Downstream · Chapter
IX: Peter the Boss explained
Peter Selamb consolidates his power at Selambshof by manipulating his siblings and exploiting his father's illness.
What happens
Peter Selamb consolidates his power at Selambshof by manipulating his siblings and exploiting his father's illness. He uses fear and guilt to control Hedvig into caring for their father, while secretly profiting from business deals and exacting revenge on Brundin. Peter grows fatter and more confident, drinking with his eccentric brother Tord and cynic Eklund, and maneuvering to become bailiff after old Hermansson's death. The chapter ends with Peter's sleepless night, haunted by Brundin's ghost and the fragility of his schemes.
Themes in this chapter
Greed and Moral Corruption
Peter's greed drives him to manipulate his family and exploit business deals, feeling a 'good conscience' from his revenge on Brundin. His moral corruption is evident in his lack of guilt over robbing his siblings.
Family Dysfunction and Betrayal
The Selamb family is rife with manipulation and betrayal: Peter uses fear to control Hedvig, Stellan sneers at Peter, and the siblings are pitted against each other for control of the estate.
Death and Mortality
Oskar Selamb's decline and the death of old Hermansson loom over the chapter. Peter's anxiety about his father's death and the flowers that 'smelt of a funeral' highlight the theme of mortality.
Characters to notice
- Peter Selamb
Peter manipulates Hedvig, spies on her, and uses fear to ensure she cares for their father. He grows wealthy through cunning business deals and takes revenge on Brundin, becoming known as 'Peter the Boss'.
- Hedvig
Hedvig is frightened by Peter's warnings and redoubles her efforts to care for their father, though she does so with a gloomy, obstinate determination. She is described as a 'ghost from the time of his great fear' and is religious.
- Oskar Selamb
Old Oskar Selamb lies bedridden, moved to a bright room but disliking the change. He is stubborn, spiteful, and directs his hate towards the flowers, which he throws under the bed.
- Stellan Selamb
Stellan is lazy, supercilious, and in uniform. He borrows money from Peter and loses it back to him in a card game, writing an I.O.U. He sneers at Peter's commonness.
- Tord Selamb
Tord lives in 'The Rookery' with animals, reads old volumes, and decides to become an animal painter. He takes in a bohemian artist named Eklund. Peter drinks with him and Eklund.
- Herman Hermansson
Old Hermansson, the guardian of Selambshof, dies in this chapter. He had been distant and on his dignity towards Peter, but showed fatherly interest in Stellan.
Key passages
“we shall become paupers. But if we can keep it we are sure to be well off, all of us.”
If we lose the estate, we'll be poor, but if we keep it, we'll all be wealthy.
Peter uses this threat to manipulate Hedvig into caring for their father.
“Peter felt something of the pleasure of the merchant who goes to his safe and turns over his gilt-edge securities.”
Peter felt the same satisfaction as a merchant inspecting his valuable investments.
Peter views his father's improved condition as a financial asset.
“He beat the nightmare of his childhood on his own ground.”
He overcame the fears of his childhood by defeating Brundin in business.
Peter's revenge on Brundin is a psychological victory over his past.
“In his inmost heart he had a feeling it somehow sanctioned his little tricks.”
Deep down, he felt that Eklund's cynicism justified his own dishonest actions.
Peter uses Eklund's radical views to rationalize his own behavior.
