Characters swindle one another with long, winding appeals to trust. Stories and fables are nested in one another. Aphorisms and lessons that you really have to scrutinize. That kind of thing.

There’s always a lot going on in Melville’s writing; The Confidence-Man is a series of gags, sure, but gags that have serious thoughts on judgment, philanthropy, racism, hypocrisy, integrity, humor, literature (and literary audiences), political organization, etc. Because these thoughts are often voiced by a swindler trying to borrow money (or sell you a “Pain Dissuader”), you have to be discerning as a reader. Which goes against that whole “trust” thing. Tricky stuff!