Alphonsus Josephus de Ridder (7 May 1882 – 31 May 1960) was a Belgian writer and poet who used the pen name Willem Elsschot (pronounced [ˈʋɪləm ˈɛlsxɔt]). He was one of the most well-known Flemish authors. His most famous book, Cheese (1933), is the Dutch-language novel from Flanders that has been translated into the most languages of all time.

Early life and education

Elsschot was born Alphonsus Josephus de Ridder on May 7, 1882, in Antwerp, to a family of bakers. As a child, he often visited his uncle in Blauberg, a rural area near Herselt, where they walked in the Helschot region. This place later inspired him to use "Elsschot" as his pen name.

After attending a public school in Van Maerlantstraat and then the Royal Athenaeum of Antwerp, he enrolled at the Institut Supérieur de Commerce de l'État (nl), later known as the Rijkshandelshogeschool. There, he studied economics and business and earned a master's degree in commercial sciences in 1904. During his time at the school, he developed an interest in literature with the guidance of his teacher, Pol de Mont.

Professional career

After completing his education, Elsschot worked in Paris for a businessman from South America, then later for different companies in the Netherlands.

During World War I, he worked as a secretary for a national food relief committee in Antwerp. After this, he entered the advertising industry and started his own advertising agency in 1911. He managed this agency until his death.

Elsschot did not like working in advertising. Before his death in 1960, he said, "I am not only disgusted by advertising, but also by commercialism in general. And I wrote Lijmen because I had to get rid of it somehow. I had to advertise, because I could never live off my pen."

Literary career

Elsschot started writing poetry in 1900, and his first published work as a poet appeared in the magazine Alvoorder. However, he became well-known for his writing in prose. While living in Rotterdam, he wrote Villa des Roses (1913), a novel that follows the lives of people staying at a boardinghouse in Paris. When the book was first published, it was not widely noticed by critics or readers. His most famous works were written during the 1920s and 1930s, including Lijmen (1924), Kaas (1933), Tsjip (1934), and Het Been (1938). These novels mix serious and humorous elements.

Common themes in his writing include business and family life. His style includes detailed descriptions of settings and a slightly critical view of the world. In his early books, he used the same characters, helping readers become familiar with life in Antwerp during the 1930s. Characters such as Boorman, a businessman always searching for tricks and chances, and Frans Laarmans, an office worker, appear in many of his stories and develop throughout them.

Personal life and death

He was married to Fine de Ridder, and they had a daughter named Ida. He also had a relationship with the poet Liane Bruylants.

In 1920, he was made a knight of the Order of the Crown.

Elsschot died in Antwerp from a heart attack on May 31, 1960, at the age of 78. He was cremated, and his ashes were buried with his wife's remains in the Antwerpen Schoonselhof. He was given the State Prize for Literature after his death. In 1994, a statue of him was placed at Mechelseplein in Antwerp.

In 2005, he was ranked number 49 in the Flemish version of De Grootste Belg ("The Greatest Belgian").

Adaptations

The novel Lijmen/Het Been was adapted into a film by Robbe De Hert in 2001, titled Lijmen/Het Been. The book Villa des Roses was adapted into a film in 2002 by Frank Van Passel, also titled Villa des Roses.

In 2008, the novel Kaas ("Cheese," 1933) and the novella Het dwaallicht ("Will o'the Wisp," in Three Novels, 1946) were adapted into graphic novels by Dick Matena.