# Rev. Lemuel Wiley explained — Spoon River Anthology

> Chapter companion for Spoon River Anthology by Edgar Lee Masters.

## What happens

Rev. Lemuel Wiley reflects on his life's work, emphasizing his greatest achievement: preventing the Blisses' divorce and preserving their family's moral standing in the village.

## Themes in this chapter

### Hypocrisy and Corruption

Wiley's pride in preventing divorce contrasts with the underlying implication that his intervention may have enforced conformity rather than genuine harmony.

### Gender and Social Roles

The chapter highlights the pressure on families, particularly women, to maintain appearances and avoid the 'disgrace' of divorce.

## Character check-ins

### Rev. Lemuel Wiley

The speaker and protagonist of the chapter, a preacher who takes pride in saving the Blisses' marriage.

## Key lines

> I preached four thousand sermons, I conducted forty revivals, And baptized many converts. Yet no deed of mine Shines brighter in the memory of the world, And none is treasured more by me: Look how I saved the Blisses from divorce, And kept the children free from that disgrace, To grow up into moral men and women, Happy themselves, a credit to the village.

Despite a lifetime of preaching and baptizing, my proudest accomplishment was preventing the Blisses from divorcing, so their children could grow up respected and happy.

_Wiley measures his legacy not by his religious work but by preserving a family's social standing._

## Links

- HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/spoon_river_anthology_se/chapters/rev-lemuel-wiley
- Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/spoon_river_anthology_se
- All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/spoon_river_anthology_se/chapters