Poe may be a drunk, and he may only write for money first and substance second, but no matter how base or coarse his purpose may be, every lie has a truth inside, or in the words of another every lie imparts the substance of the liar, and therefore while it may not be possible to derive the truth from the lie, the writer can never hide from his true nature. For that reason evidence shows Poe’s idea of spirituality, if not his whole mentality, is plagued by his grief, resulting in the idea that the world acts contrary to his own best intentions. Other authors write stories whose characters face similar peril, but their characters for the most part bring this fate upon themselves. This clearly shows a difference among the writers themselves. If their character can be shown through their work, then a writer’s sincerity, or its equivalent, hard work, can be proven. Poe’s ethical qualities are not affected by his lifestyle or emotions, but in this case are enhanced.

Melville is not known to have bad habits or have need of money on short notice. In fact he seems to be the opposite. After writing Moby Dick he began writing poetry, often a higher form of writing, and lost his popularity. It is safe to say that Melville is a sincere writer. He shall be our point of comparison.

            In “The Angel of the Odd” there is a short but effective description of the main character’s lifestyle. He reads, drinks, and sleeps. No exact mention of his profession is made, but it can be determined that he either is rich or has a well paying job, as he does not seem to be concerned about his job or his money, at least in the beginning. There is a mention of his skill in editing, “-I attacked with great resolution the editorial matter,-. “(Poe 559) Poe is known to be a drinker, and he was an effective editor for several periodicals. Already he is imparting himself to his work. Since the main character is so much like Poe, and that the story is a narrative, let us assume that the main character is Poe. How does Herman Melville impart himself to his own work?

            In “Bartleby the Scrivener” the main character is a lawyer who requires the employment of an additional scrivener, and receives a very odd one named Bartleby. The lawyer is the main character here because for one the story is a narrative, the lawyer being the narrator, and for another the author can best be analyzed in this way. Literary analysis based on Bartleby is said to show ideas of socialism, which was a popular idea near his time, and therefore expresses the author’s political views. Bartleby’s actions, and the lack thereof, can also be expressed spiritually. This would be much more accurate since Melville’s childhood was focused upon teachings of the bible. (Liukkonen) Bartleby is an example of a man who has died of spiritual famine. Bartleby came to the employment of the lawyer in search of something that cannot be attained by physical means. What spirituality gives us is a way to deal with death. Bartleby, who lacked this spirituality, saw death and despaired, dying as a result. “Do you not see the reason for yourself?”(Melville 130) Bartleby is referring to the view of the black brick wall. Melville at a later period in his life had lived in a charter house in New York, though for most of his life he lied on ships and in the country. Based on his origins, when comparing himself to other people he would naturally consider himself small and unheard of, hence the characters he writes about. Since Melville was a writer for his entire life with few to no breaks or bouts of depression his writing style is more advanced, and so his nature and beliefs are imparted to the whole story rather than one character.

            Poe was a prolific writer, as his works number to several hundred, and his contributions are as significant, having contributed to Burton’s Gentleman’s Magazine (1839–1840), Graham’s Magazine (1841–1842), Evening Mirror, and Godey’s Lady’s Book, and was an editor for Southern Literary Messenger. (Merriman) His ability as a writer can be said to be great in terms of volume, and often he directed his writing towards his audience rather than expecting them to understand him, as a man who writes for periodicals should. His popularity seemed to be cross indexed to his mood. If life is relatively good for him then he will write very much, very well, and as a nearly direct result attain popularity. As soon as he rebuilt his reputation, that is.

            Melville is a bit more of a true artist. Living the country life and writing books as a profession, he did not develop to the same degree a voice for his audience, and as a result did not attain a great deal of popularity during his life. His work received as much if not more popularity and respect after his death. This brings up an important question, is a great author who is not recognized until after his death before his time, or is he being taken advantage of? That is another paper entirely. Melville’s ability as a writer is not less, it is simply different.

            When an artist’s ability is so great that his work becomes more than merely art he will usually be trying to send a message, or be thinking in terms that the art itself can barely communicate. Both Poe and Melville have reached this state, where their expressions are fluid and seem to mean more than they say. They are relatively equal and therefore Poe can be considered a sincere writer in the ethical sense. Being of relatively equal value, readership comes down to a matter of preference. For wild tales of the sea and tales of extraordinary yet real American men, look to Melville. If you are seeking the essence of darkness, bad emotions and torment, look to Poe.

            Proving that Poe is a sincere writer follows a logical “equation.” Find a sincere writer, to act as the determining factor. Find the similarities of each writer to their own story, and you have the “truth” of the “lie.” Compare each “truth” to its writer’s ability, and you have the writer’s sincerity. Then compare the writer in question to the sincere writer, and you have the answer as to whether or not the writer in question is sincere. This only works because the sincerity of each author is qualified, and because sincerity can be qualified in terms of yes or no. As it turns out, Poe relates himself to his work on a personal level, while Melville relates himself to the whole story. This shows their point of view. Poe and Melville produce approximately the same amount of work, and their ability as writers are different but on the same level.

Works Cited

 Merriman, C.D. “http://www.online-literature.com/poe/.” online-literature.com. 01/001/2006. Jalic Inc., Web. 30 Sep 2009.

Poe, Edgar Allan. The Complete Tales and Poems of Edgar Allan Poe. 10th. New York: Barnes and Noble, 1992. Print.

Melville, Herman. “http://www.bartleby.com/129/.” bartleby.com. 01/001/2009. bartleby.com, Web. 30 Sep 2009.

Liukkonen, Petri. “http://www.kirjasto.sci.fi/melville.htm.” kirjasto.sci.fi. 01/001/2008. kaupunginkirjasto, Web. 30 Sep 2009.