Sketches of Imposture, Deception, and Credulity

"Sketches of Imposture, Deception, and Credulity" by R.A. Davenport is a look back at history from the 1800s, showing how people's beliefs and willingness to trust have shaped events. It focuses on how easily people have been tricked by clever liars and explores the roles of doubt and faith in society. From olden times with oracles to more recent false prophets, the book gives a broad view of deception. The author starts off by talking about how important belief is for holding communities together but also how it can make people believe foolish things. Davenport studies the ways tricksters have taken advantage of people's trust and then goes on to look at different times in history to find examples of trickery. It all leads to a bigger question about what people think, what society expects, and the never-ending search for what is true.