In 1933 the novel Kaas (Cheese) was published, one of the masterpieces ofthe Flemish author Willem Elsschot (1882-1960). The story is about FransLaarmans, an office-clerk who, thanks to an influential friend, becomes anagent for a big cheese-firm. But he fails as a business-man and eventuallyreturns to his farmer employment.It is interesting to examine the writing-process underlying the novel, inwhich the different motives are elaborated from version to version. Especiallythe preserved manuscript presents a lot of functional additions written in themargins and on the left-pages. Analysing them may be conducive to a fullerappreciation of the novel.
