The Confidence-Man
<p>In Herman Melville’s <em>The Confidence-Man: His Masquerade</em>, a group of steamboat passengers paddle to New Orleans on April Fool’s Day. As the Mississippi carries them down river, everyone is selling something: quack remedies; stock in a mining company about to fail; a fraudulent charity for widows and orphans. Set on the eve of the Civil War, as the frontier rapidly expands and Native Americans are driven to near-extinction, Melville’s narrative poses the question: “In which institution does one place one’s faith?”</p><p>A satire on the works of Manifest Destiny, <em>The Confidence-Man</em> was Herman Melville’s last novel before he retired from writing.</p><p>HarperPerennial Classics brings great works of literature to life in digital format, upholding the highest standards in ebook production and celebrating reading in all its forms. Look for more titles in the HarperPerennial Classics collection to build your digital library.</p>