclusion on Removal Feasibility](arke:01KG8AJN5HC9HHFXTJFCD9CSTA), where Mr. Scribe states that the chimney can be removed. It is followed by [Escalation of family's campaign and narrator's philosophical reflection on their persistence](arke:01KG8AJN5H3A1E8F1HN3REX8BV), where the family continues to pressure the narrator to remove the chimney.
## Contents
The segment captures the narrator's polite dismissal of Mr. Scribe, indicating his initial reluctance to remove the chimney. However, his resistance is immediately countered by the enthusiastic reactions of his wife and daughters, Julia and Anna, who are eager to begin the chimney's removal. The daughters immediately start asking when the removal will begin, which prompts the narrator to ask for patience.
- description_generated_at
- 2026-01-30T20:48:01.908Z
- description_model
- gemini-2.5-flash-lite
- description_title
- Narrator's initial resistance to Mr. Scribe and family's immediate pressure
- end_line
- 682
- extracted_at
- 2026-01-30T20:47:36.358Z
- extracted_by
- structure-extraction-lambda
- start_line
- 668
- text
- “I will think of it, too, Mr. Scribe,” said I, turning the knob and
bowing him towards the open space without, “I will _think_ of it, sir;
it demands consideration; much obliged to ye; good morning, Mr.
Scribe.”
“It is all arranged, then,” cried my wife with great glee, bursting
from the nighest room.
“When will they begin?” demanded my daughter Julia.
“To-morrow?” asked Anna.
“Patience, patience, my dears,” said I, “such a big chimney is not to
be abolished in a minute.”
- title
- Narrator's initial resistance to Mr. Scribe and family's immediate pressure