Knave, Fool, and Genius: The Confidence Man As He Appears in Nineteenth-century American Fiction

The confidence man held a fascination for Melville, Hawthorne, Howells, Johnson J. Hooper, Bret Harte, and Mark Twain. In this study the writers are grouped in such a way as to emphasize certain large-scale cultural patterns of nineteenth-century America. Primary attention is given to the con man character himself and the ways in which he reflects the unique qualities and perceptions of a given writer.

Originally published in 1973.

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