Spoon River Anthology · Chapter
Albert Schirding explained
Albert Schirding reflects on the irony of his life: while Jonas Keene lamented his children's failures, Schirding finds it more painful to be a failure himself while his children succeed.
What happens
Albert Schirding reflects on the irony of his life: while Jonas Keene lamented his children's failures, Schirding finds it more painful to be a failure himself while his children succeed. He raised successful children who left him behind, then tried to gain their admiration by running for public office, only to lose. His daughter's artistic triumph in Paris underscores his own sense of unworthiness and finishes him.
Themes in this chapter
Unfulfilled Lives and Repression
Albert Schirding's life is defined by his failure to achieve personal success or recognition, despite his children's accomplishments, leading to a sense of worthlessness and despair.
Death and Legacy
Schirding's legacy is overshadowed by his children's success; his own ambitions and failures culminate in his feeling of being 'finished,' suggesting a death of spirit or actual death.
Characters to notice
- Kinsey Keene
Mentioned as Jonas Keene, whose children were all failures, serving as a contrast to Schirding's own fate.
- Albert Schirding
The speaker who laments being a failure while his children succeed, and whose failed political ambition and daughter's success lead to his downfall.
Key passages
“But I know of a fate more trying than that: It is to be a failure while your children are successes.”
Schirding believes it is worse to be unsuccessful yourself when your children achieve great things.
Highlights the central irony of the chapter: parental pride mixed with personal inadequacy.
“I ran for County Superintendent of Schools, Spending my accumulations to win—and lost.”
He spent his savings on a political campaign for a school official position but was defeated.
Illustrates his desperate attempt to gain respect and the financial cost of his failure.
“The feeling that I was not worthy of her finished me.”
The realization that he did not deserve his daughter's success destroyed him.
Captures the emotional climax where his sense of unworthiness leads to his ruin.