Credibility in The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym

In The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket the idea of credibility and truth are main focuses. Readers are first introduced to Pym’s overwhelming doubt in the preface of the book. In the preface, Arthur talks about the truth so much that readers begin not to believe him. I believe that the preface leads readers to doubt and that without the preface this story would appear to be a typical travel narrative. Later in the book we see narrative doubt once again, in the middle of Chapter 4. “A narrative, let me here say, in its latter portions, will be found to include incidents of a nature so entirely out of the range of human experience, and for this reason so far beyond the limits of human credulity, that I proceed in utter hopelessness of obtaining credence for all that I shall tell....” (Poe 50). This quote demonstrates,  similarly to the beginning, the weaknesses of the narrator. Pym doesn’t believe that anyone will believe his story and that he could only publish it by pretending it was fiction. Pym offers this explanation because he realizes how outrageous his story sounds. This story leaves readers on their toes, wondering what will come next, and if it will be believable or not. On the larger scale, this quote speaks to readers at the time who might have believed this travel narrative to be true.