Laarmans is a mundane, mid-level clerk at the General Marine Shipbuilding Company in Antwerp. He is deeply insecure about his social standing and craves the prestige enjoyed by his wealthier acquaintances. When an opportunity arises via a wealthy friend to become the chief representative of a massive Dutch cheese-exporting firm, Laarmans leaps at the chance. He takes a leave of absence from his safe desk job and plunges headfirst into the world of commerce.
He proves to be a poor salesman; cheese shipments accumulate while his children actually manage to outsell him. Ultimately, he abandons the venture and returns to his old job. Literary Significance and Style
A high-quality PDF preserves this typography. Elsschot’s sentences are short. They are bullets. They are ledger entries.